In vitro antioxidant activity of Cocoa (Theobroma cacao L) peel

Abstract

Free radicals are electron-deficient species that are very reactive to cause various diseases, such as diabetes, cholesterol, cardiovascular disease, cancer, hypertension, and others. For this reason, antioxidant compounds are needed that can inhibit the performance of free radicals. Caco is a plant that contains many phenolic and flavonoid compounds that have potential as antioxidants. This study aimed to evaluate the total phenolic and flavonoid content as well as in vitro antioxidant assay. Cocoa fruit powder was macerated with methanol, and then fractionated with n-hexane, chloroform, and ethyl acetate as solvents. The antioxidant power was measured by DPPH and ABTS methods. The phenolic content was determined by the Folin-Ciocalteau method, and the flavonoid content was measured using the AlCl3 colourimetric method. The ethyl acetate fraction showed the strongest antioxidant activity using both the DPPH and ABTS methods with IC50 values of 5.61±0.032 mg/mL and 5.773±0.018 mg/mL, respectively. The total phenolic and flavonoid content of the ethyl acetate fraction showed high values, namely 22.767±0.1097 mg GAE/g sample and 90.337±0.552 mg QE/g sample, respectively. The cocoa peel can be developed as a natural antioxidant and can be used as a functional food.