ACTA FAC MED NAISS 2014;31(4):245-252

Original article

UDC: 634.74:543:615.27

DOI: 10.2478/afmnai-2014-0030

 

Bagged Aronia Melanocarpa tea: Phenolic Profileand Antioxidant Activity

 

Jovana Veljković1, Jelena Brcanović1, Aleksandra Pavlović1, Snežana Mitić1, Biljana Kaličanin2, Milan Mitić1

1University of Niš, Faculty of Sciences and Mathematics, Department of Chemistry, Serbia

2University of Niš, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Pharmacy, Serbia


SUMMARY

While there is a large number of scientific papers reporting chemical composition and biological activities of Aronia melanocarpa, there is a lack information regarding the commercially available bagged tea. In order to supply new information on the antioxidant activity of the Aronia melanocarpa tea infusions, the aim of this study was to evaluate individual phenolic compounds which could be responsible for antioxidant activities of these beverages. Selected anthocyanins (cyanidin-3-O-galactoside, cyanidin-3-O-glucoside, cyani-din-3-O-arabinoside, and cyanidin-3-O-xyloside), gallic acid, caffeic acid, rutin, morin, and protocatechuic acid were simultaneously detected from commercially available tea infusions using a High Performance Liquid Chromatographic (HPLC) method. The antioxidant activity was measured using five in vitro spectrophotometric methods: 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging activity (DPPH), 2,2'-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) radical cation scavenging activity (ABTS), ferric reducing-antioxidant power (FRAP) and reduction power (RP)Fe(III) to Fe(II). Obtained results showed that anthocyanins, predominantly of cyanidin-3-O-galactoside, are the major class of polyphenolic compounds in tea infusions. Among phenolic acids the most abundant is caffeic acid. A significant correlation between DPPH and ABTS and FRAP and RP suggested that antioxidant components in these beverages were capable scavenging free radicals and reducing oxidants. Generally, these beverages had relatively high antioxidant capacities and could be important dietary sources of antioxidant phenolics for the prevention of diseases caused by oxidative stress.

 

Key words: Aronia melanocarpa, tea infusions, polyphenolic compounds, antioxidant activity, HPLC