A practical evaluation of the antioxidative properties of sage (Salvia officinalis L.) extracts

Abstract

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are continuously generated in living organisms and are used in various beneficial physiological reactions, e.g. in signal transduction pathways in the body, immune defense, enzyme catalyzed oxidation, however in many cases ROS are harmful. Oxidative stress, caused by ROS in the living cell is associated with numerous diseases, like coronary heart disease, cancer, cataracts and age-related macular degeneration and ageing. Use of antioxidants can postpone problems caused by ROS and thus they are frequently used to retard oxidation processes in the food industry, production of food supplements and pharmaceuticals. Extract solutions were prepared by extracting 0.5 g of dry ground sage leaves collected in several years in 20 ml of methanol (75 vol. %). DPPH radical scavenging activity was measured by a slightly modified method of Brand- Williams et al [1]. A fresh solution of DPPH radical in methanol (6*10-5 M) was prepared daily, before spectrophotometric measurements. Compounds with antioxidant properties were identified using high performance liquid chromatography on-line postcolumn DPPH reaction method [2].[...]