Antioxidant Activity and Phytochemical Content of Nine <i>Amaranthus</i> Species
Jun-Hyoung Bang,
Kyung Jun Lee,
Won Tea Jeong,
Seahee Han,
Ick-Hyun Jo,
Seong Ho Choi,
Hyunwoo Cho,
Tae Kyung Hyun,
Jeehye Sung,
Junsoo Lee,
Yoon-Sup So,
Jong-Wook Chung
Affiliations
Jun-Hyoung Bang
Department of Industrial Plant Science and Technology, Chungbuk National University, Chungbuk, Cheongju 28644, Korea
Kyung Jun Lee
Honam National Institute of Biological Resources, 99, Gohadoan-gil, Mokpo-si 58762, Korea
Won Tea Jeong
Department of Agro-food Safety and Crop Protection, National Institute of Agricultural Sciences (NAS), RDA, Jeonju 54874, Korea
Seahee Han
Department of Industrial Plant Science and Technology, Chungbuk National University, Chungbuk, Cheongju 28644, Korea
Ick-Hyun Jo
Department of Herbal Crop Research, National Institute of Horticultural and Herbal Science (NIHHS), Rural Development Administration (RDA), Eumseong 27709, Korea
Seong Ho Choi
Department of Animal Science, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju 28644, Korea
Hyunwoo Cho
Department of Industrial Plant Science and Technology, Chungbuk National University, Chungbuk, Cheongju 28644, Korea
Tae Kyung Hyun
Department of Industrial Plant Science and Technology, Chungbuk National University, Chungbuk, Cheongju 28644, Korea
Jeehye Sung
Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Andong National University, Andong 36729, Korea
Junsoo Lee
Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju 28644, Korea
Yoon-Sup So
Department of Crop Science, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju 28644, Korea
Jong-Wook Chung
Department of Industrial Plant Science and Technology, Chungbuk National University, Chungbuk, Cheongju 28644, Korea
Amaranthus species are widely used as grain and leaf vegetables around the world and are potential dietary sources of antioxidants and phenolic compounds. In this study, we examined the variation in total flavonoid contents, total polyphenol contents, and antioxidant activities among 120 accessions of nine Amaranthus species. The antioxidant activity of DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) of the 120 amaranth accessions ranged from 1.1 (A. tricolor) to 75.2 (A. tricolor mg ascorbic acid equivalents (AAE)/g in 2018, and 8.5 (A. tricolor) to 68.8 (A. dubius) mg AAE/g in 2019. ABTS (2,2′-azinobis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline 6-sulfonate)) antioxidant activity ranged from 16.7 (A. tricolor) to 78.3 (A. hypochondriacus) mg AAE/g in 2018, and 36.6 (A. tricolor) to 79.2 (A. dubius) mg AAE/g in 2019. Total flavonoid content (TFC) of 2018 and 2019 ranged from 21.7 (A. caudatus) to 52.7 (A. hybridus) and from 22.3 (A. viridis) to 54.7 (A. tricolor), respectively Antioxidant activities were compared using two methods and all components were measured in plants grown both in 2018 and 2019. We identified wide variation among the accessions and between plants grown in the two years. Antioxidant activities and phytochemical contents were consistently negatively correlated. The nine species and 120 accessions clustered into three groups according to their antioxidant activities, total flavonoid contents, and total polyphenol contents in each year. These results provide information about the nutritional profiles of different Amaranthus species.
