Antioxidant Activity and Selenium and Polyphenols Content from Selected Medicinal Plants Natives from Various Areas Abundant in Selenium (Poland, Lithuania, and Western Ukraine)

The study was performed on Centaurea cyanus, Chamomilla recutita, Majorana hortensis, Ocimum basilicum, Plantago lanceolata, Sinapis alba, and Valeriana officinalis harvested in Lithuania, Poland, and Ukraine. Our aim was to determine the differences in selenium concentrations, total polyphenols, and the antioxidant activity in same-species samples from different regions. Another goal was to assess the correlations between these variables within the species. We found variations in most species, but not in all regions of harvesting. In four of the six species from Ukraine, we observed the highest concentration of Se. The selenium concentrations ranged from 15–182 µg/kg DW, and the greatest variation between the regions occurred in S. alba. The level of polyphenols was 5.52–53.25 mg TAE/100 g DW, and the largest differences between the sampling regions occurred in P. lanceolata and O. basilicum. ABTS radicals scavenging ability ranged from 5.20–59.79 μM AAE/100 g DW, while the FRAP potential was 13.56–409.14 μM FeE/100 g DW. The largest differences in antioxidant activity were found in O. basilicum and M. hortensis. Pearson’s correlation coefficients indicate that polyphenols may be responsible for antioxidant activity in Ch. recutita, O. basilicum, and V. officinalis, and selenium is responsible for antioxidant activity in M. hortensis. However, both polyphenols and selenium play a role in the antioxidant properties of C. cyanus and P. lanceolata. Also, selenium in C. cyanus and Ch. recutita may affect the level of total polyphenols. The examined species may supplement the human diet with exogenous antioxidants

THE CONTENT OF SELENIUM, POLYPHENOLS AND ANTIOXIDATIVE ACTIVITY IN SELECTED MEDICAL PLANTS FROM POLAND AND WESTERN UKRAINE

The three aims of the study were to: 1) evaluate the content of selenium and polyphenols, and to assess the reductive potential (FRAP test) and ability to deactivate ABTS•+ cation radicals in C. officinalis, H. perforatum, M. x piperita and S. marianum from Poland and Ukraine; 2) define the diversification in concentrations of selenium and polyphenols and in levels of ABTS activity and FRAP reductive potential within the examined species in relation to their location; and 3) evaluate the inter-dependencies between selenium, total polyphenol concentration, ABTS and FRAP activity, in the examined plants. We observed differences in the content of total polyphenols and antioxidative activity between the herb species and the location. Most selenium was found in M. x piperita and S. marianum from western Ukraine, with Polish H. perforatum from Pomerania and M. x piperita from Podlasie representing the highest TP content and antioxidative potential. A clear and significant relationship between the content of Se and antioxidative activity (ABTS and FRAP), and also between total polyphenols and antioxidative activity was noted only in H. perforatum. In C. officinalis a significant relationship was noted between Se and both total polyphenols and antioxidative potential. In M. x piperita a significant dependency was found between total polyphenols and antioxidative potential. The results of our research indicate a different role of selenium as an antioxidant in H. perforatum and C. officinalis, as well as polyphenols in H. perforatum and M. x piperita in dependence on the harvesting regions