Mentha species are used in every day life in various food items. These species produce valuable secondary metabolites that scavenge toxic free radicals. Toxic free radicals can cause different diseases in the human body. In the present study free radical scavenging potential (1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl scavenging activity) in nine Mentha species were investigated to evaluate and explore new potential sources for natural antioxidants. The activity was performed after different time intervals with incubation period of 30 minutes. The methanolic extracts revealed that significantly higher activity (82%) was observed in Mentha suaveolens, followed by Mentha longifolia (79%), Mentha officinalis (76%) and Mentha piperita, Mentha pulegium, Mentha royleana (75%), respectively. Significantly same activity was observed in Mentha arvensis and Mentha spicata. Lower activity was observed in Mentha citrata (64%). The present study revealed that these species can be used as natural antioxidants.
AhmadNFazalHAbbasiBHRashidMMahmoodTFatimaN (2010) Efficient regeneration and antioxidant potential in regenerated-tissues of Piper nigrum L. Plant Cell, Tissue and Organ Culture102: 129–134.
2.
AI-SereitiMRAbu-AmerRMSenP (1999). Pharmacology of rosemary (Rosmarinus officinals Linn.) and its therapeutic potentials. Indian Journal of Experimental Biology37(2): 124–130.
3.
AmesBNShigenagaMKHagenTM (1993). Oxidants, antioxidants and the generative disease of aging. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America90(17): 7915–7922.
4.
BenzieIFFStrainJJ (1996) The ferric reducing ability of plasma as a measure of ‘‘antioxidant power’’: The FRAP assay. Analytical Biochemistry239(1): 70–76.
5.
BronenAL (1975) Toxicology and biochemistry of butylated hydroxy anizole and butylated hydroxy toluene. Journal of the American Oil Chemists’ Society52(2): 59–63.
6.
CaiYLuoQSunMCorkerH (2004) Antioxidant activity and phenolic compounds of 112 traditional Chinese medicinal plants associated with anticancer. Life Sciences74(17): 2157–2184.
7.
CaoGPriorRL (1999) Measurement of oxygen radical absorbance capacity in biological samples. Methods in Enzymology299: 50–62.
8.
CookNCSammanS (1996) Flavonoids: Chemistry, metabolism, cardioprotective effects and dietary sources. The Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry7: 66–76.
9.
CouladisMTzakouOVerykokidouE (2003) Screening of some Greek aromatic plants for antioxidant activity. Phytotherapy Research. 17(2): 194–196.
10.
DeanRTDaviesMJ (1993) Reactive species and their accumulation on radical damaged proteins. Trends in Biochemical Sciences18(11): 437–441.
11.
DormanHJKosarMKahlosKHolmYHiltunenR (2003) Antioxidant properties and composition of aqueous extracts from mentha species, hybrids, varieties and cultivars. Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry51(16): 4563–4569.
12.
EvelsonPTravacioMRepettoM (2001) Evaluation of total reactive antioxidant potential of tissue homogenates and their cytosols. Archives Biochemistry and Biophysics388(2): 261–266.
13.
FerreiraAProencaCSerralheiroMLMAraujoMEM (2006) The in vitro screening for acetylcholinesterase inhibition and antioxidant activity of medicinal plants from Portugal. Journal of Ethnopharmacology108(1): 31–37.
14.
FukudaYOsawaTNamikiM (1990). Studies on antioxidant substance in sesame seeds. Agricultural and Biological Chemistry49: 301–306.
15.
GulluceMShainFSokmenMOzerHDafereraDSokmenA (2007) Antimicrobial and antioxidant properties of the essential oils and methanol extract from Mentha longifolia L. spp. longifolia. Food Chemistry103: 1449–1456.
16.
HosseinimehrSJPourmoradFShahabimajdNShahrbandyKHosseinzadehR (2007). In vitro antioxidant activity of Polygonium hyrcanicum, Centaureadepressa, Sambucus edulus, Mentha spicata and Phytolacca americana. PakistanJournal of Biological Sciences10(4): 637–640.
17.
Huda-FaujanNNorihamANorrakiahASBabjiAS (2009) Antioxidant activity of plants methanolic extracts containing phenolic compounds. African Journal of Biotechnology8: 484–489.
18.
KaurCKapoorHC (2002) Anti-oxidant activity and total phenolic content of some Asian vegetables. International Journal of Food Science and Technology37: 153–161.
19.
KhanaviMHajimahmoodiMCheraghi-NiroomandMKargarZAjaniYHadjiakhoondiA (2009) Comparison of the antioxidant activity and total phenolic contents in some Stachys species. African Journal of Biotechnology8: 1143–1147.
20.
KofidisGBosabalidisAKokkiniS (2006) Seasonal variations of essential oils in a linalool-rich chemotype of Mentha spicata grown wild in Greece. Journal of Essential Oil Research16: 469–472.
21.
LamaisonJLPetitjean-FreytetCDubandFCarnatAP (1991) Rosmarinic acid content and antioxidant activity of French Lamiaceae. Fitoterapia62: 166–171.
22.
Liyana-PathiranaCMShahidiF (2006) Antioxidant properties of commercial soft and hard winter wheats (Triticum aestivum L.) and their milling fractions. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture86: 477–485.
23.
MatkowskiAPiotrowskaM (2006) Antioxidant and free radical scavenging activities of some medicinal plants from the Lamiaceae. Fitoterapia77(5): 346–353.
24.
Mimica-DukicNBozinBSokovicMSiminN (2004) Antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of Melissaofficinalis L. (Lamiaceae) essential oil. Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry52(9): 2485–2489.
25.
MorenoLBelloRPrime-YuferaEEspluguesJ (2002) Pharmacological properties of the methanol extract from Mentha suaveolens Ehrh. Phytotherapy Research16(Suppl 1): 10–13.
26.
NaghibiFMosaddeghMMotamedSMGhorbaniA (2005) Labiatae family in folk medicine in Iran: Ethnobotany to Pharmacology. Iranian Journal of Pharmaceutical Research2: 63–79.
27.
OuBHampsch-WoodillMPriorRL (2001) Development and validation of an improved oxygen radical absorbance capacity assay using fluorescein as the fluorescent probe. Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry49(10): 4619–4626.
28.
PandeyAKRaiMKAcharyaD (2003) Chemical composition and antimycotic activity of the essential oils of corn mint (Mentha arvensis) and lemon grass (Cymbopogon flexuosus) against human pathogenic fungi. Pharmaceutical Biology41: 421–425.
29.
RamarathnamNOsawaTOchiHKawakishiS (1995) The contribution of plant food antioxidants to human health. Trends in Food Science and Technology6: 75–77.
30.
SouriaEAminGDehmobed-SharifabadiANazifiAFarsamH (2004) Antioxidative activity of sixty plants from Iran. Iranian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences3: 55–59.
31.
TutourBL (1990) Antioxidative activities of algal extracts. Synergistic effect with vitamin E. Phytochemistry29: 3759–3765.
32.
Van den BergRHaenenGRMMVan den BergH (1999) Applicability of an improved trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity assay for evaluation of antioxidant capacity measurements of mixtures. Food Chemistry66: 511–517.
33.
Vokovic-GacisBSimicD (1993) Identification of natural antimutagens with modulation effects on DNA repair. Basic Life Sciences6: 269–274.
34.
YadegariniaDGachkarLRezaeiMBTaghizadehMAstanehSARasooliI (2006). Biochemical activities of Iranian Mentha piperita L. and Mentha communis L., essential oils. Phytochemistry67(12): 1249–1255.
35.
ZhengWWangSY (2001) Antioxidant activity and phenolic compounds in selected herbs. Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry49(11): 5165–5170.
