Antioxidant activities of Liquidambar formosana Hance leaf extracts

Leaves of Liquidambar formosana Hance has been be used as a rice dye for festival food by a small group of people in Guangxi province China. This study evaluated the antioxidant activities of extracts of L. formosana Hance leaves, and the effects of different extract solvents on total phenolics (TP), total flavonoids (TF), and antioxidant potential. The antioxidant activity of the extracts was assessed by using the following methods: in vitro: 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl and 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)diamonium salt both free radical scavenging assays, reducing, and phosphomolybdenum assays. Antioxidant activity of the synthetic antioxidant butylated hydroxytoluene also was determined in parallel experiments for comparison. All extracts exhibited excellent antioxidant activities and were superior to butylated hydroxytoluene. The antioxidant activity and TP and TF content of various extracts seemed to follow the same trend: ethanolic extract > water extract > acetone extract. This implied that there is a good correlation between antioxidant activities and TP/TF content. In addition, UV/Vis spectra of various extracts were examined to obtain potential antioxidant compounds in assorted extracts.