ANTIOXIDANT POTENTIAL OF SOME PLANTS USED IN FOLK
MEDICINE IN ROMANIA
NÓRA PAPP 1*, NIKOLETT SALI 2,3, RITA CSEPREGI 2, MÓNIKA TÓTH 1, KINGA GYERGYÁK 1, TÜNDE DÉNES 1, SÁMUEL GERGELY BARTHA 1, ERZSÉBET VARGA 4, ANDREA KASZÁS 1, TAMÁS KŐSZEGI 2,3
1Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Pécs, Rókus 2, H-7624, Pécs, Hungary
2Department of Laboratory Medicine, Medical School, University of Pécs, Ifjúság 13, H-7624, Pécs, Hungary
3János Szentágothai Research Center, Ifjúság 20, H-7624 Pécs, Hungary
4Department of Pharmacognosy and Phytotherapy, University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 540139 Târgu Mureş, Romania
*corresponding author: nora4595@gamma.ttk.pte.hu
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Abstract:
The aim of the study was to analyze the antioxidant activity of Ajuga reptans, Anthyllis vulneraria, Impatiens noli-tangere,
Lilium candidum, Ononis arvensis, Plantago media, Rhinanthus serotinus, Thymus serpyllum, and Veronica beccabunga
used in ethnomedicine in Romania. In vitro antioxidant assays were performed with 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH),
modified chemiluminescence and oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assays on the ethnomedicinally used parts of
the species. The 50% ethanolic extracts of plants exerted a similar radical-scavenging effect measured by DPPH and
chemiluminescence assays (R² = 0.8811). However, considerably higher values were measured by the ORAC method and
these data did not correlate with the results of the chemiluminescence and the DPPH assays. The studied vegetal products
from of L. candidum, P. media, Rh. serotinus, Th. serpyllum, and V. beccabunga showed the highest total antioxidant
capacity values by all used methods, while I. noli-tangere expressed the lowest antioxidant capacity. The study highlights the
promising phytochemical values of ethnomedicinally used plants from Romania.

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