engleski

Evaluation of antioxidant activity and phenolic content in wild asparagus (Asparagus acutifolius L.), butcher’s broom (Ruscus aculeatus L.) and black bryony (Tamus communis L.) extracts

Wild asparagus (Asparagus acutifolius L.), butcher’s broom (Ruscus aculeatus L.) and black bryony (Tamus communis L.) are native plants traditionally used in Mediterranean diet, mostly as cooked or fried fresh spears. These herbaceous species are also widely appreciated for their medical properties. Some of them, like butcher’s broom and also some members of Asparagus genus are endangered and protected in Croatia. In this study samples of local populations from Istria (Croatia) were used. Three different assays (ABTS, DPPH and FRAP) have been used to evaluate the antioxidant activity of 40% and 96% ethanol extracts of air-dried spears. The correlation between antioxidant activity and total phenolic (TP), total flavonoid (TF) and total nonflavonoid (TNF) contents was also studied. All investigated species significantly (p<0.01) differed in antioxidant activity as well as in TP, TF and TNF content. Furthermore, significant differences (p<0.05) between two types of extracts within each tested species were also observed. The 40% ethanol extract of black bryony had the strongest radical scavenging activity and ferric reducing antioxidant potential, followed by butcher’s broom and wild asparagus 40% ethanol extracts. Antioxidant activities of 40% ethanol extracts of all three plants determined by ABTS and FRAP assays were well correlated with TP, TF and TNF content (0, 762≤r≤0, 790 for TP ; 0, 911≤r≤0, 913 for TF and 0, 759≤r≤0, 777 for TNF). In all tested plants higher contents of TP, TF and TNF were determined in 40% ethanol extracts compared to the 96% ones. Examined plant extracts showed to be a valuable source of natural antioxidants.

antioxidant activity, phenolic content, native plants, extracts

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