Antioxidant activity of proanthocyanidins-rich fractions from Choerospondias axillaris peels using a combination of chemical-based methods and cellular-based assay.

An extract isolated from Choerospondias axillaris peels was separated into five fractions using size-exclusion chromatography. The structural composition and mean degree of polymerization (mDP) of these fractions were then characterized by acid-catalysis followed by HPLC analysis. The antioxidant activity of each fraction was determined using a combination of chemical-based methods (DPPH, ABTS(+) radical scavenging activity, ferric-reducing antioxidant power, and phosphomolybdate assay) and a cellular-based assay. All fractions tested were found to have high total phenolics contents and were rich in proanthocyanidins. The mDP of fractions (F1-F5) ranged from 1.92 to 9.25. When tested by the chemical-based assays, the antioxidant activity of the fractions did not depend on molecular weight of the phenolics. Conversely, when tested by the cellular-based assay the antioxidant activity actually decreased with increasing molecular weight of the proanthocyanidins. These experiments highlight the limitations of using chemical-based assays to establish the antioxidant activity of proanthocyanidins within biological systems.