Planta Med 2014; 80 - P1C18
DOI: 10.1055/s-0034-1394643

Antioxidant a of Bauhinia forficata Link (Fabaceae) using DPPH, ferric reducing antioxidant power and β-carotene bleaching assays

CM Gasparetto 1, ML Borges 1, BCS Santos 1, LS Fernandes 1, G Del-Vechio-Vieira 1, LM Mendonça 2, MS Alves 1, OV Sousa 1
  • 1Faculty of Pharmacy, Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Rua José Lourenço Kelmer, s/n – Campus Universitário, Bairro São Pedro, Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais, 36036 – 900, Brazil
  • 2Faculty of Pharmacy, Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Israel Pinheiro 2000 – Campus Avançado de Governador Valadares, Bairro Universitário, Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais, 35020 – 220, Brazil

Bauhinia forficata Link (Fabaceae), commonly known in Brazil as “pata-de-vaca”, is a native South America tree traditionally used for the treatment of Diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemias, and other organic disturbs [1]. These dysfunctions are associated with oxidative stress and cellular damage. In addition, the major phytochemical group of secondary metabolites presents in this specie is phenolic compounds, particularly flavonoids [2]. Keeping this in view, the current study investigated the antioxidant activity of ethanol extract (EE) and hexane (HF), dichloromethane (DF), ethyl acetate (EAF) and butanol (BF) fractions obtained from B. forficata leaves. The antioxidant activity was assessed by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), and β-carotene bleaching assays [3,4]. As reference substances, rutin and ascorbic acid (AA) were used in DPPH and FRAP assays, and butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), rutin and quercetin in β-carotene bleaching method. Tests were performed in triplicate. Results were expressed as mean ± S.D. Data were statistically analyzed by one-way ANOVA, followed by Tukey's test (p < 0.05). In the DPPH and FRAP assays, all results showed statistically significant difference, possessing EC50 values (µg.mL-1) ranging from 27.95 ± 0.33 (EAF) to 193.62 ± 1.12 (HF) for DPPH assay, and from 21.12 ± 0.52 (EAF) to 328.45 ± 3.23 (DF) for FRAP test, respectively. In the β-carotene bleaching method, the percentage inhibition of lipid peroxidation (%I) of EE (67.07 ± 1.48) and HF (71.52 ± 0.00) showed no statistically significant difference regarding BHT (67.23 ± 2.07). All this data indicate that B. forficata appears to be a potential source of bioactive molecules with antioxidant activity for several applications.

Acknowledgements: UFJF, FAPEMIG, CAPES and CNPq.

Keywords: Bauhinia forficata, Fabaceae, Antioxidant Activity, Flavonoids, Natural Products, Herbal Medicines.

References:

[1] Miyake E.T., Akisue G., Akisue M.K. Pharmacognostic characterization of pata-de-vaca Bauhinia forficata Link. Rev. Bras. Farmacogn., 1986, 1: 58 – 68. [2] Cechinel-Filho V. Chemical composition and biological potential of plants from the genus Bauhinia. Phytother. Res., 2009, 23: 1347 – 1354. [3] Oyaizu, M. Studies on product of browning reaction prepared from glucose anime. J. Nutr., 1986, 44: 307 – 315. [4] Koleva I.I., van Beek T.A., Linssen J.P.H., Groot A., Evstatieva L.N. Screening of plant extracts for antioxidant activity: a comparative study on three testing methods. Phytochem. Anal., 2002, 13: 8 – 17.