Vol. 7, Issue 3 (2018)

Author(s):
K Prashanth Kumar, V Ravinder Reddy, M Gnana Prakash and Pranay Kumar K

Abstract:
Withania somnifera commonly known as Ashwagandha, is an important plant in Indian traditional ayurvedic medicine and is believed to increase longevity and vitality. W. somnifera contains a variety of phytochemicals i. e flavonoids and plant polyphenols. Withania somnifera extract was analysed for its reducing ability as an antioxidant using the 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay and for total phenolics using the Folin-Ciocalteu method. The analysed DPPH radical scavenging activity of W. somnifera was 77.3% and total phenolic content of W. somnifera extract was 308 mg gallic acid equivalents/g extract (standard curve equation: y=0.0058x + 0.0966, R2=0.9906). The results revealed that Withania somnifera extract was a better source of antioxidants.