Antioxidant Activity of Citrus Cultivars and Chemical Composition of Citrus karna Essential Oil

Abstract

The genus Citrus has a number of species and hybrids that are well established for their pharmaceutical and economic importance. The essential oil from Citrus karna Raf (Rutaceae) was analyzed for d-limonene (92.31 %), the major chemical constituent, along with other minor constituents such as α-pinene (1.23 %) and β-pinene (1.80 %). It showed significant inhibition for the oxidation of linoleic acid in the β-carotene-linoleic acid system. Essential oils A and B obtained from C. sinensis, with 35.08 % and 76.68 % d-limonene, respectively, were used to evaluate the effect of the d-limonene concentration on antioxidant potential. Studies showed that d-limonene and C. karna essential oil have a similar antioxidant potential (39.6 and 38.3 %, respectively). C. sinensis oils A and B showed only 10.5 % and 30 % antioxidant potential, respectively, indicating the possible role of d-limonene in antioxidant activity.

Abbreviations

BHA:butylated hydroxyanisole

BHT:butylated hydroxytoluene

FRSA:free radical scavenging activities

RI:retention indices

Key words

Citrus karna - Rutaceae - fruit peels - essential oil - GC-MS - antioxidant activity

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