Differential Antioxidant Composition and Potential of some commonly used Indian Spices

Abstract

Spices and herbs have been added to Indian foods not only as flavoring agents but also as natural supplements of medicines and food preservatives. The purpose of this study was to study the composition and antioxidant potential of some commonly used seed spices and derive a correlation between their phytochemical components and antioxidant capacity. Crushed seeds of cumin (Cuminum cyminum), coriander (Coriandrum sativum), fennel (Foeniculum vulgare), fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum), ajwain (Trachyspermum ammi) and turmeric (Curcuma longa) were used to prepare methanolic extract and  iron(III) reduction, DPPH (1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl) radical scavenging, hydrogen peroxide , superoxide and nitric oxide radical scavenging, reducing power were assayed as an index of the antioxidant capacity along with phenolics and flavonoids were also estimated. In addition to turmeric, ajwain, fennel and coriander showed higher phenolic, flavonoid content, and antioxidant potential in comparison to fenugreek and cumin. The extracts of these spices are promising sources of alternative medicine with high free radical scavenging ability for synthetic antioxidants and can also be used for therapeutic purposes as well.