Antioxidant Activity of Tartary (Fagopyrum tataricum (L.) Gaertn.) and Common (Fagopyrum esculentum Moench) Buckwheat Sprouts

This study compared the differences of two types of buckwheat sprouts, namely, common buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum Moench) and tartary buckwheat (Fagopyrum tataricum (L.) Gaertn.), in general composition, functional components, and antioxidant capacity. The ethanol extracts of tartary buckwheat sprouts (TBS) had higher reducing power, free radical scavenging activity, and superoxide anion scavenging activity than those of common buckwheat sprouts (CBS). As for chelating effects on ferrous ions, CBS had higher values than TBS. Rutin was the major flavonoid found in these two types of buckwheat sprouts, and TBS was 5 fold higher in rutin than CBS. The antioxidant effects of buckwheat sprouts on human hepatoma HepG2 cells revealed that both of TBS and CBS could decrease the production of intracellular peroxide and remove the intracellular superoxide anions in HepG2 cells, but TBS reduced the cellular oxidative stress more effectively than CBS, possibly because of its higher rutin (and quercetin) content.