Properties of Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Activity and Phenolic Profiles of Şevketi Bostan (Cnicus benedictus L.) Cultivated in Aegean Region from Turkey

The aim of this work was to evaluate the phenolic profiles and anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and gastro-protective activities of Cnicus benedictus L., a type of milk thistle cultivated in Turkey. The total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging activity was measured to determine antioxidant capacity. The anti-urease and anti-xanthine oxidase activities were used to determine the gastro-protective and anti-inflammatory potential of the plant extracts, respectively. The TPC was 337.40 and 635.10 mg of gallic acid equivalents (GAE)/100 g and TFC was 41.05 -119.12 mg of quercetin equivalents (QE)/100 g in the root and leaf extracts, respectively. The root and leaf extracts of Cnicus benedictus L., were exhibited different inhibition values against both of the enzymes. The inhibition effect of the both enzymes were calculated as IC50 (mg/mL) in terms of 50% inhibition of the enzymes. The xanthine oxidase activity of the leaf and root was 18.53 and 19.75 mg/mL and the urease activity were 2.29 mg/mL and 11.53 mg/mL, respectively. Fifteen phenolic compounds were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC-UV). Vanillic, silibinin B, ferulic acid and rutin were found major amount of the plant. In conclusion, the plant have high potential beneficial nutraceuticals and consumption of the together with its roots and leafs will be beneficial in terms of nutrition.