Phytochemical Analysis and Antioxidant Activity of Flavonoids Extracted from Anethum graveolens using GC-Mass and DPPH Assay

Asmaa Abdulameer  Bedn

doi:10.17605/cajmns.v6i3.2794

Asmaa Abdulameer Bedn College of Education for women, University of Anbar, Iraq

DOI: https://doi.org/10.17605/cajmns.v6i3.2794

Keywords: Phytochemical, Antioxidant Activity, Flavonoids, A. graveolens, GC-Mass

Abstract

The growing interest in natural compounds with medicinal potential has prompted researchers to explore the bioactive components of A. graveolens (Greater Celandine). The aim of this study is to evaluate the antioxidant activity of flavonoid extracts and the alcoholic extract of A. graveolens, in addition to determining the chemical composition of the alcoholic extract using GC-MS analysis. The results of GC-MS analysis showed the presence of a variety of chemical compounds in the alcoholic extract of A. graveolens, including alkanes, alcohols, organic acids, and silicon compounds. This chemical diversity indicates the possibility of biologically active compounds in the extract. The anti-oxidant activity study showed that both extracts (flavonoid and ethyl alcohol) have significant antioxidant activity, as their activity is similar to that of vitamin C, which is a well-known antioxidant. The A. graveolens alcoholic extract showed the highest percentage at the lowest concentration (200 μg/ml), which indicates that the antioxidant activity is higher at low concentrations. These results indicate that Nabat al-Shabat contains biologically active compounds with antioxidant properties. These compounds play a role in protecting cells from oxidative damage caused by free radicals, which are associated with the development of many chronic diseases. These results encourage further research to determine the specific chemical compounds responsible for the antioxidant activity in the nightshade, and to evaluate its activity and safety in various applications.

References

D. Stan et al., “Natural compounds with antimicrobial and antiviral effect and nanocarriers used for their transportation,” Front. Pharmacol., vol. 12, p. 723233, 2021.

X. J. Wang et al., “Origin, evolution, breeding, and omics of Apiaceae: a family of vegetables and medicinal plants,” Hortic. Res., vol. 9, p. uhac076, 2022.

I. A. Merrouni and M. Elachouri, “Anticancer medicinal plants used by Moroccan people: Ethnobotanical, preclinical, phytochemical and clinical evidence,” J. Ethnopharmacol., 2020, doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2020.113435.

Y. Lv et al., “Nano-drug delivery systems based on natural products,” Int. J. Nanomed., pp. 541–569, 2024.

N. Narayanan Bagyalakshmi, M. K. Ramaiah, and K. G. Singh, “Proximate analysis and estimation of total phenolics, flavonoids, ascorbic acid in methanolic extracts of plant seeds - Thymus vulgaris, Salvia hispanica, Nigella sativa, Anethum graveolens,” Cuest. Fisioterapia, vol. 54, no. 4, pp. 7379–7398, 2025.

N. M. Hegazi et al., “Untargeted metabolomics-based molecular networking for chemical characterization of selected Apiaceae fruit extracts in relation to their antioxidant and anti-cellulite potentials,” Fitoterapia, vol. 173, p. 105782, 2024.

N. G. Ciocarlan, “AMMI L. species grown in the National Botanical Garden (Institute), Republic of Moldova,” Rec. Sci. Tech. Rep. DS 'Mayak', NAAS Ukraine, 2024.

A. Ebadi, M. Mohebodini, and A. Gholizadeh, “Evaluation of essential oil compounds diversity in dill (Anethum graveolens L.) accessions under field conditions,” Taxon. Biosyst., vol. 17, no. 62, pp. 41–56, 2025.

J. Kováčik, L. Husáková, M. Vydra, M. Piroutková, and J. Patočka, “Metallomics of dill: Influence of environmental stress and contamination of commercial samples,” J. Environ. Sci., 2025.

S. Farooq et al., “From villain to hero: Harnessing the gaseous grace of nitric oxide for prolonged elegance in Antirrhinum majus L. cut spikes,” J. King Saud Univ. Sci., vol. 36, no. 6, p. 103217, 2024.

A. Hazafa et al., “A powerful genome editing technique for the treatment of cancer cells with present challenges and future directions,” Life Sci., vol. 263, p. 118525, 2020, doi: 10.1016/j.lfs.2020.118525.

S. Farooq et al., “Polyamines delay the senescence of Antirrhinum majus L. flowers by coordinating various physiological and biochemical mechanisms,” Biol. Bull., pp. 1–11, 2024.

A. E. G. I. Hyperoxaluric and R. I. I. W. Rat, “Hydroalcoholic extract of Apium graveolens ameliorates ethylene glycol-induced hyperoxaluric oxidative stress and renal injury in Wistar rat.”

A. Sahebkar and M. Iranshahi, “Biological activities of essential oils from the genus Ferula (Apiaceae),” Asian Biomed., vol. 4, no. 6, pp. 835–847, 2010.

G. Kumar, “A review of the chemical constituents and pharmacological activities of Antirrhinum majus (snapdragon),” IP Int. J. Compr. Adv. Pharmacol., vol. 7, no. 2, pp. 72–76, 2022.

K. Hamood, A. T. Hameed, M. R. Azzam, and I. H. Mohammed, “Chemical composition and antimicrobial activities of the flavonoids Ammi majus L. growing broadly in Western Iraq,” in AIP Conf. Proc., vol. 2547, no. 1, AIP Publishing, 2022.

G. Das et al., “Pharmacology and ethnomedicinal potential of selected plant species from Apiaceae (Umbelliferae),” Comb. Chem. High Throughput Screen., vol. 26, no. 2, pp. 256–288, 2023.

A. Chrysargyris, M. Prasad, and N. Tzortzakis, “Wood-based biochar ratio used for partial peat replacement in growing media for Antirrhinum majus pot production,” 2024.

L. H. Cao, H. S. Lee, Z. S. Quan, Y. J. Lee, and Y. Jin, “Vascular protective effects of xanthotoxin and its action mechanism in rat aorta and human vascular endothelial cells,” J. Vasc. Res., vol. 57, no. 6, pp. 313–324, 2020, doi: 10.1159/000509112.

H. Zhang et al., “Cloning, subcellular localization and prokaryotic expression of CmDIV from Chrysanthemum morifolium cv.‘Hangju’,” J. Plant Biochem. Biotechnol., pp. 1–6, 2025.

A. N. Bulanov, E. A. Andreeva, N. V. Tsvetkova, and P. A. Zykin, “Regulation of flavonoid biosynthesis by the MYB-bHLH-WDR (MBW) complex in plants and its specific features in cereals,” Int. J. Mol. Sci., vol. 26, no. 2, p. 734, 2025.

F. G. Saqallah et al., “Antimicrobial activity and molecular docking screening of bioactive components of Antirrhinum majus aerial parts,” Heliyon, vol. 8, no. 8, 2022.

A. Ebadi, M. Mohebodini, and A. Gholizadeh, “Evaluation of essential oil compounds diversity in dill (Anethum graveolens L.) accessions under field conditions,” Taxon. Biosyst., vol. 17, no. 62, pp. 41–56, 2025.

F. Brahmi et al., “Optimization of the conditions for ultrasound-assisted extraction of phenolic compounds from Opuntia ficus-indica [L.] Mill. flowers and comparison with conventional procedures,” Ind. Crops Prod., vol. 184, p. 114977, 2022.

M. Dookie, O. Ali, A. Ramsubhag, and J. Jayaraman, “Flowering gene regulation in tomato plants treated with brown seaweed extracts,” Sci. Hortic., vol. 276, p. 109715, 2021.

N. Wang et al., “Recent advancements in microwave-assisted extraction of flavonoids: a review,” Food Bioprocess Technol., pp. 1–18, 2024.

P. Czarnowski, M. Mikula, J. Ostrowski, and N. Żeber-Lubecka, “Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry-based analyses of fecal short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs): A summary review and own experience,” Biomedicines, vol. 12, no. 8, p. 1904, 2024.

C. C. Nkwocha et al., “Identification and characterization of phytochemicals and constituents in Desmodium velutinum stem using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC),” Pharmacol. Res. Mod. Chin. Med., vol. 3, p. 100090, 2022.

İ. Gulcin and S. H. Alwasel, “DPPH radical scavenging assay,” Processes, vol. 11, no. 8, p. 2248, 2023.

A. H. Talasaz et al., “Antithrombotic therapy in COVID-19: systematic summary of ongoing or completed randomized trials,” medRxiv, 2021.

B. Arirudran, “An Insilico approach on Trachyspermum ammi to discover a drug that reduces the burden of gallstone and gallbladder tumor,” Asian J. Med. Biomed., vol. 8, no. 2, pp. 76–89, 2024.

M. Karamat et al., “Structural characterization, antioxidant, antidiabetic and antimicrobial activities of Trachyspermum ammi and *Foen

S. Hussain et al., “Unveiling the chemical profile, synergistic antibacterial and hemolytic effects of Cymbopogon citratus and Tachyspermum ammi leaves,” Biocatal. Agric. Biotechnol., vol. 58, p. 103221, 2024.

H. B. Bhatt and N. B. Patel, “GC-MS analysis and antioxidant activity of Trachyspermum ammi extract and its antibacterial activity against odour-causing bacteria,” J. Pharm. Negat. Results, pp. 2642–2648, 2022.

S. A. Wasim Akram et al., “Antimicrobial and antioxidant study of combined essential oils of Anethum sowa Kurz. and Trachyspermum ammi (L.) along with quality determination, comparative histo-anatomical features, GC–MS and HPTLC chemometrics,” Sci. Rep., vol. 14, no. 1, p. 27010, 2024.

K. Tanruean, K. Kaewnarin, and N. Rakariyatham, “Antibacterial and antioxidant activities of Anethum graveolens L. dried fruit extracts,” Chiang Mai J. Sci., vol. 41, no. 3, pp. 649–660, 2014.

W. Chatuphonprasert, N. Sukkasem, P. Maneechot, J. Wattanathorn, and K. Jarukamjorn, “Anethum graveolens L. restores expression of free fatty acid synthesis-related genes in high fat-induced HepG2 cells,” J. Herb. Med., vol. 46, p. 100901, 2024.

P. Dutta, N. Sarma, S. Saikia, R. Gogoi, T. Begum, and M. Lal, “Pharmacological activity of Trachyspermum ammi L. seeds essential oil grown from Northeast India,” J. Essent. Oil Bear. Plants, vol. 24, no. 6, pp. 1373–1388, 2021.

S. Debnath and A. Sharma, “Exploring Trachyspermum ammi and Foeniculum vulgare in hydroponic system and compare its chemical constituents with soil-based method: A prospective in agriculture,” Recent Pat. Biotechnol., vol. 18, no. 3, pp. 257–266, 2024.

N. Narayanan Bagyalakshmi, M. K. Ramaiah, and K. G. Singh, “Proximate analysis and estimation of total phenolics, flavonoids, ascorbic acid in methanolic extracts of plant seeds - Thymus vulgaris, Salvia hispanica, Nigella sativa, Anethum graveolens,” Cuest. Fisioterapia, vol. 54, no. 4, pp. 7379–7398, 2025.

Z. Sobatinasab, M. Rahimmalek, N. Etemadi, and A. Szumny, “Evaluation of different drying treatments with respect to essential oil components, phenolic and flavonoid compounds, and antioxidant capacity of ajowan (Trachyspermum ammi L.),” Molecules, vol. 29, no. 14, p. 3264, 2024.

Y. M. Al-Zaidi and A. C. Khorsheed, “Separation and identification of many volatile oil compounds and phenolic compounds from the seeds of Ammi visnaga (L.) growing in Iraq,” J. Kerbala Agric. Sci., vol. 8, no. 2, pp. 1–11, 2021.

G. Raikwar, S. Mohan, and P. Dahiya, “Chemical composition, antibacterial and antioxidant activities of Piper betle and Anethum graveolens essential oils against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus clinical isolates,” Braz. J. Microbiol., pp. 1–15, 2025.

A. Fatima et al., “The effect of different extraction techniques on the bioactive characteristics of dill (Anethum graveolens) essential oil,” Food Sci. Nutr., vol. 13, no. 4, p. e70089, 2025.

S. A. Ismael, I. M. Jasim, and S. A. Abbas, “Evaluation of antitumor activity of Ammi majus seeds extract on some cancer cell lines,” Acad. Sci. J., vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 92–102, 2025.

A. Fatima et al., “The effect of different extraction techniques on the bioactive characteristics of dill (Anethum graveolens) essential oil,” Food Sci. Nutr., vol. 13, no. 4, p. e70089, 2025.