Antioxidant activities of the extracts from bamboo powder as underutilized resource

In order to investigate the functionality of bamboo powder as underutilized resource, the extracts (water-soluble fraction WSF; hotwater-soluble fraction HSF; ethanol-soluble fraction ESF, and ethanol-soluble fraction MSF) were prepared from bamboo powder and the antioxidant activities were evaluated. The phenolic content ranged from 75.5 to 249.8 mu g chlorogenic acid equivalents/ml and the flavonoid content varied from 48.3 to 137.4 mu g quercetin/ml. The phenolic contents of these extracts highly correlated with the flavonoid contents (R=0.977). The antioxidant activities were evaluated by in vitro experiments using linoleic acid oxidation system and scavenging assays of superoxide anion radicals, hydroxyl radicals, and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radicals, respectively. HSF and MSF showed the best performance in inhibiting lipid peroxidation and scavenging superoxide anion radicals, while ESF and MSF exhibited stronger inhibition activities of the hydroxyl radicals and angiotensin I-converting enzyme. It might be considered as a potential plant source of antioxidants.