Synthesis and antioxidant activities of benzylic bromophenols inclusive of natural products

The synthesis of natural products 2-(2,3-dibromo-4,5-dihydroxyphenyl)acetic acid (1) and 2-(2,6-dibromo-3,5-dihydroxyphenyl)acetic acid (2) and as well as their derivatives 25 and 26 were carried out by substitution, hydrolysis and demethylation reactions of the corresponding four benzyl bromides. The antioxidant potentials of benzylic acid-derived bromophenols were, for the first time, appraised by several outstanding bioanalytical methods. Besides these, we estimated the antioxidant effects which were studied using the methods of DPPH·, ABTS(•+) scavenging activities, ferric (Fe(3+)) and cupric (Cu(2+)) ions and Fe(3+)-TPTZ reducing capacities. Benzylic acid-derived bromophenols were found as effective DPPH(•), and ABTS(•+) scavengers. The potential antioxidant activities of bromophenol derivatives 1, 2 and 17–28 were compared to standard antioxidants including BHA, BHT, α-Tocopherol, and Trolox, which is a water-soluble analog of vitamin E. We expect that this innovative work will direct future studies exploring the antioxidant properties of food, medicinal, and industrial applications.