Polyphenolic content, Antioxidant and Anti-inflammatory activities of Melon (Cucumis melo L. var. inodorus) Seeds

Abstract

The aim of this study was to estimate the content of polyphenols, flavonoids and tannins compounds and to evaluate the antioxidant activity and the in vitro anti-inflammatory of the ethanolic extract of melon (Cucumis melo L. var inodorus) seeds. The Folin-Ciocalteau and AlCl3 methods were applied in order to quantify the polyphenolic and flavonoids contents, respectively. However, DPPH and β-carotene bleaching method were applied to evaluate the in vitro antioxidant activity. The polyphenolic and flavonoids contents of seeds extract were found to be 37,10 ± 1,11 mg GAE/g of dry extract and 0,43 ± 0,27 mg QE/ g of dry extract, respectively. Whereas the amount of tannins was 48, 30 ± 0,90 mg TAE/ g of dry extract. The scavenger effect of seeds extract against DPPH radicals showed IC50 value of 4,13 ± 0,07 mg/ ml. The β-carotene bleaching assay indicated a strong inhibition percentage of the lipid peroxidation with value of 69,47 %. The in vitro anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated using the inhibition of proteins denaturation revealed that the seeds extract had a moderate anti-inflammatory activity which is estimated at 49,09 % compared to the aspirin (97,73 %) at 1 mg/ ml. Finally, melon seeds may be considered as a promising source of natural antioxidants which possess remarkable therapeutic action as inflammatory activity and may serve as food ingredients. Keywords: Cucumis melo var. inodorus, Polyphenols, Flavonoids, Tannins, Oxidative stress, Anti-inflammatory activity.