Natural Product Research

Formerly Natural Product Letters

ISSN: 1478-6419 (Print) 1478-6427 (Online) Journal homepage: https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/gnpl20

Bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity of

Rhaponticum acaule (L.) DC

Fatma Bendimerad-Mouttas, Mohamed Choukri Beghdad, Imad Abdelhamid

El Haci, Zoubida Soualem, Meriem Belarbi & Fawzia Atik Bekkara

To cite this article: Fatma Bendimerad-Mouttas, Mohamed Choukri Beghdad, Imad Abdelhamid El
Haci, Zoubida Soualem, Meriem Belarbi & Fawzia Atik Bekkara (2020) Bioactive compounds and
antioxidant activity of Rhaponticum�acaule (L.) DC, Natural Product Research, 34:11, 1553-1557,
DOI: 10.1080/14786419.2018.1516664

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/14786419.2018.1516664

View supplementary material

Published online: 22 Dec 2018.

Submit your article to this journal

Article views: 51

View related articles

View Crossmark data

Citing articles: 1 View citing articles

Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at

https://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=gnpl20
NATURAL PRODUCT RESEARCH
2020, VOL. 34, NO. 11, 1553–1557
https://doi.org/10.1080/14786419.2018.1516664

SHORT COMMUNICATION

Bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity of

Rhaponticum acaule (L.) DC
Fatma Bendimerad-Mouttasa, Mohamed Choukri Beghdada, Imad Abdelhamid
El Hacib , Zoubida Soualema, Meriem Belarbia and Fawzia Atik Bekkaraa
a
Laboratoire de Produits Naturels, D
epartement de Biologie, Facult
e SNV-STU, Universit
e Abou
Bekr Belkaïd, Tlemcen, Alg
erie; bCentre de Recherche scientifique et technique en Analyses
Physico-Chimiques (CRAPC), Bou-Ismail, Tipaza, Alg
erie

ABSTRACT ARTICLE HISTORY

Rhaponticum acaule (L.) DC. is a medicinal plant commonly used Received 4 July 2018
for the treatment of some illnesses such as gastrointestinal Accepted 19 August 2018
infections. In this work, we report the composition of different
parts of this plant on phenolic compounds, their quantification, KEYWORDS
and antioxidant activity. The obtained results reported that Rhaponticum acaule;
asteraceae; medicinal
methanolic extracts of the three parts studied revealed high plants; phenolic
phenolic contents. For flavonoid contents, the highest contents compounds; antioxidant
were reported in organic extracts of leaf part. In addition, results activity; RP-HPLC-PDA
obtained from the study of the antioxidant activity showed
that methanolic extract of root presented the highest activity, in
DPPH scavenging ability test with an IC50 of 0.31 ± 0.04 mg/mL
and in FRAP test with an EC50 of 1.06 ± 0.02 mg/mL. The RP-HPLC-
PDA analysis revealed the presence of five phenolic acids (sinapic,
caffeic, chlorogenic, ferulic and syringic acids), one flavanone
(naringenin), one flavonol (rutin) and vanillin.

1. Introduction
Rhaponticum, a genus belonging to the Asteraceae family, consists of about 20000
species that are widely distributed around the world.
Rhaponticum acaule (L.) DC. is one of the most aromatic plants of earlier spring
flowering from March to May in the Mediterranean region. A survey conducted by

CONTACT Fatma Bendimerad-Mouttas f.bendimerad@yahoo.fr

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed at https://doi.org/10.1080/14786419.2018.1516664.
ß 2018 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group
1554 F. BENDIMERAD-MOUTTAS ET AL.

herbalists reported that the root of R. acaule were used as an aperitif, cholagogue,
depurative, digestive and tonic (Benyelles et al. 2014; Boussaada et al. 2008).
As a source of compounds with antioxidant activity such as: phenolic acids, flavo-
noids, vitamins and carotenoids, medicinal plants must be valorized and studied in
order to extract these important compounds, which is the main aim of our research
axis (Belarbi et al. 2018; Bensaid et al. 2018; Certo et al. 2017; Costa et al. 2017;
Beddou et al. 2015; Chaouche et al. 2015; Gu €lçin 2012).
The aim of the present work is to study in vitro antioxidant activities of organic extracts
from three parts of R. acaule using two conventional methods. Characterization of
phenolic compounds from different organic extracts of plant organs was carried out using
RP-HPLC-PDA analysis.

2. Results and discussion

2.1. Extraction yields, total phenolic, flavonoid and tannin contents
The extraction yields for the different parts of R.acaule as well as the corresponding
phenolic, flavonoid and tannin contents were reported in Table 1.
Maximum yield of phenolic compounds was obtained for the leaf part
(23.96 ± 2.04%), followed by capitula and root parts (20.18 ± 2.13% and 15.49 ± 1.44%,
respectively).
The TPC of leaf was higher in methanol extracts (135.33 ± 0.01 mg GAE/g DW),
followed by root part (97.89 ± 0.01 mg GAE/g DW).
The TFC in leaf revealed important contents: 69.74 ± 0.02 mg CE/g DW (methanolic
extract). However, in root part, TFC were found at 45.05 ± 0.01 mg CE/g DW. This variation
can be explained by the presence of other compounds and/or different types of phenols.

Table 1. Phenolic compound contents and antioxidant activity of organic extracts of R. acaule.
TPC (mg TFC (mg IC50 DPPH EC50 FRAP
R. acaule (L.) DC. Yield (%) GAE/g DW) CE/g DW) (mg/mL) (mg/mL)
Capitula Methanolic 20.18 ± 2.13 80.89 ± 0.08 57.59 ± 0.09 0.76 ± 0.01 1.84 ± 0.19
extract
Ethyl 6.96 ± 1.68 75.23 ± 0.03 33.89 ± 0.17 0.37 ± 0.01 1.36 ± 0.08
Acetate extract
Butanol Extract 7.14 ± 0.26 61.52 ± 0.08 35.94 ± 0.04 0.57 ± 0.01 1.51 ± 0.02
Tannin extract 3.00 ± 0.09 64.68 ± 0.03 NA 0.35 ± 0.00 1.15 ± 0.05
Leaf Methanolic 23.96 ± 2.04 135.31 ± 0.01 69.74 ± 0.02 0.80 ± 0.03 2.61 ± 0.03
extract
Ethyl 6.04 ± 0.40 82.13 ± 0.09 59.61 ± 0.05 0.67 ± 0.00 1.79 ± 0.01
Acetate extract
Butanol Extract 8.32 ± 0.34 80.83 ± 0.02 65.00 ± 0.03 0.58 ± 0.02 1.88 ± 0.06
Tannin extract 3.59 ± 0.16 75 ± 0.00 NA 0.38 ± 0.01 1.32 ± 0.03
Root Methanolic 15.49 ± 1.44 97.89 ± 0.02 45.05 ± 0.06 0.31 ± 0.05 1.06 ± 0.02
extract
Ethyl 1.16 ± 0.01 64.42 ± 0.02 23.50 ± 0.13 0.36 ± 0.02 1.19 ± 0.01
Acetate extract
Butanol Extract 1.51 ± 0.33 78.96 ± 0.05 33.30 ± 0.02 0.42 ± 0.04 1.76 ± 0.01
Tannin extract 1.18 ± 0.30 35.2 ± 0.25 NA 3.95 ± 0.01 2.36 ± 0.02
Ascorbic acid NA NA NA NA 0.18 ± 0.09 0.79 ± 0.05
NA: Not Applicable. TPC: Total Phenolic Contents. TFC: Total Flavonoid Contents. GAE: Gallic Acid Equivalent. CE:
Catechin Equivalent. DW: Dried Weight. IC50: Inhibition Concentration of 50%. EC50: Efficient Concentration. Values
are expressed as means of three replicates ± standard deviation.
 NATURAL PRODUCT RESEARCH 1555

For example, contrary to the very visible flavonoids in flower petals, in leaf they are
completely hidden by the ubiquitous green of the chlorophylls (Beghdad et al. 2014).

2.2. Evaluation of the antioxidant activity

2.2.1. DPPH free radical scavenging assay
Table 1 shows the results obtained for the antioxidant activity of organic extracts
expressed as relative DPPH IC50. All extracts were involved in the proton transfer with
different degrees.
The highest ability to scavenge DPPH was observed in phenolic extract of root
(0.31 ± 0.04 mg/mL), followed by tannins extract of capitula (0.35 ± 0.00 mg/mL).
Link et al. (2016) reported an IC50 of dichloromethane extract of Carlina acaulis at
0.12 mg/mL. IC50 of 0.21 mg/mL for methanolic extract of C. acaulis root were also
reported by D - ord-evi
c et al. (2012). In the present study, IC50 of methanolic extract was
found at 0.31 ± 0.04 mg/mL.
Antioxidant activity of R. acaule can be interpreted by the presence of phenolic
compounds in aerial part of the plant that can scavenge the radical and stabilze it.

2.2.2. Ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assay

The lowest value of EC50 was reported in methanolic crude extract of leaf
part (2.61 ± 0.03 mg/mL). Root part presented the higher EC50 (1.06 ± 0.02 mg/mL).
All extracts exhibited some degree of electron-donating capacity in a concentration-
dependant manner, but the capacities were inferior to that of ascorbic acid
(0.79 ± 0.02 mg/mL). Similar relations between iron (III) reducing activity and total
phenol content have been reported in the literature (Link et al. 2016).

2.3. Identification of phenolic compounds by RP-HPLC-PDA

Chromatographic analysis by RP-HPLC-PDA of phenolic compounds contained in the
crude methanolic extracts of the different parts of R. acaule revealed the presence
of five phenolic acids (sinapic, caffeic, chlorogenic, ferulic and syringic acids), one
flavanone (naringenin), one flavonol (rutin) and vanillin (chromatograms were reported
in supplementary data, Figure S1, S2, S3).
HPLC analysis of leaf and root methanolic extracts from Carlina acaulis and Carlina
acanthifolia revealed the presence of pentacyclic triterpenes and phenolic acids
as major constituents (Strzemski et al. 2016). These results were in concordance
with those found in this study.
Silambarasan et al. (2014) suggested that sinapic acid may have beneficial role
in the treatment of hypertensive heart disease by attenuating fibrosis and oxidative
stress through its antioxidant potential.

3. Conclusion
In the present study, phenolic compound contents, their identification and their anti-
oxidant activities in organic extracts from different parts of R. acaule were
1556 F. BENDIMERAD-MOUTTAS ET AL.

demonstrated. Our results provide evidence that all tested extracts exhibited satisfac-
tory scavenging effect tested by three conventional methods for the evaluation of this
activity. Sinapic acid was identified in the three parts of R. acaule same as naringenin.

Acknowledgement
The authors gratefully acknowledge Dr KAZI Choukry (University of Tlemcen- Department of
Pharmacy) for his help in the identification of the plant.

Disclosure statement
The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

ORCID
Imad Abdelhamid El Haci http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5364-377X

References
Beddou F, Bekhechi C, Ksouri R, Chabane Sari D, Atik Bekkara F. 2015. Potential assessment of
Rumex vesicarius L. as a source of natural antioxidants and bioactives compounds. J Food Sci
Technol. 52:3546–3560.
Beghdad MC, Benammar C, Bensalah F, Sabri FZ, Belarbi M, Chemat F. 2014. Antioxidant activity,
phenolic and flavonoid content in leaf, flowers, stems and seeds of mallow (Malva sylvestris
L.) from north western of Algeria. Afr J Biotechnol. 13(3):486–491.
Belarbi K, Atik Bekkara F, El Haci IA, Bensaid I, Bekhechi C. 2018. Identification of phenolic
compounds from the leaf part of Teucrium pseudo-Scorodonia Desf. collected from Algeria.
Nat Prod Res. 32(3):350–353.
Bensaid I, Atik Bekkara F, El Haci IA, Belarbi K, Beddou F, Bekhechi C. 2018. Identification and in
vitro antioxidant activities of phenolic compounds isolated from Cynoglossum cheirifolium L.
Nat Prod Res. 32(4):481–485.
Benyelles B, Allali H, Dib MA, Djabou N, Tabti B, Costa J. 2014. Essential oil from Rhaponticum
acaule L. root: comparative study using HS-SPME/GC/GC–MS and hydrodistillation techniques.
J Saudi Chem Soc. 18(6):972–976.
Boussaada O, Ammar S, Saidana D, Chriaa J, Chraif I, Daami M, Helal AN, Mighri Z. 2008.
Chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of volatile components from capitula and
aerial parts of Rhaponticum acaule DC growing wild in Tunisia. Microbiol Res. 163(1):87–95.
Certo G, Costa R, D’Angelo V, Russo M, Albergamo A, Dugo G, Germano  MP. 2017.
Anti-angiogenic activity and phytochemical screening of fruit fractions from Vitex agnus
castus. Nat Prod Res. 31(24):2850–2856.
Costa R, Albergamo A, Pellizzeri V, Dugo G. 2017. Phytochemical screening by LC-MS and
LC-PDA of ethanolic extracts from the fruits of Kigelia africana (Lam.) Benth. Nat Prod Res.
31(12):1397–1402.
Chaouche TM, Haddouchi F, Atik-Bekara F, Ksouri R, Azzi R, Boucherit Z, Tefiani C, Larbat R.
2015. Antioxidant, haemolytic activities and HPLC-DAD-ESI-MSn chracterization of phenolic
compounds from root bark of Juniperus oxycedrus subsp. oxycedrus. Ind Crop Prod. 64:
182–187.
- ord-evi
c S, Tadi
c V, Petrovi
c S, Kuki
c-Markovi
c J, Dobri
c S, Milenkovi
c M, Hadzifejzovi
c N. 2012.
D
Bioactivity assays on Carlina acaulis and C. acanthifolia root and herb extracts. Dig J
Nanomater Biostruct. 7:1213–1222.
 NATURAL PRODUCT RESEARCH 1557

G€ulçin I. 2012. Antioxidant activity of food constituents: an overview. Arch Toxicol. 86(3):
345–391.
Link P, Roth K, Sporer F, Wink M. 2016. Carlina acaulis exhibits antioxidant activity and
counteracts Ab toxicity in Caenorhabditis elegans. Molecules. 21(7):871–897.
Silambarasan T, Manivannan J, Krishna Priya M, Suganya N, Chatterjee S, Raja B. 2014. Sinapic
acid prevents hypertension and cardiovascular remodeling in pharmacological model of nitric
oxide inhibited rats. PLoS One. 9(12):e115682
Strzemski M, Wo
jciak-Kosior M, Sowa I, Rutkowska E, Szwerc W, Kocjan R, Latalski M. 2016.
Carlina species as a new source of bioactive pentacyclic triterpenes. Ind Crop Prod. 94:
498–504.