Abstract

IN-VITRO ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY, PHENOLIC AND FLAVONOID CONTENT OF AERIAL PARTS OF RHYNCHOSIA CAPITATA DC

Dr. Sushma Chaturvedi*

ABSTRACT

Rhynchosia Capitata DC is a prostrate or climbing herb belonging to the family Papilionaceae. The search for novel natural antioxidants of plant origin has led to the investigation of Rhynchosia Capitata for its antioxidant activity. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the total phenolic content, total flavonoid content, and antioxidant activity of the methanolic extract of aerial parts of Rhynchosia Capitata DC Syn R. aurea as compared to the standard ascorbic acid. The antioxidant activity of methanolic extract was evaluated by various in vitro antioxidant methods including 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH) and ferric-reducing power (FRAP) assays. Different concentrations of methanolic extract were prepared and evaluated during the study. The total phenolic content was determined spectrophotometrically according to the Folin−Ciocalteu procedure and calculated in terms of Gallic acid equivalents (GAE). The flavonoid content was determined by the gravimetric method in terms of quercetin equivalents. The methanolic extract of Rhynchosia Capitata showed potent antioxidant activity due to its free radical scavenging activity in all models when compared with the standard ascorbic acid. A significant positive correlation was found between total phenolic content and IC50 values for DPPH and FRAP assays. The methanolic extract of aerial parts of Rhynchosia Capitata exhibited antioxidant activity in a dose dependent manner as compared to standard ascorbic acid in the study. The results were found as 96.20 mg/100g for total content of polyphenols, 63.44 mg/100g for total flavonoid content and IC50 of 0.07mg/ml for the antioxidant activity. The preliminary phytochemical screening of extract confirmed the presence of compounds such as flavonoids, tannins and saponins.

Keywords: Rhynchosia Capitata, Antioxidant, Phenolic content, Flavonoid , DPPH, Folin?Ciocalteu.