Antioxidative effect and phytochemical profile of natural products from the fruits of “baba?u” ( Orbignia speciose ) and “buriti” ( Mauritia flexuosa )

摘要

Orbignya speciosaandMauritia flexuosaare two native palm tree species found in Brazil. Their fruits are rich in edible fixed oils, which are used for many purposes in industry, such as in the manufacture of soaps, surfactants and margarines. The aim of this work was to characterize the chemical profiles and antioxidant properties of the methanol extracts obtained from the fruits ofO. speciosaandM. flexuosa. The chemical prospection was carried out using specific qualitative tests to evaluate the presence of phenolic compounds (tannins and flavonoids) in the extracts of both species. The antioxidant properties of the extracts were analyzed by the following methods: production of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) from phospholipids, deoxyribose degradation, radical-scavenging activity-DPPH, iron chelation assay and ferric-reducing antioxidant power (FRAP). The methanolic extracts obtained fromM. flexuosaandO. speciosapresented significant antioxidant activities, althoughM. flexuosapresented higher antioxidant activity thanO. speciosa.In conclusion,M. flexuosaandO. speciosaare important sources of antioxidant substances that may be useful in the development of new products to prevent diseases associated with oxidative stress.