Acta Pharm. 55 (2005) 187-193

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Original research paper  
 

Antioxidant phenylacetic acid derivatives from the seeds of Ilex aquifolium

LUTFUN NAHAR1, WENDY R. RUSSELL2, MOIRA MIDDLETON3, MOHAMMAD SHOEB3 and SATYAJIT D. SARKER3*

s.sarker@ulster.ac.uk


1School of Life Sciences, The Robert Gordon University, St Andrew Street, Aberdeen AB25 1HG, Scotland, UK
2Phytochemicals and Genomic Stability Group, The Rowett Research Institute, Greenburn Road, Bucksburn, Aberdeen AB21 9SB, Scotland, UK
3Pharmaceutical Biotechnology Research Group, School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Ulster at Coleraine, Cromore Road, Coleraine BT52 1SA, Co. Londonderry, Northern Ireland, UK
Received September 27, 2004      Accepted May 2, 2005

Reversed-phase preparative HPLC analysis of the methanol extract of the seeds of Ilex aquifolium afforded two antioxidant phenylacetic acid derivatives, 2,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (1) and 2,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid methyl ester (2). The structures were determined by spectroscopic methods. In the DPPH assay for antioxidant activity, the IC50 values of 1 and 2 were 1.50 x 10-3 and 2.55 x 10-3 mg mL-1, respectively, compared to 2.88 x 10-5 mg mL-1 of quercetin, a natural antioxidant.


Keywords: Ilex aquifolium (Aquifoliaceae), phenylacetic acid derivatives, antioxidant, DPPH