Evaluation of the total phenolic and antioxidant activity of the 80 different populations belong to the Jashir genus (Prangos spp.)

Jashir (Prangos spp.) is a medicinal plant and native plant to some parts of Iran that is used in traditional medicine in the treatment of many diseases. This study aimed to investigate the total phenol content and antioxidant activity of aerial parts of 80 populations belonging to seven species P. hausslmechtii, P. lophoptera, P. corymbosa, P. uloptera, P. acaulis, P. platychlaena, and P. ferulacea at the flowering stage in spring and summer 2018 in six provinces of Lorestan, Isfahan, Fars, Khuzestan, Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad, and Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari as a randomized complete block design. Methanol extracts of plants were obtained by the maceration method. Total phenol content and antioxidant activity were determined by Folin-Ciocalteu and DPPH (1,1- diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl) methods, respectively. ANOVA and Duncan's tests were used for statistical analysis. The results showed that there is a difference between populations and different species of Jashir genus in terms of total phenol content and antioxidant activity. The total phenol content of these extracts belonging to 80 populations was different and ranged from 17.59 to 1.76 mg gallic acid/g extract and their antioxidant activity ranged from 61.77 to 96.2%. The highest total phenol content and antioxidant activity were observed in populations 5 (P. acaulis) and 48 (P. platychloena), and the lowest amount obtained from populations 80 (P. platychloena) and 36 (P. platychloena). Among seven species of Prangos spp., the highest amount of total phenol content and antioxidant activity was found in P. uloptera and P. acaulis. Due to the high antioxidant properties of Prangos spp. and because of the possible carcinogenicity of synthetic antioxidants, different species of this genus especially P. uloptera and P. acaulis are suggested as suitable substitutes for preservatives. So they can be used as rich and accessible resources in the food and pharmaceutical industries.