Antioxidant Capacity of Various Extracts of Asteragalus Morinus Boiss Aerial Parts

Abstract

Introduction: Herbs are used in many domains, including medicine, nutrition, and flavorings. Many species have been recognized to have pharmaceutical properties, e.g. antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and anticarcinogenic effects. Recently, there has been an increased interest in identifying natural antioxidant compounds for use in pharmaceutical and food industries, mainly due to increased unintentional side-effects of synthetic antioxidants. Polyphenols are the major plant compounds with antioxidant activity. They are ubiquitous in all plant organs and are, therefore, an integral part of the human diet. Methods: Four extracts (methanol, chloroform, polyphenol, aqueous) were prepared from aerial parts of A. morinus. The antioxidant activity was measured by two methods: DPPH and TEAC assays. The results of DPPH and TEAC assays were showed by IC50 and TEAC value at definite time point, respectively. Results: The IC50 of methanolic, chloroformic, polyphenolic and aqueous extracts in DPPH assay were 0.336, 0.804, 0.212, 0.836 mg/ml, respectively. The TEAC values of the extracts at 6 min reaction were 29.38, 14.55, 21.29, 24.22 µmol Trolox equivalents/100 g DW, respectively. Conclusion: All extracts showed antioxidant activity in both methods and the polyphenolic and aqueous extracts were found to have maximum and minimum activity in DPPH and TEAC assays, respectively. The results showed that polyphenolic extract has better activity in antioxidant assays