Free radical scavenging activities of Cnidium officinale Makino and Ligusticum chuanxiong Hort. methanolic extracts

BACKGROUND: Antioxidants from natural resources possess multifaceted and importance of the activities provides substantial scope in neurodegenerative diseases. The aim of this study was to assess and compare the free radical scavenging activities of Cnidium officinale and Ligusticum chuanxiong, which are closely related species. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The scavenging activities of plant materials were evaluated using Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC), oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), superoxide radical (O(2)·(-)), hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)), hydroxyl (OH·), nitric oxide radical (NO·) and metal chelation. In addition, the cell viability and nitric oxide release were assayed using Neuro-2a (N2a) cells. RESULTS: The methanolic extracts of C. officinale and L. chuanxiong showed scavenging activities of free radicals with an additional antioxidant capacity. Moreover, the efficacy on the cell viability and nitric oxide release in cell culture model has been established. CONCLUSION: Results of the present study suggests that the extracts of C. officinale and L. chuanxiong have comparatively similar free radical scavenging activities in vitro and may have important health effects.