Abstract

After preparing 70% ethanol (EE) and water extracts (WE) from different parts (calyx, leaf, peel, pulp, and stem) of eggplant, antioxidant activity of the extracts was evaluated. Total phenolic contents of EE and WE were the highest in peel (55.19 mg/g) and calyx (121.07 mg/g) extracts, respectively. Total flavanol contents of EE and WE were the highest in leaf (8.00 mg/g) and calyx (5.61 mg/g) extracts, respectively. The peel extract showed the highest anthocyanins content (138.05 mg %) followed by calyx (135.94 mg %), stem (110.38 mg %), leaf (97.29 mg %), and pulp (2.29 mg %) extracts. In both EE and WE, extracts of peel and calyx parts showed relatively higher DPPH radical scavenging activity and reducing power. The remarkable high SOD-like activity was detected in WE of calyx part (IC₅₀ = 0.39±0.01 μg/ml), which is about 1,700 times stronger than WE of pulp part (IC₅₀ = 0.69±0.01 mg/ml). [B1] The results indicate that antioxidant activity of eggplant varied by parts and solvents. This study also shows the calyx part had strong antioxidant activity.

Key words: Eggplant, antioxidant activity, phenolics.