Antioxidant Activity and Total Phenolics in Selected Fruits,

Vegetables, and Grain Products

Y. S. Vel i ogl u,

G. Mazza,* L. Gao, and B. D. Oomah

Food Research Program, Agri cul ture and Agri -Food Canada, Paci fi c Agri -Food Research Centre,
Summerl and, Bri ti sh Col umbi a V0H 1Z0, Canada
The anti oxi dant acti vi ti es and total phenol i cs of 28 pl ant products, i ncl udi ng sunfl ower seeds,
fl axseeds, wheat germ, buckwheat, and several frui ts, vegetabl es, and medi ci nal pl ants were
determi ned. The total phenol i c content, determi ned accordi ng to the Fol i n-Ci ocal teu method, vari ed
from 169 to 10548 mg/100 g of dry product. Anti oxi dant acti vi ty of methanol i c extract eval uated
accordi ng to the -carotene bl eachi ng method expressed as AOX ( l og A
470
/mi n), AA (percent
i nhi bi ti on rel ati ve to control ), ORR (oxi dati on rate rati o), and AAC (anti oxi dant acti vi ty coeffi ci ent)
ranged from 0.05, 53.7, 0.009, and 51.7 to 0.26, 99.1, 0.46, and 969.3, respecti vel y. The correl ati on
coeffi ci ent between total phenol i cs and anti oxi dati ve acti vi ti es was stati sti cal l y si gni fi cant.
Keywords: Antioxidant activity; phenolics; medicinal plants; oilseeds; buckwheat; vegetables; fruits;
wheat products
I NTRODUCTI ON
Anti oxi dants are compounds that i nhi bi t or del ay the
oxi dati on of other mol ecul es by i nhi bi ti ng the i ni ti ati on
or propagati on of oxi di zi ng chai n reacti ons. There are
two basi c categori es of anti oxi dants, namel y, syntheti c
and natural . I n general , syntheti c anti oxi dants are
compounds wi th phenol i c structures of vari ous degrees
of al kyl substi tuti on, whereas natural anti oxi dants can
be phenol i c compounds (tocopherol s, fl avonoi ds, and
phenol i c aci ds), ni trogen compounds (al kal oi ds, chl oro-
phyl l deri vati ves, ami no aci ds, and ami nes), or caro-
tenoi ds as wel l as ascorbi c aci d (Larson, 1988; Hudson,
1990; Hal l and Cuppett, 1997). Syntheti c anti oxi dants
such as butyl ated hydroxyani sol e (BHA) and butyl ated
hydroxytol uene (BHT) have been used as anti oxi dants
si nce the begi nni ng of thi s century. Restri cti ons on the
use of these compounds, however, are bei ng i mposed
because of thei r carci nogeni ci ty (Branen, 1975; I to et
al ., 1983). Thus, the i nterest i n natural anti oxi dants
has i ncreased consi derabl y (Lol i ger, 1991). The abi l i ty
of some phenol i c compounds to act as anti oxi dants has
been demonstrated i n the l i terature. Several research-
ers have i nvesti gated the anti oxi dati ve acti vi ty of fl a-
vonoi d compounds and have attempted to defi ne the
structural characteri sti cs of fl avonoi ds that contri bute
to thei r acti vi ty (Ni eto et al ., 1993; Das and Perei ra,
1990; Foti et al ., 1996). o-Di hydroxy groups i n the B
ri ng, the presence of a C2-3 doubl e bond i n conjuncti on
wi th 4-oxo i n the C ri ng, and 3- and 5-hydroxy groups
and the 4-oxo functi on i n the A and C ri ngs are
associ ated wi th anti oxi dant acti vi ty. Phenol i c aci ds,
such as caffei c, chl orogeni c, ferul i c, si napi c, and p-
coumari c aci ds, appear to be more acti ve anti oxi dants
than the hydroxy deri vati ves of benzoi c aci d such as
p-hydroxybenzoi c, vani l l i c, and syri ngi c aci ds (Dzi edzi c
and Hudson, 1983; Larson, 1988). Burton and I ngol d
(1981) have shown that R-tocopherol i s one of the most
acti ve i n vi tro chai n-breaki ng anti oxi dants. Carotenoi ds
al so have a protecti ve functi on agai nst oxi dati ve dam-
age, and si ngl et oxygen i s very powerful l y quenched by
-carotene (Foote et al ., 1971).
Many of the natural anti oxi dants, especi al l y fl a-
vonoi ds, exhi bi t a wi de range of bi ol ogi cal effects,
i ncl udi ng anti bacteri al , anti vi ral , anti -i nfl ammatory,
anti al l ergi c, anti thromboti c, and vasodi l atory acti ons
(Cook and Sammon, 1996). Anti oxi dant acti vi ty i s a
fundamental property i mportant for l i fe. Many of the
bi ol ogi cal functi ons, such as anti mutageni ci ty, anti car-
ci nogeni ci ty, and anti agi ng, among others, ori gi nate
from thi s property (Cook and Samman, 1996; Huang et
al ., 1992).
The anti oxi dant acti vi ty of several pl ant materi al s has
recentl y been reported (Al -Sai khan et al ., 1995; Yen and
Duh, 1995; Oomah and Mazza, 1996; Wang et al ., 1996;
Cao et al ., 1996; Amarowi cz et al ., 1996); however,
i nformati on on the rel ati onshi p between anti oxi dant
acti vi ty and phenol i c content and composi ti on of many
food pl ants i s not avai l abl e. The objecti ve of thi s study
was to determi ne the contents of total phenol i cs i n
several pl ant products and to expl ore rel ati onshi p(s)
between phenol i c content and anti oxi dant acti vi ty. I n
addi ti on, the anti oxi dant acti vi ti es of al cohol i c extracts
of herbal products, such as gi nseng, echi nacea, and sea
buckthorn were compared.
MATERI ALS AND METHODS
Plant Material. Twenty-ei ght pl ant products, buckwheat
seeds and hul l s, fl axseed and fl axseed gum, sunfl ower seed
and hul l s, sea buckthorn frui t, gi nseng roots, echi nacea roots
and fl ower heads, whi te and purpl e fl esh potatoes, bl ueberri es,
sweet cherri es, red oni on ski n, horseradi sh roots and oi l , and
four wheat products, were assayed for anti oxi dant acti vi ty and
phenol i c content.
* Author to whom correspondence shoul d be addressed
[tel ephone (250) 494-6376; fax (250) 494-0755; e-mai l MazzaG@
em.agr.ca].

Present address: Department of Food Sci ence and Tech-

nol ogy, Facul ty of Agri cul ture, Uni versi ty of Ankara, Ankara,
Turkey.
4113 J. Agric. Food Chem. 1998, 46, 41134117
10.1021/jf9801973 CCC: $15.00 1998 American Chemical Society
Published on Web 08/29/1998
Buckwheat seeds (cv. AC Mani soba) were obtai ned from the
1995 harvest at Agri cul ture and Agri -Food Canada Research
Centre, Morden, MB. The buckwheat was dehul l ed as de-
scri bed by Mazza and Campbel l (1985) wi thi n 1 month after
harvest, and hul l s and seeds were stored at -25 C pri or to
anal ysi s.
The fl axseed were of the cul ti var NorMan and Li nol a 947,
grown commerci al l y i n 1995 near Wi nni peg, MB. The fl axseed
gums were extracted wi th water, preci pi tated wi th 95%
ethanol as descri bed by Cui et al . (1994), and spray-dri ed. The
four gum sampl es extracted from NorMan fl axseed, desi gnated
Fsg1, -2, -3, and -4, were preci pi tated wi th 1, 2, 3, and 4
vol umes of 95%ethanol , respecti vel y. The gum extracted from
Li nol a 947 was not preci pi tated wi th ethanol .
The sunfl ower seeds and hul l s were from the purpl e-hul l ed
breedi ng l i ne CM 160 grown at the Agri cul ture and Agri -Food
Canada Research Centre, Morden, MB (Mazza and Gao 1994).
Frui t of sea buckthorn (HippophaerhamnoidesL. cv. I ndi an-
Summer) were from commerci al pl anti ngs at I ndi an Head, SK.
The fi brotei ns were wheat products, ri ch i n fi ber and
protei n, manufactured by Mohawk Oi l Ltd. Vancouver, BC.
Fl ower heads and roots from a 1-year-ol d crop of echi nacea
(Echinacea purpurea) and horseradi sh (Armoracia lapathifolia
Gi l i b.) roots were from research pl ots of Agri cul ture and Agri -
Food Canada, Paci fi c Agri -Food Research Centre, Summer-
l and, BC. Ground roots were used di rectl y for assay or were
subjected to steam di sti l l ati on as descri bed by Mazza (1984).
Di sti l l ates of fresh roots (90-92% al l yl i sothi ocyanate) were
di l uted 1/10 ti mes wi th 80% methanol pri or to anal ysi s.
Sampl es of potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L. cv. Russet
Burbank) were obtai ned from a l ocal market i n Penti cton, BC.
Sampl es of purpl e fl esh potatoes were from a commerci al
producer i n Newfoundl and, Canada.
Lowbush bl ueberri es (Vaccinium angustifolium Ai t. cv.
Fandy) were obtai ned from research pl ots of Agri cul ture and
Agri -Food Canada, Research Centre, Kentvi l l e, NS. Sampl es
were kept at -30 C unti l used.
Sampl es of red oni ons (Alliumcepa L. cv. Red Jumbo) were
from a commerci al farm, near Yaki ma, WA.
Al l sampl es were ei ther ground or homogeni zed before they
were freeze-dri ed to ensure equal moi sture content.
Extraction. Ground sampl es (1 g) were extracted wi th 80%
aqueous methanol (25 mL) on an orbi tal shaker for 120 mi n
at 70 C. For the anthocyanin-containing samplessblueberries,
cherri es, red oni on ski ns, sunfl ower hul l s, and purpl e potatoess
extracti on temperature was 25 C. The l ower extracti on
temperature for the anthocyani n-contai ni ng sampl es was used
to prevent any thermal breakdown of the anthocyani n pi g-
ments. The mi xture was subsequentl y fi l tered (Whatman No.
5) on a Buchner funnel , and the fi l trate was assayed for
anti oxi dant acti vi ty.
Determination of Antioxidant Activity. Anti oxi dant
acti vi ty of pl ant extracts and standards (R-tocopherol , BHA,
and BHT; Si gma Chemi cal Co., St. Loui s, MO) was determi ned
accordi ng to the -carotene bl eachi ng method fol l owi ng a
modi fi cati on of the procedure descri bed by Marco (1968). For
a typi cal assay, 1 mL of -carotene (Si gma) sol uti on, 0.2 mg/
mL i n chl oroform, was added to round-bottom fl asks (50 mL)
contai ni ng 0.02 mL of l i nol ei c aci d (J. T. Baker Chemi cal Co.,
Phi l l i psburg, NJ) and 0.2 mL of Tween 20 (BDH Chemi cal s,
Toronto, ON). Each mi xture was then dosed wi th 0.2 mL of
80% MeOH (as control ) or correspondi ng pl ant extract or
standard. After evaporati on to dryness under vacuum at room
temperature, oxygenated di sti l l ed water (50 mL) was added
and the mi xture was shaken to form a l i posome sol uti on. The
sampl es were then subjected to thermal autoxi dati on at 50
C for 2 h. The absorbance of the sol uti on at 470 nm was
moni tored on a spectrophotometer (Beckman DU-50) by taki ng
measurements at 10 mi n i nterval s, and the rate of bl eachi ng
of -carotene was cal cul ated by fi tti ng l i near regressi on to data
over ti me. Al l sampl es were assayed i n tri pl i cate. Vari ous
concentrati ons of BHT, BHA, and R-tocopherol i n 80% metha-
nol were used as standards, and 80% methanol was used as
the control .
Anti oxi dant acti vi ty was cal cul ated i n four di fferent ways.
I n the fi rst, absorbance was pl otted agai nst ti me, as a ki neti c
curve, and the absol ute val ue of sl ope was expressed as
anti oxi dant val ue (AOX). Anti oxi dant acti vi ty (AA) was al so
cal cul ated as percent i nhi bi ti on rel ati ve to control usi ng the
fol l owi ng equati on (Al -Sai khan et al ., 1995)
where R
control and Rsampl e were the bl eachi ng rates of -carotene
i n reactant mi x wi thout anti oxi dant and wi th pl ant extract,
respecti vel y.
The thi rd method of expressi on based on the oxi dati on rate
rati o (ORR) was cal cul ated accordi ng to the method of Mari no-
va et al . (1994) usi ng the equati on
where R
sampl e and Rcontrol are the same as i n eq 1.
I n the fourth method, the anti oxi dant acti vi ty coeffi ci ent
(AAC) was cal cul ated as descri bed by Mal l et et al . (1994)
where A
s(120) was the absorbance of the anti oxi dant mi x at t )
120 mi n, Ac(120) the absorbance of the control at t ) 120 mi n,
and Ac(0) the absorbance of the control at t ) 0 mi n.
Determinationof Total Phenolics. Total phenol i cs were
determi ned usi ng Fol i n-Ci ocal teu reagent (Si ngl eton and
Rossi , 1965). Two hundred mi l l i grams of sampl e was extracted
for 2 h wi th 2 mL of 80%methanol contai ni ng 1%hydrochl ori c
aci d at room temperature on an orbi tal shaker set at 200 rpm.
The mi xture was centri fuged at 1000g for 15 mi n and the
supernatant decanted i nto 4 mL vi al s. The pel l ets were
extracted under i denti cal condi ti ons. Supernatants were
combi ned and used for total phenol i cs assay. One hundred
mi crol i ters of extract was mi xed wi th 0.75 mL of Fol i n-
Ci ocal teu reagent (previ ousl y di l uted 10-fol d wi th di sti l l ed
water) and al l owed to stand at 22 C for 5 mi n; 0.75 mL of
sodi um bi carbonate (60 g/L) sol uti on was added to the mi xture.
After 90 mi n at 22 C, absorbance was measured at 725 nm.
Resul ts are expressed as ferul i c aci d equi val ents.
RESULTS AND DI SCUSSI ON
Antioxidant Activities of Plant Materials. The
anti oxi dant acti vi ti es and total phenol i cs of 28 pl ant
products, i ncl udi ng fracti ons of fl axseeds, wheat, buck-
wheat, sunfl ower seeds, and several frui ts, vegetabl es,
and medi ci nal pl ants, are shown i n Tabl e 1. The
decrease i n absorbance of -carotene i n the presence of
di fferent methanol i c pl ant extracts (and wel l -known
anti oxi dants used as standards) wi th the oxi dati on of
-carotene and l i nol ei c aci d i s shown i n Fi gures 1-4.
Horseradi sh oi l had excepti onal l y hi gh anti oxi dant
acti vi ty, even hi gher than that of BHA and BHTat 400
mg/L and R-tocopherol at 200 mg/L. The major con-
sti tuent of horseradi sh oi l i s al l yl i sothi ocyanate (C
2
-
CHCH
2
NCS), whi ch represents 90-92% of the oi l .
Other components i ncl ude 2-phenethyl i sothi ocyanate
(3%), vi nyl acetoni tri l e (3%), al l yl thi ocyanate (2%), and
phenyl propi oni tri l e (1%) (Mazza, 1984). To our knowl -
edge there i s no known anti oxi dant mechani sm associ -
ated wi th these compounds. However, we suspect that
the observed anti oxi dant acti vi ty may resul t from
quenchi ng of si ngl et oxygen by the i sothi ocyanates (Hal l
and Cuppett, 1997).
AA )
R
control
- R
sampl e
R
control
100 (1)
ORR ) R
sampl e
/R
control
(2)
AAC )
A
s(120)
- A
c(120)
A
c(0)
- A
c(120)
1000 (3)
4114 J. Agric. Food Chem., Vol. 46, No. 10, 1998 Velioglu et al.
The fl axseed gum sampl es showed consi derabl e di f-
ferences i n anti oxi dant acti vi ty (AA ) 53.7-78.6) when
i t was cal cul ated by the four di fferent methods used i n
thi s study (Tabl e 1). Fsg1, whi ch was not preci pi tated
wi th 95%ethanol , showed strong acti vi ty because of i ts
hi gh phenol i c content (1354 mg/100 g) (Fi gure 1). The
other three fracti ons al l showed si mi l ar acti vi ti es wi th
AA for Fsg2, -3, and -4 at 53.7, 58.3, and 58.5%,
respecti vel y, and a phenol i cs l evel rangi ng from 328 to
377 mg/100 g (Tabl e 1). Fl axseed as a whol e showed
rel ati vel y l ow anti oxi dant acti vi ty (AA ) 60.6%). Si mi -
l arl y, sol i n gum, whi ch was not preci pi tated wi th 95%
ethanol , showed hi gh anti oxi dant acti vi ty (AA ) 82.1%)
because of i ts hi gh phenol i c content (1422 mg/100 g)
(Tabl e 1; Fi gure 1), and sol i n seed showed l ower
anti oxi dant acti vi ty (AA ) 61.6).
Anti oxi dant acti vi ti es of buckwheat seed and hul l s
were 63.7 and 94.9%, respecti vel y. The si gni fi cantl y
hi gh acti vi ty of the hul l s refl ects the hi gher phenol i c
content of the hul l , 3900 mg of phenol i cs/100 g i n hul l
versus 726 mg/100 g i n seed. Sunfl ower seed, potato
(Russet Burbank), wheat germ, and sunfl ower seed
sampl es al l showed rel ati vel y hi gh anti oxi dant acti vi ty;
al l of these sampl es al so contai ned above average l evel s
of phenol i c compounds.
Table 1. Antioxidant Activity and Total Phenolics of Methanolic Extracts of Plant Products
sampl e
no. name abbrev AOX
a
(A/h) AA
b
(%) ORR
c
AAC
d
total phenol i cs
(mg/100 g)
1 sol i n gum Sg 0.101 82.1 0.179 526.8 1422
2 fl axgum 1 Fsg1 0.121 78.6 0.214 433.0 1354
3 sol i n seed Ls 0.217 61.6 0.384 97.7 473
4 fl axseed Fs 0.222 60.6 0.394 51.7 509
5 fl axseed gum wi th mal todextri n FsgM 0.228 59.7 0.403 183.9 nd
e
6 fl axgum 2 Fsg2 0.235 58.5 0.415 74.7 328
7 fl axgum 4 Fsg4 0.236 58.3 0.417 195.4 338
8 fl axgum 3 Fsg3 0.262 53.7 0.463 136.0 377
9 bl ueberry Bl 0.044 92.1 0.079 796.3 4180
10 red oni on scal e Ros 0.055 90.2 0.097 743.3 10548
11 sunfl ower hul l , purpl e Sh 0.063 88.9 0.111 714.5 9747
12 sweet cherry Swc 0.099 82.5 0.175 580.4 2098
13 potato, purpl e Pp 0.221 60.8 0.392 197.3 781
14 horseradi sh oi l Hro 0.005 99.1 0.009 969.3 nd
15 sea buckthorn Sb 0.036 93.6 0.064 827.6 1112
16 echi nacea fl ower heads Efh 0.105 81.5 0.185 576.6 5467
17 echi nacea root Er 0.126 77.7 0.223 505.7 3841
18 gi nseng root Gr 0.175 69.1 0.309 333.3 347
19 horseradi sh root Hr 0.241 57.4 0.426 134.1 481
20 buckwheat hul l s Bwth 0.029 94.9 0.051 827.6 3900
21 potatoes (R. Burbank) Pt 0.113 80.0 0.200 509.6 437
22 sunfl ower seed Ss 0.153 72.9 0.271 279.7 1601
23 wheat germ Wg 0.199 64.9 0.351 235.6 349
24 buckwheat seed Bwt 0.205 63.7 0.363 124.5 726
25 fi brotei n MK22E3 Fm22 0.028 95.1 0.049 852.5 nd
26 fi brotei n MK11-DDG Fm11 0.100 82.3 0.177 536.4 1241
27 fi brotei n MK43 Fm43 0.207 63.4 0.366 321.8 169
28 fi brotei n MK37 Fm37 0.249 56.0 0.440 187.7 213
control Ctrl 0.565 0.0 1.000 0.0
BHT, 50 mg/L BHT50 0.089 84.3 0.157 672.4
BHT, 200 mg/L BHT200 0.016 97.2 0.028 911.9
R-tocopherol , 50 mg/L TOC50 0.016 97.3 0.027 929.1
a
AOX, anti oxi dant val ue.
b
AA, anti oxi dant acti vi ty.
c
ORR, oxi dati on rate rati o.
d
AAC, anti oxi dant acti vi ty coeffi ci ent.
e
nd, not
determi ned.
Figure 1. Anti oxi dant acti vi ty of methanol i c extracts of
fl axseed and i ts products assayed by the -carotene bl eachi ng
method (BHTR-tocopherol at 50 mg/L concentrati on was used
as a reference).
Figure 2. Anti oxi dant acti vi ty of anthocyani n-contai ni ng
extracts assayed by the -carotene bl eachi ng method.
Antioxidant Activity and Total Phenolics in Selected Crops J. Agric. Food Chem., Vol. 46, No. 10, 1998 4115
The anthocyani n-ri ch sampl es general l y showed very
strong acti vi ti es (Fi gure 2) as wel l as hi gh phenol i c
contents (Tabl e 1). The anti oxi dant acti vi ty of sunfl ower
hul l s, whi ch contai ned nearl y 10% phenol i cs of whi ch
2.2% were anthocyani ns, showed a very hi gh acti vi ty.
Potato (Russet Burbank), wheat germ, and sunfl ower
seed sampl es al l had moderate anti oxi dant acti vi ty,
consi stent wi th thei r moderate content of phenol i c
compounds. The resul ts confi rm that anthocyani ns
possess strong anti oxi dant acti vi ti es (Wang et al ., 1997;
Tsuda et al ., 1994a,b). Anthocyani ns are probabl y the
l argest group of phenol i c compounds i n the human di et,
and thei r strong anti oxi dant acti vi ti es suggest thei r
i mportance i n mai ntai ni ng heal th.
The medi ci nal pl ants showed very strong anti oxi dant
acti vi ti es (Tabl e 1; Fi gure 3). Sea buckthorn frui t had
the hi ghest acti vi ty (AA ) 93.6%) among the medi ci nal
pl ants (Tabl e 1). Other pl ants were general l y l ess
potent, wi th AA val ue from 81.5% for echi nacea fl ower
head to 57.4% for horseradi sh root.
Some of the fi brotei n sampl es i ncl uded i n thi s study
showed very strong acti vi ty (Fm22), and others showed
medi um to hi gh acti vi ti es. The anti oxi dant acti vi ti es
of these products are probabl y from the combi ned acti on
of phenol i cs and protei n i n the sampl es. Cereal protei n
has been reported to exert strong anti oxi dant acti vi ti es
(I wami et al ., 1987).
Relationship between Phenolic Contents and
Antioxidant Activity. The total phenol i c content of
the pl ant materi al s i nvesti gated i n thi s study vari ed
from 169 to 10548 mg/100 g of dry product (Tabl e 1).
The rel ati onshi p between total phenol i c content and
anti oxi dant acti vi ty of pl ant materi al i s shown i n Fi gure
5 and Tabl e 2. The resul ts i ndi cate that when al l pl ant
materi al s were i ncl uded i n the stati sti cal anal ysi s, there
was a posi ti ve and hi ghl y si gni fi cant (p < 0.001)
rel ati onshi p between total phenol i cs and anti oxi dant
acti vi ty. Stati sti cal l y si gni fi cant rel ati onshi ps were al so
observed between total phenol i cs and anti oxi dant acti v-
i ty of fl axseed products (R
2
) 0.963; p < 0.001) and
cereal products (R
2
) 0.905; p < 0.001). However, the
rel ati onshi p between phenol i cs and anti oxi dant acti vi ty
for the anthocyani n-ri ch materi al s and for the medi ci nal
pl ants was not si gni fi cant. The l ack of a si gni fi cant
correl ati on between total phenol i cs and AA of the
Table 2. Relationship between Antioxidant Activities and Total Phenolic Contents of Plant Materials
rel ati onshi p wi th total phenol i cs R
2
al l pl ant materi al s AOX ) -0.00001717[phenol i c] + 0.1883
n ) 28 AA ) -0.000001660[phenol i c] + 0.7016 0.4253
b
fi bers AOX ) -0.0001260[phenol i c] + 0.2854
n ) 8 AA ) -0.02220[phenol i c] + 49.53 0.9632
b
anthocyani n-ri ch AOX ) -0.00001111[phenol i c] + 0.1572
materi al s, n ) 5 AA ) -0.002355[phenol i c] + 79.78 0.4623
medi ci nal pl ant AOX ) -0.00001251[phenol i c] + 0.1647
n ) 6 AA ) -0.002218[phenol i c] + 70.87 0.1388
pl ant fracti ons AOX ) -0.00004041[phenol i c] + 0.1964
n ) 5 AA ) -0.007149[phenol i c] + 65.25 0.6698
a
cereal fracti ons AOX ) -0.0001200[phenol i c] + 0.2505
n ) 4 AA ) -0.02130[phenol i c] + 55.72 0.9051
a
a
p < 0.01.
b
p < 0.001.
Figure 3. Anti oxi dant acti vi ty of medi ci nal pl ants assayed
by the -carotene bl eachi ng method.
Figure4. Anti oxi dant acti vi ty of buckwheat seed and hul l s,
sunfl ower kernel , potatoes, wheat germ, and fi brotei ns assayed
by the -carotene bl eachi ng method.
Figure 5. Rel ati onshi p between total phenol i c content and
anti oxi dant acti vi ty (AOX) of pl ant materi al s.
4116 J. Agric. Food Chem., Vol. 46, No. 10, 1998 Velioglu et al.
anthocyani n-contai ni ng pl ant materi al s, whi ch i ncl uded
bl ueberri es, cherri es, red oni on scal es, purpl e sunfl ower
hul l s, and purpl e potatoes, refl ects the excepti onal l y
hi gh anti oxi dant acti vi ty of bl ueberry and red oni on
scal e sampl es despi te thei r very di fferent contents of
total phenol i cs (Tabl e 1). The composi ti on of the
phenol i cs i n red oni on scal es, pri mari l y fl avonoi ds
(Donner et al ., 1996), i s very di fferent from the phenol i cs
of bl ueberri es, whi ch are pri mari l y anthocyani ns (Gao
and Mazza, 1995). The l ack of correl ati on between the
phenol i cs and AA of the medi ci nal pl ants may be due
to the carotenoi d-ri ch sea buckthorn (Li and Wang,
1998). When the resul ts for thi s frui t were omi tted from
the regressi on anal ysi s, the rel ati onshi p between the
phenol i c contents and anti oxi dant acti vi ti es was si g-
ni fi cant (p < 0.05). Thi s i ndi cates that factors other
than total phenol i cs can pl ay a major rol e i n the
anti oxi dant acti vi ty of pl ant materi al s such as sea
buckthorn.
Further work i s i n progress i n our l aboratory to
el uci date the i denti ty of compounds responsi bl e for the
anti oxi dant acti vi ty.
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Recei ved for revi ew February 27, 1998. Revi sed manuscri pt
recei ved June 22, 1998. Accepted Jul y 17, 1998. Fi nanci al
support for thi s study parti al l y provi ded by Turki sh Sci enti fi c
Research Counci l (Ankara, Turkey) i s grateful l y acknowl edged.
JF9801973
Antioxidant Activity and Total Phenolics in Selected Crops J. Agric. Food Chem., Vol. 46, No. 10, 1998 4117