The Effect of Solvents and Extraction Procedure on the Recovery of Phenolic Compounds and the Antioxidant Capacity of Algerian Bassia Muricata L. Extracts

This paper focuses on the study of the effect of extraction solvent choice on phenolic compounds contents and antioxidant activity of Bassia muricata. In this study, five different solvents namely: water, acetone, ethanol, methanol and hexane, and three extraction techniques were used to extract phenolic compounds: microwave-assisted extraction, Soxhlet and maceration. Total phenolics (TPC), total flavonoids (TFC) and condensed tannins contents (CTC) were determined. The results showed that different solvents with different polarity had a major effect on polyphenolic contents and antioxidant activity; the highest TPC (122.15-144.82 mg GAE/g), TFC (64.12-70.32 mg QE/g) and CTC (30.38-36.09 mg CE/g) were obtained with methanol. However, different extraction methods gave comparable results. In vitro antioxidant activities were evaluated using the DPPH radical scavenging ability, reducing capacity and β-carotene bleaching assay. The methanolic extract showed the highest scavenging abilities on DPPH radicals and lipid peroxidation, while the aqueous extract exhibited the strongest reducing power. Microwave-assisted extraction was the best suited for the extraction of antioxidant molecules when compared to Soxhlet and maceration.