The aim of this work was to determine the content of quercetin in the edible and waste parts of red, yellow and white onion, and to determine their antioxidant activity (AOA). The extracts were prepared in two different solvents, 70% ethanol and distilled water. Quercetin content was determined by the high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The antioxidant activity was determined spectrophotometrically using the DPPH• (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical) method. A higher mass of trolox equivalent/100 mg lyophilized sample means a higher antioxidant activity. As expected, a higher content of quercetin was determined in the waste part of the onion. The highest content of quercetin was determined in the edible and waste part of red onion (0,0121 ± 0,0001 mg quercetin equivalent/100 mg lyophilized sample (extraction with 70% ethanol) or 0,0291 ± 0,0002 mg quercetin equivalent/100 mg lyophilized sample (extraction with distilled water) in the edible part and 1,5266 ± 0,0025 mg quercetin equivalent/100 mg lyophilized sample (extraction with 70% ethanol) or 0,0981 ± 0,0005 mg quercetin equivalent/100 mg lyophilized sample (extraction with distilled water) in the waste part). Based on these results, we may conclude that red onion contains the highest amount of quercetin. Higher antioxidant activity was determined in the waste part of differently colored onions, with the highest antioxidant activity in the waste part of the red onion (3,738 ± 0,056 mg trolox equivalent/100 mg lyophilized sample (extraction with 70% ethanol) or 2,176 ± 0,040 mg trolox equivalent/100 mg lyophilized sample (extraction with distilled water)).
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