Effects of rosemary extracts and major constituents on lipid oxidation and soybean lipoxygenase activity

Abstract

Rosemary ( Rosemarinus officinalis L.) leaves were extracted with three different solvents, namely hexane, acetone and methanol. A reverse‐phase high‐performance liquid chromatography system in combination with a mass detector was used to quantitate the content of carnosol, carnosic acid and ursolic acid in the rosemary extracts. All rosemary extracts showed strong inhibitory effects on lipid oxidation and soybean lipoxygenase activity.