Abstract
The aim of this study was to optimize the extraction of antioxidant compounds from Schinus areira leaves using ultrasound assisted extraction and response surface methodology. The effect of sonication time and plant material:solvent ratio were used to optimize the recovery. Results showed that a high recovery of antioxidant compounds from leaves of three different S. areira specimens was achieved under optimized conditions. The leaf extracts obtained displayed a DPPH (1,1-Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl) radical scavenging activity analogous to the well-known antioxidant trolox (EC 50 = 23-46 vs 36.1 µ g/mL, respectively). In addition, these extracts showed a good potency to eliminate superoxide and nitric oxide-radicals as well as a moderate antimicrobial activity against gram positive Staphylococcus aureus and Enterococcus faecalis and yeast. HPLC chromatography analysis of the three S. areira leaf extracts showed different high contents of kaempferol-3- O -rutinoside, quercetin-3- O -galactoside and 3 -O -caffeoylquinic acid. The results showed that the S. areira leaf extracts contained a high amount of antioxidant phenolic compounds, which might be a valuable source to be used as additives in plant-based foods.
Highlights
Plant antioxidants are useful as food preservatives against oxidation reactions and microbial contamination, which are considered the major causes of food deterioration (Romano, Abadi, Repetto, Vojnov, & Moreno, 2009; Losasso et al, 2012; Martins, Arantes, Candeias, Tinoco, & Cruz-Morais, 2014)
Plants synthesize antioxidant compounds, which are mainly phenolics, to counteract reactive oxygen species (ROS) that can cause oxidative damage. They do this through different mechanisms, such as free-radical scavenging, hydrogen donation, singlet oxygen quenching, and they act as a substrate for radicals such as superoxide and hydroxyl (Moreno, Scheyer, Romano, & Vojnov, 2006; Zhao, Baik, Choi, & Kim, 2014)
The optimized S. areira leaf extracts obtained in this work exhibited the ability to eliminate labile H atoms, superoxide and nitric oxide-radicals, which are ubiquitous physiological free radicals implicated in many human diseases as cancer, neurodegeneration and other pathological inflammation conditions (Sen, Chakraborty, Sridhar, Reddy, & De, 2010)
Summary
Plant antioxidants are useful as food preservatives against oxidation reactions and microbial contamination, which are considered the major causes of food deterioration (Romano, Abadi, Repetto, Vojnov, & Moreno, 2009; Losasso et al, 2012; Martins, Arantes, Candeias, Tinoco, & Cruz-Morais, 2014). Plants synthesize antioxidant compounds, which are mainly phenolics, to counteract reactive oxygen species (ROS) that can cause oxidative damage. They do this through different mechanisms, such as free-radical scavenging, hydrogen donation, singlet oxygen quenching, and they act as a substrate for radicals such as superoxide and hydroxyl (Moreno, Scheyer, Romano, & Vojnov, 2006; Zhao, Baik, Choi, & Kim, 2014). A study of essential oil components of individualized specimens of S. areira tree was performed in six locations in the Northwest of Argentina, regions with the highest population density of this species, revealing different clusters based on their chemical profiles (Viturro et al, 2010). The chemical composition of these leaf extracts was determined
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
