Abstract:Under normal physiological conditions,the production of reactive oxygen species(ROS) can be beneficial and harmless in the relatively low level. The importance of ROS has attracted increasing attention over the past decade. Modern theories of ROS have revealed that ROS play a dual role in organisms. ROS are not only strongly associated with lipid peroxidation, which lead to the deterioration of the food, but also involved in the development of a variety of diseases including cellular aging、mutagenesis、carcinogenesis、coronary heart disease、diabetes and neurodegeneration. Plants have many phytochemicals with various bioactivities,including antioxidant,anti-inflammatory and anticancer activities. The two major components,2',4'-dihydroxy-6'-methoxy-3',5'-dimethylchalcone and ursolic acid isolated from Cleistocaly operculatus,were investigated for their antioxidant activities. Superoxide anion radical scavenging assays,1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical and Hydroxyl radicals in Fenton Reaction by colorimetric assay were carried out to evaluate the antioxidant potential of the two compounds.
Keywords: Antioxidants; Flavonoids; DPPH; Reactive oxygen species; Cleistocaly operculatus
