Antioxidant capacity of Crataegus monogyna and Crataegus pentagyna leaves and fruits harvested from the Danube Delta

Crataegus species are known to be used in natural health products like tinctures, tablets and teas for the treatment of heart diseases [1]. In vitro, the fruits, leaves and flowers of Crataegus species have also been shown to exhibit antioxidant and antiproliferative activities [2, 3]. However, these properties are influenced by the type of plant organ, the harvest season, the species and the geographical origin. In this contex, different extracts of leaves and ripe fruits of Crataegus monogyna (CM) and C. pentagyna (CP) collected from natural habitats on the limit of Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve in September 2015 were evaluated for their antioxidant capacity. The aqueous, 40% (EtOH₄₀) and 70% (EtOH₇₀) ethanolic extracts were obtained from the dried plant material by ultrasound-assisted extraction. The antioxidant content of extracts was determined by Folin-Ciocalteu method, while the radical scavenging activity was assessed by DPPH test. In ethanolic extracts, the content of antioxidants ranges between 11.2 (EtOH₄₀, fruits) and 28.7 (EtOH₄₀ and EtOH₇₀, leaves) mg GAE/g (mg/g gallic acid equivalents) for CM extracts, while for CP extracts it varied between 8.95 (EtOH₄₀, fruits) and 32.6 (EtOH₇₀, leaves) mg GAE/g. Similar DPPH activities (2.34µM TE/g, micromoles of Trolox Equivalents) were found for leaf EtOH extracts of CM and CP. The EtOH extracts of CM fruits presented stronger DPPH activity (2.07µM TE/g) compared to the EtOH extracts of CP fruits (1.46µM TE/g for EtOH₄₀ and 1.49µM TE/g for EtOH₇₀). The aqueous extracts of both Crataegus species showed a lower antioxidant capacity. In the tested extracts, chlorogenic acid, hyperoside, isoquercitrin, and rutin were detected by TLC-fingerprinting. Isoquercitrin and rutin were not detected in CP leaves and fruits and CM leaves, respectively. In conclusion, the results of this study indicate that leaves and fruits of Crataegus species provide considerable antioxidant protection and can be suitable raw material for the food and cosmetic industries.

Acknowledgements: The work was sustained from the project PN 09 – 360401 (BIODIV) financed by MEN-ANCS, Romania.

Keywords: Folin-Ciocalteu, DPPH, ethanolic extract, aqueous extract, phenolic compounds.

References:

[1] Edwards JE, Brown PN, Talent N, Dickinson TA, Paul R. Shipley PR. A review of the chemistry of the genus Crataegus. Phytochemistry 2012; 79: 5 – 26

[2] Giurescu Bedreag CF, Trifan A, Bucur LA, Arcus M, Tebrencu C, Miron A, Costache II. Chemical and antioxidant studies on Crataegus pentagyna leaves and flowers. Rom Biotech Lett 2014; 19: 9859 – 9867

[3] Rodrigues S, Calhelha RC, Barreira JCM, Dueñas M, Carvalho AM, Abreu RMV, Santos-Buelga C, Ferreira ICFR. Crataegus monogyna buds and fruits phenolic extracts: Growth inhibitory activity on human tumor cell lines and chemical characterization by HPLC-DAD-ESI/MS. Food Res Int 2012; 49: 516 – 523

No conflict of interest has been declared by the author(s).