DETERMINATION OF BIOACTIVE CONTENTS AND IN VITRO ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY OF POLY HERBAL FORMULATIONS

Abstract

Free radicals are reactive molecules involved in many physiological processes and have been associated with many diseases, such as ageing, cancer, arthritis and liver injury and cardiac complications. In polyherbal formulations HAF-I and HAF-II, described below, the total phenolics content were found to be 34.4±0.10 and 27.6±1.20 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/g and total flavonoids contents, total tannin contents were 24.7±0.25 and 18.1±1.20 RE/g and 12.31±0.25 and 9.48±1.85 GAE/g, respectively. Free radical scavenging activity was determined according to the elimination of DPPH radicals. Total phenol content was determined by the Folin–Ciocalteu reaction. The relative antioxidant ability of the polyherbal formulations were investigated through two in vitro models, namely, antioxidant capacity by radical scavenging activity using α, α-diphenyl-β-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and nitric oxide (NO) methods. The extracts were used at 20, 40, 60, 80 and 100 μg/mL concentrations and radical scavenging activity was determined in terms of inhibition percentage. The IC50 (concentration required for 50% inhibition) were calculated for each radical. The present study was designed to evaluate the free radical scavenging activity of hydro-alcoholic extracts of polyherbal formulations (HAF-I & HAF-II) various in-vitro models using ascorbic acid and rutin as references. The in vitro free radical DPPH activities were found to be 74.17±0.18 & 75.30±0.18 and NO antioxidant activity were found to be 75.3±1.10 & 76.17±1.24 at maximum concentration of 100 μg/mL. The in-vitro anti-oxidant activity of these polyherbal formulations may be due to the presence of polyphenols.