Abstract : Baccaurea courtallensis, an underutilised endemic species of fruit bearing plant in the Western Ghats contains variety of phytochemicals. The objective of the present study was to identify the volatile molecules in the fruit rind and evaluate its anti-inflammatory activity. The dried fruit rind powder and extract made using hexane and ethanol were characterised using Solid Phase Microextraction-Gas chromatography- Mass spectroscopy technique (SPME-GCMS).The experiment identified the presence volatile and semi volatile compounds such as organic acids, fatty acids, furans, and sesquiterpenes. The major compounds detected in hexane extract were ar-curcumene and ar-turmerone while major compound in ethanol extract was acetic acid. In addition to this, dodecanoic acid, tridecanoic acids tetradecanoic acids, 4-tert-butylcyclohexyl acetate, cis-3 hexanal and furfural were also detected. The hexane extract was evaluated for anti-inflammatory effect by bovine serum albumin (BSA) denaturation assay. The extract showed remarkable anti-inflammatory activity (IC50 - 121.02 μg/ml). The detected antiinflammatroy activity may be credited to the presence of sesquiterpenes ar-turmerone and Ar-curcumene. The observations suggest that the B. courtallensis fruit rind extract is an encouraging source of phytochemical compounds with biological activites and it has the potential in nutraceutical as well as pharmaceutical industries.

Keyword : Baccaurea courtallensis, Endemic Species, Fruit Rind, GC–MS Characterization, Western Ghats.