title: Rapid tests to assess the antioxidant activity of Phaseolus vulgaris L. dry beans.
abstract: The antiradical activity of dry beans was evaluated in order to assess the validity of this test and to correlate the results with those achieved with the Folin-Ciocalteu method and with a rapid spectrophotometric method for the analysis of total flavonoids. Four landraces (12 samples) of common beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.), collected in two regions of Italy (Tuscany and Basilicata) in three different years, were analyzed. The EC50 values ranged from 39 to 2810 mg sample/mg 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazil radical. The phenolic content of each sample was expressed as gallic acid equivalents; it changed from 1.17 to 4.40 mg/g. The flavonoid content, expressed as mg of (+)-catechin per g of dry seeds, ranged from 0.24 to 1.43 mg/g. The qualiquantitative composition of polyphenols has been also elucidated by means of high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-diode array detection and HPLC/MS. These investigations showed that rapid tests can contribute to assessing the quality of functional food.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienza del Suolo e Nutrizione della Pianta, Università degli Studi di Firenze, P.le delle Cascine 18, 50144 Firenze, Italy. daniela.heimler@unifi.it
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Heimler
authors.forename: Pamela
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Vignolini
authors.forename: Maria Giulia
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Dini
authors.forename: Annalisa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Romani
mesh_terms: D000975:Antioxidants / Q000032:analysis*; D001713:Biphenyl Compounds; D002392:Catechin / Q000032:analysis; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D005419:Flavonoids / Q000032:analysis; D005707:Gallic Acid / Q000032:analysis; D013058:Mass Spectrometry; D027805:Phaseolus / Q000737:chemistry*; D010851:Picrates; D012639:Seeds / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D001713:Biphenyl Compounds; D005419:Flavonoids; D010851:Picrates; D005707:Gallic Acid; D002392:Catechin; C004931:1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl