Antioxidant Activities of Solvent Fractions from Methanolic Extract of Cockscome (Celosia cristata L.) Flowers

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the antioxidant contents and activities of solvent fractions from methanolic extracts of cockscome flowers. The yield of methanolic extracts from cockscome flowers was 23.33%, whereas those of its solvent fractions (hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, butanol, and water) were 10.27, 20.00, 13.63, 17.55, and 38.54%, respectively. Total polyphenolic, flavonoid, tannin, and proanthocyanidin contents of methanolic extracts (ME) were 6.80 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/g ME, 2.34 mg catechin equivalent (CE)/g ME, 6.23 mg tannic acid equivalent (TAE)/g ME, and CE/g ME, respectively. The highest total polyphenolic, flavonoid, and tannin contents of solvent fractions were 14.92 mg GAE/g solvent fraction (SF), 5.44 mg CE/g SF, and 13.38 mg TAE/g SF in the butanol fraction, respectively. The total proanthocyanidin contents were 42.47, 44.43, 50.03, 49.12, and CE/g SF, respectively. The DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging activities from cockscome flowers were 5.24 and 10.70 mg Trolox equivalent (TE)/g ME, respectively. The highest DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging activities of the solvent fractions were 12.53 and 21.09 mg TE/g SF in the butanol fraction, respectively. SOD-like activities of methanolic extracts from cockscome flowers were 7.96 units/mL, whereas those of its solvent fractions were 4.56, 6.15, 8.07, 12.36, and 5.21 units/mL, respectively. The results of this study show that notable antioxidant activities in cockscome flowers have significant health benefits.