Evaluation of Biological Activities of Rice Husk Extracts

Abstract

This study was conducted to determine the biological activities of 70% ethanol extracts from rice husks of nine rice cultivars in Korea. The relative antioxidant activities of rice husk extracts were evaluated by determining DPPH, ABTS radical scavenging activity and reducing power. The contents of total polyphenol, flavonoid and r-oryzanol were measured by spectrophotometric methods. Among the extracts of rice husks, Nokmi rice husks tended to have the most effective antioxidant activities compared to other rice husk varieties. Seolgaeng rice husk extract showed anti-proliferative activity against cancer cell lines (MCF7 and NCI-H460), and Hongjinju rice husk extract significantly exhibited mitogenic activity.