Antioxidant activity of different extracts of marigold, comfrey and yarrow

Abstract

This paper shows the antioxidant activity of different extracts of marigold (Calendula officinalis L., Asteraceae), comfrey (Symphytum officinale L., Boraginaceae) and yarrow (Achillea millefolium L., Asteraceae). As the activity and availability of antioxidants are directly linked to their chemical structure and solubility, the effectiveness of n-butanolic, ethyl acetate, ether, chloroform and water extracts of marigold, comfrey and yarrow against lipid peroxidation (LP), hydroxyl (OH•) and 2, 2-diphenyl-1- picrylhydrazyl (DPPH•) radicals were investigated, as well as the effectiveness of water, n-butanolic and ethanolic extracts against nitric oxide (NO•) radical. The extracts had greatly inhibited LP (more than 70%) in liposome. The most successful were 10% n-butanolic extract of comfrey, 0.5% chloroform extract of comfrey and 10% n-butanolic extract of yarrow. We noted that scavenging activity against hydroxyl radical in liposome was almost twice as weak as the effectiveness against LP. The most successful were 2.5% ethyl acetate extract of marigold, 10% water extract of comfrey and 10% chloroform extract of marigold. Ethyl acetate extract of yarrow was most effective against DPPH• radical, followed by n-butanolic extract of yarrow and ethyl acetate extract of comfrey. However, water extract of marigold was the most effective against NO• radical, followed by ethanolic extract of yarrow and water extracts of yarrow and comfrey. It can be concluded that all three investigated plant species contain compounds that produce considerable antioxidant activity, and because of their structural diversity, antioxidant activity of investigated extracts was strongly affected by the solvent used for the extraction and antioxidant test applied.