Antioxidant and Antibacterial Activities of Two Endemic Allium L . Taxa from Turkey

In this study, antioxidant and antibacterial activities of various solvent extracts (methanol, ethanol, acetone and petroleum benzine) obtained from bulbs and leaves of Allium deciduum subsp. deciduum and subsp. retrorsum were investigated. Antioxidant activity of the extracts was determined by DPPH radical scavenging and β-carotene/linoleic acid assays. In addition, total phenolic contents in all the extracts were determined as gallic acid equivalents (GAEs). A.deciduum subsp. deciduum methanol bulbs extract showed the highest phenolic content (68.36 mg/g GAEs.).Bulbs extracts of two endemic taxa exhibited higher antioxidant activity than leaf extracts with all the types of solvent used. A positive correlation was observed between antioxidant activity and amount of phenolic contents of the extracts. Antibacterial activity of methanol and ethanol extracts was examined against two bacteria Staphylococcus aureus and Eschericha coli by agar well diffusion method and bulb methanolic extracts of A.deciduum subsp. deciduum showed more antibacterial activity against S. aureus than E.coli. Keywords— Allium deciduum, antibacterial activity, DPPH, βcaroten-linoleic acid assay.