The biologically active substances in the different cultivars of basil leaves

Abstract

Basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) belongs to Lamiaceae family, and it is highly aromatic with pleasant taste used mostly in culinary. Basil is an aromatic herb which has a high value and is of high demand in the world. The influence of the cultivars on the accumulation of biologically active substances with antioxidant properties was studied for five cultivars 'Lemon', 'Purple Opal', 'Cinamon', 'Toscano', and 'Verde Foglia Fine'. The experiment was conducted in the greenhouse during period from February to May 2017. Total phenolic compounds, ABTS, ascorbic acid and chlorophylls were determined by standardized methods. The experiment identified that the methanolic leaves extracts exhibited statistically significant differences in antioxidant activity, as measured using the ABTS method. The highest antioxidant activity and the biggest amount of total phenolic were observed in 'Toscano' extract from leaves and slightly lower were in the 'Lemon'. Antioxidant activity increased proportionally with the phenolic content, allowing the establishment of a linear relationship between ABTS and total phenolic amount. Chlorophyll is the specifically pigment of green plants, which plays a key role in photosynthesis. In plants there are several types of chlorophyll as a, b. The most important in photosynthesis is chlorophyll “a”, which is darker. Our research showed that basil leaves contained more chlorophyll a. The highest content of chlorophyll a and b were identified in 'Purple Opal' leaves. The essentially highest amount of ascorbic acid and carotenoids were accumulated in the basil leaves of 'Toscano' cultivar.