An in-vitro investigation of the antioxidant activity of Phyllanthus amarus

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) such as superoxide radical anion, hydroperoxyl radical are generated in cells from byproducts of metabolism and responsible for the development of a wide number of degenerative diseases such as cardiovascular disease (CVD), diabetic, cirrhosis and several cancers1. All organisms have their own antioxidant defense system to protect them against free radical damage by enzymes, such as superoxide dismutase and catalase or compounds such as ascorbic acid, tocopherol and glutathione 2. However, our body system sometimes cannot work efficiently that lead to unavoidable damage caused by oxidation. As a result, consumption of additional antioxidants through herbs, foods or supplements (phytochemicals) are beneficial to defense against the harmful ROS3. A recent investigation on the beneficial effects of fruits, vegetables and spices containing high phytochemical antioxidants were carried out by groups of researchers 4-5 concluded that the crude extracts with antioxidant properties are bioprotective in nature and are therefore valuable in the food industry for longer shelf life. Butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA), Butylated hdroxytoluene (BHT) and Tert-butylated hydroxyquinone (TBHQ) are the common synthetic antioxidants to prevent oxidative process6 that have been used in food industry since 1940 but the trend currently is to move towards natural antioxidants as an alternative source7-8 revealed that BHA and BHT were found to promote tumor formation, therefore the use of a natural antioxidant source become crucial.