Antioxidant Potential of Pine Needles: A Systematic Study on the Essential Oils and Extracts of 46 Species of the Genus Pinus.

Aikaterini Koutsaviti,Sofia Loupassaki,Olga Tzakou,Rouba Saliba,Vassilios Roussis,Efstathia Ioannou,Samer Toutoungy

doi:10.3390/foods10010142

Abstract

The antioxidant activity of the essential oils, as well as of the organic and hydroethanolic extracts, of the fresh needles of 54 pine taxa was evaluated using the peroxy-oxalate and luminol chemiluminescence assays. Among all evaluated essential oils, P. canariensis and P. attenuata displayed the highest levels of activity. P. contorta var. murrayana, followed by P. nigra var. caramanica, exhibited the highest antioxidant capacity among the organic extracts, while the most active hydroethanolic extract was that of P. nigra subsp. nigra. Based on the overall levels of activity, the latter taxon was selected for phytochemical analysis targeting the isolation of the bioactive constituents. As such, the organic extract of P. nigra subsp. nigra was subjected to chromatographic separations to yield 11 secondary metabolites (1−11) that were evaluated for their antioxidant activity. Nonetheless, the isolated compounds were found to be less active than the crude extract, thus suggesting the potential role of synergism.

Highlights

In recent years, interest towards finding new antioxidant agents derived from natural sources has increased, since synthetic antioxidant compounds currently in use, such as butylated hydroxy-anisole (BHA) and tertiary butyl hydroquinone (TBHQ), may induce serious side effects [1,2]
The antioxidant activity of the essential oils obtained from the fresh needles of 46 pine species, including 37 and 17 taxa of the subgenera Pinus and Strobus, respectively, was evaluated using the peroxy-oxalate chemiluminescence (POCL) assay
With the exception of the latter needle oil derived from a species belonging to the subgenus Strobus, the most active essential oils were obtained from taxa of the subgenus Pinus

Summary

Introduction

Interest towards finding new antioxidant agents derived from natural sources has increased, since synthetic antioxidant compounds currently in use, such as butylated hydroxy-anisole (BHA) and tertiary butyl hydroquinone (TBHQ), may induce serious side effects (e.g., carcinogenesis) [1,2]. Apart from preventing food deterioration by militating against the activity of reactive oxygen species, natural antioxidant agents may add nutritional value as functional food ingredients [3]. The genus Pinus, including approximately 110 species [4,5], is important from an ecological point of view, since its representatives form extended forests either in pure stands or mixed with other conifers. The genus Pinus is a well-known source of antioxidants, mainly phenolic compounds, including procyanidins and other flavonoids and phenolic acids, already available in the market as food supplements or phytochemical remedies, such as PycnogenolTM , a standardized bark extract from Pinus maritima, with a remarkable array of biological activities, used in the treatment of chronic inflammation and circulatory dysfunction [6]

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