Determination of antioxidant activity of sea buckthorn leaves

Introduction. Medicinal plants, the complex of phytocomponents of which includes vitamins, polysaccharides and simple sugars, organic acids, carotenoids, polyphenolic compounds such as: flavonoids, oxycinnamic acids, anthocyanins, lignans and tannins, have powerful antioxidant activity (AOA) and significant potential in the fight against active oxygen species. Low molecular compounds along with a group of specialized enzymes form the antioxidant system of the plants themselves, which is necessary to neutralize active oxygen species and protect cells from oxidative stress. Sea buckthorn leaves, on the one hand, have long been known as a raw material for pharmaceutical factories, on the other hand, according to literary data, have prospects for expanding the range of pharmaceutical products based on them, which can potentially have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, astringent, capillary-protective and venotonic effects.

Aim. The aim of the work was a comparative study of the antioxidant activity of sea buckthorn leaves at different periods of their development using different methods.

Materials and methods. The object of the study is sea buckthorn leaves. The AOA of the raw material and aqueous dosage forms based on it was assessed using a well-known spectrophotometric technique. The content of ascorbic acid in the leaves was determined using the titrimetric technique presented in Ph.A.2.5.0106.18 of the State Pharmacopoeia of the Russian Federation, 15th edition, «Rose fruсtus». The AOA of the leaf decoction was determined using the also known permanganometric method according to Maksimova et al.

Results and their discussion. The article presents the results of determining the total content of antioxidant substances (BAS-AO) in terms of ascorbic acid and the total antioxidant activity (AOA) of sea buckthorn leaves harvested in different periods of development in the Central Black Earth Region of the Russian Federation, using the method of differential spectrophotometry. The highest values were characteristic of the raw materials of the phenophase corresponding to the period of full ripening of the fruits. Analysis of the correlation of the obtained AOA values with the content of ascorbic acid, tannins and flavonoids in the leaves showed that the antioxidant effect is largely determined by the accumulation of ascorbic acid in them. As part of expanding the areas of use of sea buckthorn leaves in pharmacy and medicine, it was found that in a decoction, as one of the potential dosage forms based on raw materials, the total content of substances that prevent oxidation, expressed in the equivalent of ascorbic acid, was 17.50 mg%.

Conclusion. The method of differential spectrophotometry was used to determine the AOA of sea buckthorn leaf extracts harvested in different periods of development, and it was found that the highest values were characteristic of the raw material of the phenophase corresponding to the period of full ripening of the fruits. The analysis of the correlation of the obtained AOA values, which is the sum of the activities of different groups of biologically active substances-AO, pre-sent in one extract, with the content of ascorbic acid, carotenoids, leucoantho-cyanins, tannins and flavonoids in the leaves showed that the antioxidant effect is largely determined by the accumulation of ascorbic acid and carotenoids in them. In the decoction, as one of the potential medicinal forms based on the raw material, the total content of substances that prevent oxidation, expressed in the equivalent of ascorbic acid, was 17,50 mg%.

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