Abstract
ABSTRACTThe antioxidant function of edible flowers have attracted increasing interest. However, information is lacking on the impact of edible flowers on oxidative injury including hypoxia-re-oxygenation and hyperlipidemia. The antioxidant activities of aqueous extracts from 12 Chinese edible flowers were assessed in four different antioxidant models, including total antioxidant capacity (TAC), oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC), scavenging hydroxyl radical capacity (SHRC) and scavenging superoxide anion radical capacity (SSARC). Subsequently, the potential antioxidant effects on rat cardiac microvascular endothelial cells (rCMEC) treated with hypoxia-re-oxygenation and hyperlipidemia rats induced by high-fat diet were also evaluated. The highest TAC, ORAC, SHRC and SSARC were Lonicera japonica Thunb., Rosa rugosa Thunb., Chrysanthemum indicum L. and Rosa rugosa Thunb., respectively. Most aqueous extracts of edible flowers exhibited good antioxidant effects on injury of rCMEC induced by hypoxia-re-oxygenation. In addition, the aqueous extracts of Lonicera japonica Thunb., Carthamus tinctorius L., Magnolia officinalis Rehd. et Wils., Rosmarinus officinalis L. and Chrysanthemum morifolium Ramat. could suppress the build-up of oxidative stress by increasing serum superoxide dismutase, glutathion peroxidase, and reducing malonaldehyde concentration in hyperlipidemia rats. These findings provided scientific support for screening edible flowers as natural antioxidants and preventative treatments for oxidative stress-related diseases.
Highlights
There is ample evidence that free radicals, especially reactive oxygen species (ROS), play an essential role in various aspects of physiological and biochemical processes, such as cellular signal transduction, cell proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis [1,2]
The lowest scavenging hydroxyl radical capacity (SHRC) was found in Rosa rugosa Thunb., Rosa rugosa Thunb., Rosmarinus officinalis L. and Chrysanthemum morifolium Ramat. showed the higher scavenging superoxide anion radical capacity (SSARC) when compared with other extracts
The present study has shown that the aqueous extracts of Lonicera japonica Thunb., Carthamus tinctorius L., Magnolia officinalis Rehd. et Wils., Rosmarinus officinalis L. and Chrysanthemum morifolium Ramat. inhibit the increase in oxidative stress in high-fat diet group, characterized by the decrease of serum MDA content and the elevation of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathion peroxidase (GSH-Px) levels
Summary
There is ample evidence that free radicals, especially reactive oxygen species (ROS), play an essential role in various aspects of physiological and biochemical processes, such as cellular signal transduction, cell proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis [1,2]. Excessive amount of ROS can produce a myriad of oxidative damages to biomolecules (e.g. lipids, proteins, DNA), which lead to many chronic diseases, including hyperlipidemia, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, ageing and cancer [3,4,5]. In view of the potential health risks and toxicity of synthetic antioxidants [6,7], naturally effective antioxidants have been widely concerned as preventive and treatment agents. Many places, such as medieval France and ancient China, have the traditional habit of eating flowers to improve appearance and nutritive value of meals [8,9].
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