Antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities of hot water extract from Pluchea indica Less. herbal tea

Abstract

In this study, antioxidant activity of the hot water extract of Pluchea indica tea leaves (HWEP) was measured by assays for radical scavenging against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl, superoxide and hydroxyl radical, ferric ion reducing power, as well as ferrous ion chelating. Results showed that HWEP exhibited good antioxidant activity in all test systems in a concentration-dependent manner. Furthermore, HWEP has potent inhibitory effects against lipopolysaccharide-induced nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production in RAW 264.7 macrophages. The hot water extract of P. indica leaves contains a source of antioxidants and inhibitors of NO and PGE2 production that can be used as dietary supplements containing good health promoting effect. Key words: Anti-inflammatory activity, antioxidant activity, herbal tea, Pluchea indica.