Annual Research & Review in Biology

In this study, we estimated the antioxidant activity of various extracts prepared from Artemisia campestris L. aerial parts used in Algeria to treat gastro-intestinal disorders. The determination of polyphenols and flavonoids contents showed that the ethyl acetate extract (EAE) is rich in phenolic compounds with 481.25±0.026 mg gallic acid equivalent/g dry weight, while the chloroform extract (CHE) had the highest content of flavonoid with 34.37±0.056 mg quercetin equivalent/g dry weight. The evaluation of DPPH scavenging activity of extracts confirmed that EAE is the most active extract with IC₅₀ of 0.0058 mg/ml. In addition, EAE showed the most scavenging activity against hydroxyl radical generated in the H₂O₂/Fe⁺² system with IC₅₀ of 0.17 mg/ml which is comparable to the activity of the standard antioxidant ascorbic acid (0.15 mg/ml). Ferrous ion chelating capacity assay showed that aqueous extract (AQE) was the most active with 0.11 mg/ml. The inhibition of linoleic acid/ß-carotene coupled oxidation was estimated by the ß- carotene bleaching assay, which showed a highest relative antioxidant activity for the crude extract (CE) (82.72% of inhibition). In conclusion, the present study showed that EAE of A. campestris L. is rich in phenolics and flavonoids and has a considerable antioxidant activity.