Abstract:
Antioxidants play a very important role in the defense against the damage caused by free radicals in the
body. Free radicals are produced in the body either naturally or on the exposure of radiation, cigarette smoke, etc.
and can be implicated in many diseases like cancer, atherosclerosis, arthritis, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s
disease and can also be held responsible for aging and other age-related diseases. The body can produce antioxidants
to aid in its defense against free radical damage. But in most cases dietary supplement of antioxidants is
recommended. Fruits and their parts are a very good source of antioxidants and other nutrients. Though their
potency as antioxidants has been studied, comparative analysis is yet to be performed. This project aims to evaluate
and compare antioxidant activity of the three parts of banana varieties namely, Rasthali leaf, Rasthali stem, Rasthali
flower, Karpooravalli leaf, Karpooravalli stem, Karpooravalli flower. Ethanolic extraction was performed for the
parts of banana varieties and the extracts were subjected to in vitro free radical scavenging assays, enzymatic, nonenzymatic and phytochemical components assays. Total antioxidant assay was also carried out to initially confirm the
antioxidant potential. The results were obtained for the parts of Musa spp and they were found to possess significant
antioxidant potential with leaf part having the highest activity comparatively.
