Acta Pharm. 55 (2005) 297-304
[ Full paper in PDF ]Saussurea costus (Falc.) Lipschitz belonging to the family Asteraceae is an important medicinal drug, roots of which are widely used as a folk medicine. The antioxidant activity of the plant has been studied using its ability to scavenge DPPH, nitric oxide, superoxide radicals along with the ability to inhibit lipid peroxidation and GSH oxidation. The 1 mg mL-1 extract had antioxidant activity with 85.2% reduction of DPPH and a 72.7% decrease in lipid peroxidation. It showed the maximum inhibition of superoxide radical of 66,0%, and 58.4% inhibition of the nitric oxide formation. The concentration of chlorogenic acid was found to be 0.027% in the extract of S. costus. Thus therapeutic activity of the plant may be due to its antioxidant activity, which may be as a result of chlorogenic acid presence.
Keywords: Saussurea costus (Asteraceae), antioxidant, lipid peroxidation, chlorogenic acid