Vol.13 (2023) No. 4 ISSN: 2088-5334 Phytochemical Screening of Tacca Plant (Tacca leontopetaloides L.) Ethanol Extract Using Spectrophotometry UV-VIS Method Sartika Syafi a,b,* , Bambang Pujiasmanto c , Edi Purwanto c , Venty Suryanti d a Department of Agricultural Science, Doctoral Program of Sebelas Maret University, Surakarta, Indonesia b Department of Agrotechnology, Faculty of Agriculture, Khairun University, Ternate, Indonesia c Department of Agrotechnology, Faculty of Agriculture, Sebelas Maret University, Surakarta, Indonesia d Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Sebelas Maret University, Surakarta, Indonesia Corresponding author: * tika.ips32016@gmail.com Abstract—Phytochemical screening is a general approach to medicinal plants and is a local knowledge that exists in the community. Tacca (Tacca lentopetaloides L.) is a traditional plant with criteria as raw material for traditional medicine, but most people do not know the benefits of these plants. Phytochemical screening tests have been carried out on the ethanol extract of the taka plant by soaking for 3 days. This Study aims to determine the phytochemical compounds found in plant organs such as leaves, stems and tubers using spectrophotometric UV-vis methods and quantitative methods. The testing mechanism uses the Tacca plant's leaves, stems and tubers. Screening phytochemicals of ethanol extract included tests for flavonoids, alkaloids, tannins, phenols, and saponins. From the results of the Study, it can be seen that the location of the Tacca plant grows very significantly affects phytochemical compounds. From the three research locations, Gorango village has higher yields, namely the tubers that have a number of alkaloid compounds around 2,496.35 mg/kg and saponins (4,203.32 mg/kg), followed by flavonoids (7.20), tannins. (12.74) and phenol (4.08), followed by the villages of Bebsili and Gurua. This indicates that the Tacca plant contains phytochemical compounds, including alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins, phenols and tannins which have properties such as pain relievers, anticancer, antibacterial, anti-viral, so that the Tacca plant can be used as recommendation material as a mixture of medicinal ingredients in world of medicine. Keywords—Screening phytochemical; tacca plants; spectrophotometric UV-vis; ethanol extract. Manuscript received 21 Aug. 2022; revised 14 Nov. 2022; accepted 9 Jan. 2023. Date of publication 31 Aug. 2023. IJASEIT is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International License. I. INTRODUCTION Since ancient times, the Indonesian people have known medicinal plants known as potions (rorano). One area that still uses traditional ingredients is North Maluku; most people still rely on traditional ingredients as medicinal ingredients. Medicinal plants have health benefits and have been known for a long time by the people of Indonesia. Medicinal plants play an important role in life [1]. This herb is a drug that can treat various diseases such as itching, diabetes, liver, kidney, heart, and cancer [2]. Tacca (Tacca lentopetaloides L.) is a traditional plant with criteria as a medicinal raw material, but most people do not know the benefits of these plants. The use of traditional medicine is hereditary, and Most of the people of North Maluku still rely on traditional ingredients as medicinal ingredients. Medicinal plants have health benefits and have been known for a long time by the people of Indonesia. Medicinal plants play an important role in life [1]. Tacca is one of the traditional plants with criteria as a medicinal raw material, but most people do not know the benefits of these plants. Traditional medicine is passed down from generation to generation and treats various diseases [3]. The use of traditional medicine in terms of side effects is relatively less than chemical drugs or modern medicines, so traditional medicines are considered safe for consumption while still paying attention to the dose of use [4]. The modern medical world has widely appreciated today's traditional plants because they have medicinal properties that have been studied and studied scientifically [4]. This shows that medicinal plants contain compounds that benefit health [5]. Tacca can be used as a laxative, diabetes, and anti-malarial, relieving tooth pain, reducing swelling, and stopping bleeding [6]. Tacca has a myriad of benefits, such as anticancer, anti- malaria anti-virus. In line with the research reported that S. polyanthum leaves have antibacterial activity against staphylococcus aureus, E. coli, listeria monocytogenes, 1316