Phenolic Content and Antioxidant Capacity of the Different Parts of Atuna racemosa Raf. (Chrysobalanaceae)

Abstract

Growing concerns over synthetic antioxidants have increased interest towards plant-derived alternatives, particularly phenolic compounds. This study determines the Total Phenolic Content (TPC) and Total Antioxidative Capacity (TAC) of various parts of A. racemosa employing the Folin-Ciocalteu and phosphomolybdate methods, respectively, with samples extracted using 5% aqueous acetic acid.
Significant variations in total phenolic content (TPC) and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) were observed among different plant parts, expressed as milligrams of gallic acid equivalent (GAE) and ascorbic acid equivalent (AAE) per gram of dry weight sample, respectively. The TPC values were as follows: 102.12 mg GAE/g for fruits, 51.13 mg GAE/g for buds, 22.77 mg GAE/g for leaves, and 7.59 mg GAE/g for twigs. Similarly, the TAC values were 177.99 mg AAE/g for fruits, 93.46 mg AAE/g for buds, 33.33 mg AAE/g for leaves, and 12.14 mg AAE/g for twigs. A strong positive correlation between TPC and TAC (r = 0.997) indicates that phenolic compounds significantly contribute to the antioxidant activity of A. racemosa.
The study highlights the organ-specific distribution of phenolic compounds and antioxidants in A. racemosa, identifying its fruits as particularly rich reservoirs of these health-promoting compounds.