In vitro antioxidant activity of seed extracts of Benincasa hispida

In vitro antioxidant activity of methanolic and petroleum ether extract of seeds of Benincasa hispida was determined by DPPH free radical scavenging assay, Assay of reducing power method. α-tocopherol (vitamin-E) was used as standard and positive control for all analysis. All analysis was made with the use of UV-Visible spectrophotometer. The methanolic extract and petroleum ether extract of seeds of Benincasa hispida had shown very significant DPPH (1, 1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazyl) radical scavenging activity compared to standard antioxidant. The DPPH radical scavenging activities of the extracts were increased with the increasing concentration. In DPPH free radical scavenging assay IC50 value of methanolic extract and petroleum ether extract of seeds of Benincasa hispida were 5.167μg/ml, 6.157μg/ml μg/mL whereas, IC50 value of α-tocopherol was 4.15μg/ml. The results concluded that the extracts have a potential source of antioxidants of natural origin.