INTRODUCTION:

Herbs and spices, the significant bio-nutrients, besides to its use primarily as food and nutritional supplements they have been used too for the treatment of numerous ailments especially that of the digestive system¹. Polyphenols, the most antioxidant compounds isolated from different medicinal plants, exhibited diverse biological activities including anticancer, antibacterial, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, anticoagulant, estrogenic, and antiallergic effects^2,3. The significant value of natural antioxidants of different plant resources in the conservation of health and maintenance from cancer and coronary heart disease is also raising the interest of scientists, food manufacturers, and consumers⁴.

Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare L., family Apiaceae) is a perennial herb. It is highly fragrant and flavorful herb with culinary and medicinal uses and its seeds are added to different food products⁵. Traditionally it is used as an anti-inflammatory, analgesic, carminative, antimicrobial, antioxidant and anticholinesterase agent⁶. Fennel is used as a medicine for glaucoma⁷, hypertension, and galactogogue⁸. Phytochemical analysis of F. vulgare revealed the presence of terpenes, alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, and saponins⁹.

Caraway (Carum carvi L., Apiaceae) is an annual or biennial, glabrous, erect aromatic herb, commonly used as a food flavoring agent, it is also used in perfumes and pharmaceutical preparations¹⁰. Anti-cancer, antifungal¹¹, anti-thrombotic, and antioxidant effects¹²of caraway seeds have been reported. The chemical composition of caraway seeds revealed the presence of various flavonoids and flavonoid glycosides¹³.

The most effective method to decontaminate medicinal plants is irradiation, but, it may affect chemical constituents and biological activity of the plants¹⁴. Some studies have shown an increase in the antioxidant effect and phytochemicals in gamma-irradiated plant products^15,16.

The existent study will assess the effect of different doses of gamma irradiation on the total contents of phenolic and flavonoids, antioxidant activities and FT-IR fingerprint of methanol extracts of F. vulgare and C. carvi seeds.

MATERIALS AND METHODS:

Plant materials:

Good quality seeds of Foeniculum vulgare L. and Carum carvi L. were obtained from Harraz Herbs Company (http://www.harrazherbs.com-Cairo, Egypt).

Irradiation treatments:

Irradiation treatments were performed using a Gamma cell 200 apparatus equipped with a ⁶⁰Co γ source with an average dose rate of 0.7 kGy/min at the Authority of the Atomic Energy, National Center for Radiation Research and Technology, Cairo, Egypt. The given doses were 5, 10 and 20 kGy. Immediately after irradiation treatment, the seeds were stored at 4^oC for further experimental use.

Preparation of methanol extracts:

Twenty grams of ground F. vulgare and C. carvi seeds were defatted with hexane. The hexane extracts were filtered through Whatman No. 4 filter paper. Seed residues were air dried to remove the hexane solvent then mixed with 200 ml of methanol. After extraction, the residues were separated from the extracts by filtering through a filter paper (Whatman No. 4). The methanol extracts were then concentrated towards dryness under reduced pressure at 40^oC, using a rotary evaporator.

Estimation of total phenolic:

The estimation of total phenolic contents in methanol extracts was done following Folin-Ciocalteu procedure¹⁷. The absorbance was recorded at 765 nm using spectrophotometer (Unicam UV300). The results were then expressed as mg of gallic acid equivalents (GAE) per g of dry weight.

Estimation of total flavonoids:

The amounts of total flavonoids in methanol extracts were determined by the procedure described by Chang et al¹⁸. The absorbance of the reaction mixture has been read at 415 nm. The results were expressed as mg of Quercetin equivalents (QUE) per g of dry weight.

Estimation of antioxidant activity:

DPPH scavenging assay:

The DPPH free radical scavenging activity was estimated as per our formerly issued method¹⁹. Butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) was used as positive control. The absorbance was recorded at 517 nm.

The DPPH scavenging activity (%) was calculated using the following equation:

DPPH scavenging activity (%) = [A_DPPH−A_S/A_DPPH]x100

Where, A_DPPH is the absorbance of the DPPH solution only without the extract and A_S is the absorbance of the solution when the extract is added. The extract concentration providing 50% inhibition of radical-scavenging activity (IC₅₀) was calculated and expressed as mg/ml.

Ferrous ion chelating assay:

The ferrous ion chelating activity was measured following the method of Zhu et al.²⁰. EDTA was used as positive control. Absorbance was measured at 562 nm against blank. The inhibition percentage of ferrozine-Fe⁺² complex formations was calculated using the following equation:

Chelating activity (%) = (1-absorbance of sample/absorbance of control)×100.

IC₅₀ was calculated and expressed as mg/ml.

Reducing power assay:

The reducing power was carried out following our earlier published method³. One milliliter of methanol extracts at a concentration (250, 500, 750 and 1000 µg/ml) was mixed with 2.5 ml of phosphate buffer (0.2 M, pH 6.6) and 2.5 ml of potassium ferricyanide solution (1%, w/v). The mixture was incubated in a water bath at 50°C for 20 min. Then, 2.5 ml of trichloroacetic acid solution (10%, w/v) was added and the resulting mixture centrifuged. Then 2.5 ml aliquot of the upper layer of the solution was mixed with 2.5 ml of distilled water and 2.5 ml of ferric chloride (0.1%). Absorbance measured at 700 nm against blank. The results expressed as absorbance reading.

Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) spectra of methanol extracts:

Infrared spectra of both F. vulgare and C. carvi seeds methanol extracts were obtained by JASCO Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FT-IR 6100, SN: A009061020) equipped with a TGS detector and diffuse reflectance (DRIFT) accessory. The spectral data were processed with the IR solution Software Overview and Origin R 7SR1 Software.

Statistical analysis:

All tests were conducted in triplicate. Data are reported as means±standard deviation (SD). Analysis of variance and significant differences among means were tested by one-way ANOVA using the COSTAT computer package (COHORT SOFTWARE, 1989). The least significant difference (LSD) at P≤0.05 level was calculated.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION:

Total phenolic and total flavonoid contents:

The 5 and 10 kGy doses of gamma irradiation showed a notable effect on the total contents of phenolic and flavonoids in F. vulgare and C. carvi seeds respectively (Table 1). The 5 kGy dose showed an approximately 10% increase in the total contents of phenolic and flavonoids in F. vulgare when compared to the control. Whereas, the 10 kGy dose increased the total contents of phenolic and flavonoids in C. carvi seeds by 5% as compared to the control. There are no previous reports have discussed the influence of gamma irradiation on the phenolic and flavonoid contents in F. vulgare and C. carvi seeds. However, many authors confirmed the improvement of phenolic contents in different plants affected by different doses of gamma irradiation such as in almond skin²¹, and Nigella staiva²². The increasing of phenolic compounds in irradiated seeds of F. vulgare and C. carvi might be owing to the liberation of individual phenolics from glycosidic compounds and/or untie of large phenolic compounds to small components as a result of gamma irradiation application²³.

Antioxidant activity:

DPPH scavenging activity:

The methanol extract of irradiated and non-irradiated seeds of F. vulgare and C. carvi showed an effective scavenging activity for DPPH free radicals. Table 1 showed that F. vulgare seeds were exposed to 5 kGy gamma irradiation exhibited the highest DPPH scavenging activity (IC₅₀, 0.183 mg/ml) when compared to control and other irradiated doses but it still lower than BHT (IC₅₀, 0.086 mg/ml) which used as positive control. In C. carvi seeds, the DPPH scavenging activity were in the order BHT>20kGy>control>10kGy>5kGy with IC₅₀ values 0.086, 0.180, 0.182, 0.187 and 0.229 mg/ml, respectively (Table 1). The DPPH scavenging activity of seed extracts of both F. vulgare and C. carvi was previously reported^24,25. Our results are in accord with prior studies^15,26, displaying the positive influence of different radiation doses on the DPPH scavenging efficiency of some plant extracts.

Ferrous ion chelating activity:

The IC₅₀ values of Fe⁺²-chelating activity of methanol extracts of irradiated and non-irradiated seeds of F. vulgare and C. carvi were presented in Table 1. Overall, different doses of γ-irradiation have a variable effect on the ferrous ion chelating activities of both seeds and the 20 kGy dose exhibited the highest activity with IC₅₀ value 1.157 and 1.420 mg/ml in F. vulgare and C. carvi, respectively, but this activity still lower than that (0.028 mg/ml) of EDTA used as positive control. Parallel to our results, Huang and Mau²⁷stated that 5-20 kGy irradiations increased the ferrous ions chelating ability of Antrodia camphorata methanolic extracts as compared to the un-irradiated control at all tested concentrations. The importance of metal chelating ability is to minimize the catalyzing transition metal concentrations during lipid peroxidation processes^24,28.

Reducing power:

Overall, reducing power (represented as absorbance at 700 nm) values of all methanol extracts of irradiated and non-irradiated seeds of F. vulgare and C. carvi increased from 0.023 and 0.114 to 0.554 and 0.662, respectively, with the increase of extracts concentrations from 250 to 1000 µg/ml (Figures 1 and 2). Consistent with the prior reports^27,29, the reducing power ability of F. vulgare and C. carvi extracts may be attributed to their ability to donate the hydrogen atoms which are involved in the Fe³⁺-Fe²⁺transformation. Figure 1 shows that the 5 and 20 kGy doses increased the reducing power ability of F. vulgare extract to 0.457 and 0.554 as compared to 0.404 in the control at 1000 µg/ml concentration. The reducing power ability of F. vulgare and C. carvi seeds extracts was increased by gamma irradiation application; similar results of γ-radiation effect were previously reported in extracts of Chinese cabbage and Antrodia camphorata^27,30.

Figure 1. Reducing power (absorbance at 700 nm) of irradiated and non-irradiated F. vulgare seeds. (n= 3, value= mean±SD).

Figure 2. Reducing power (absorbance at 700 nm) of irradiated and non-irradiated C. carvi seeds. (n= 3, value= mean±SD).

Correlation analysis revealed a remarkable correlation between total phenolic as well as a total flavonoid and DPPH scavenging activity in F. vulgare with a correlation coefficient (R²) 0.9381 and 0.6582, respectively; and in C. carvi with a correlation coefficient (R²) 0.9252 and 0.8171, respectively. Thus, the DPPH scavenging activities of F. vulgare and C. carvi methanol extracts mainly attributed to the phenolic and flavonoid contents of the extracts. Similar correlations were previously reported^3,31. Also, in F. vulgare methanol extracts a remarkable correlation (R²=0.7327) amongst total phenolic contents and ferrous ion chelating activity was recorded whereas inefficient correlation (R²=0.4005) was found between total flavonoid content and Fe²⁺-chelating activity. So, Fe²⁺-chelating activity in F. vulgare methanol extracts may be rendered to the total phenolic content. In C. carvi methanol extracts there are no significant correlations (R²=0.1231 and 0.0319) between total phenolic as well as a total flavonoid and ferrous ion chelating activity. Moreover, no significant correlations existed between total phenolic as well as a total flavonoid and reducing power in F. vulgare and C. carvi methanol extracts. Therefore, the reducing power of F. vulgare and C. carvi and ferrous ion chelating activity of C. carvi might be attributed to other phytochemicals such as alkyl halide, alkane, alkene, and carboxylic acids, that are suggested by FTIR analysis (Tables 2 and 3). Some reports attributed the antioxidant activity to other compounds than phenolic and flavonoids^32,33.

FT-IR Spectroscopic fingerprint:

The FT-IR spectra (400-4000 cm^-1) and the different wave numbers (cm^-1) of distinct peaks of irradiated and non-irradiated methanol extracts of F. vulgare and C. carvi showed variation in the characteristic functional groups and chemical elements as presented in Tables 2 and 3. Commonly, the FT-IR analysis of F. vulgare and C. carvi suggests the presence of alkyl halide, alkane, alkene, carboxylic acids, alcohols, esters, ethers, amines, amide, aromatic benzene, aldehydes, saturated aliphatic, carbonyls, and phenols. The present results are in consensus with that of different medicinal plants^34,35,36. Different doses of gamma irradiation in the present study resulted in appearance and/or disappearance of some characteristic peaks of different functional groups leads to variation in IR fingerprint of irradiated and non-irradiated seeds of F. vulgare and C. carvi.

In F. vulgare, the 20 kGy dose resulted in the appearance of the absorption peak of organic halogen compounds (C-Cl, stretching vibration) at 620 cm^-1. Halogen compounds showed different IR absorption peaks in the different extracts of Aerva lanata³⁷. The peaks of alkenes (=C-H) appeared only at 759 and 801 cm^{-1 in 20 kGy dose
and control extract of F. vulgare, respectively (Table 2)}. Also, the 20 kGy dose resulted in the disappearance of the absorption peak of carboxylic acids (O-H, bending vibration) in the extract of F. vulgare at 949 cm¹. The peak at 1638 cm^-1 corresponds to stretching vibrations of C=O in amides was appeared only due to 20 kGy dose in F. vulgare. Justicia adhatoda irradiated with different doses of gamma irradiation (0, 1, 5 and 10 kGy) showed the appearance of C=O stretching (1643.41 cm^-1) of amides³⁸. Furthermore, the 20 kGy dose caused the appearance of the specific absorption peak at 3385 cm^-1and disappearance of the absorption peak at 3419 cm^-1, generally corresponding to N-H stretching in amines and amides, in addition to the appearance of O-H peak of free hydroxyl in alcohols and phenols at 3683 cm^-1 in F. vulgare (Table 2).

The stretching vibration of the C-O peak in the range of 979-1144 cm^-1appeared in the IR spectrum of the different solvent extracts of Eichhornia crassipes³⁶. The 10 kGy dose in F. vulgare resulted in the disappearance of two peaks at 1031 and 1180 cm^-1along with the appearance of the absorption peak at 1193 cm^-1 which corresponds to stretching vibrations of C-N in aliphatic amines (Table 2). Respectively, the 10 kGy dose in F. vulgare resulted in the disappearance of 1248 cm^-1peak as well as the appearance of 1259 cm^-1peak of aromatic amines (C-N). These results are in accord with that of Moses and Robert³⁵ in the different extracts of Urtica dioica.

Table 2. The FT-IR fingerprint (Wave number, cm^-1) of irradiated and non-irradiated methanolic extracts of F. vulgare seed.

No.	Wave number (cm^-1)	Functional groups	Type of Vibration	Radiation dose (kGy)
No.	Wave number (cm^-1)	Functional groups	Type of Vibration	5	10	20	Control
1	590	C-Br (alkyl halide)	Stretching	+	+	+	+
2	620	C-Cl (alkyl halide)	Stretching			+
3	697	=C-H (alkene)	Bending		+		+
4	716	=C-H (alkene)	Bending	+		+
5	759	=C-H (alkene)	Bending			+
6	772	=C-H (alkene)	Bending		+		+
7	801	=C-H (alkene)	Bending				+
8	814	=C-H (alkene)	Bending	+		+
9	915	O–H (carboxylic acids)	Bending	+		+
10	949	O–H (carboxylic acids)	Bending	+	+		+
11	997	=C-H (alkene)	Bending	+		+	+
12	1005	C–O (alcohols, carboxylic acids, esters, ethers)	Stretching		+
13	1031	C–N (aliphatic amines)	Stretching	+		+	+
14	1180	C–N (aliphatic amines)	Stretching	+		+	+
15	1193	C–N (aliphatic amines)	Stretching		+
16	1248	C–N (aromatic amines)	Stretching	+		+	+
17	1259	C–N (aromatic amines)	Stretching		+
18	1300	N–O (nitro compounds)	Symmetric stretching			+	+
19	1381	-C-H (alkane)	Bending	+	+	+	+
20	1455	-C-H (alkane)	Bending	+	+	+	+
21	1509	C=C (aromatic)	Stretching	+	+	+	+
22	1612	N–H (amide)	Bending	+		+
23	1629	N–H (amide)	Bending		+		+
24	1638	C=O (amide)	Stretching			+
25	1740	C=O (carboxylic acids, aldehydes, saturated aliphatic, carbonyls)	Stretching	+	+	+	+
26	2499	O–H (carboxylic acids)	Stretching		+		+
27	2855	C–H (alkane)	Stretching	+	+	+	+
28	2924	C–H (alkane)	Stretching	+	+	+	+
29	3007	=C–H (alkenes)	Stretching	+	+	+	+
30	3075	C–H (aromatics)	Stretching	+		+	+
31	3216	O–H, H–bonded (alcohols, phenols)	Stretching		+
32	3385	N–H (amines, amides)	Stretching			+
33	3419	N–H (amines, amides)	Stretching	+	+		+
34	3651	O–H, free hydroxyl (alcohols, phenols)	Stretching		+
35	3683	O–H, free hydroxyl (alcohols, phenols)	Stretching	+	+		+

Table 3. The FTIR fingerprint (Wave number, cm^-1) of irradiated and non-irradiated methanolic extracts of C. carvi seed.

No.	Wave number (cm^-1)	Functional groups	Type of Vibration	Radiation dose (kGy)
No.	Wave number (cm^-1)	Functional groups	Type of Vibration	5	10	20	Control
1	588	C–Br (alkyl halides)	Stretching	+	+	+	+
3	700	=C-H (alkene)	Bending	+	+		+
4	712	=C-H (alkene)	Bending			+
5	772	=C-H (alkene)	Bending	+	+	+	+
6	796	=C-H (alkene)	Bending	+		+	+
7	897	=C-H (alkene)	Bending	+	+	+	+
8	956	O–H (carboxylic acids)	Bending	+	+	+
9	1000	C–O (alcohols, carboxylic acids, esters and ethers)	Stretching	+		+
10	1031	C–N (aliphatic amines)	Stretching	+	+	+	+
11	1109	C–N (aliphatic amines)	Stretching	+		+	+
12	1171	C–N (aliphatic amines)	Stretching	+	+	+	+
13	1252	C–N (aromatic amines)	Stretching	+	+	+	+
14	1375	N–O (nitro compounds)	Symmetric stretching	+	+	+	+
15	1456	-C-H (alkane)	Bending	+	+	+	+
16	1509	C=C (aromatic)	Stretching	+	+	+	+
17	1675	C=O (amide, carbonyl)	Stretching	+	+	+	+
18	1742	C=O (carboxylic acids, aldehydes, saturated aliphatic, carbonyls)	Stretching	+	+	+	+
22	2855	C–H (alkane)	Stretching	+	+	+	+
23	2925	C–H (alkane)	Stretching	+	+	+	+
24	3004	=C–H (alkenes)	Stretching	+	+	+
25	3082	C–H (aromatics)	Stretching	+		+	+
26	3422	N–H (amines, amides)	Stretching	+	+	+	+
27	3682	O–H, free hydroxyl (alcohols, phenols)	Stretching	+	+		+

In C. carvi as presented in Table 3, The 20 kGy dose resulted in the disappearance of the alkenes (=C-H) peak at 700 cm^-1, the disappearance of free hydroxyl (O-H) peak of alcohols and phenols at 3682 cm^-1 and appearance of alkenes (=C-H) peak at 712 cm^-1. Also, 10 kGy dose resulted in the disappearance of =C-H peak of alkenes at 796 cm^-1, the disappearance of C-N peak of aliphatic amines 1109 cm^-1 and disappearance of the aromatics (C-H) peak at 3082 cm^-1 (Table 3). While, the carboxylic acids (O-H, bending vibration) absorption peak (956 cm^-1) and =C-H peak of alkenes (3004 cm^-1) appeared in all radiation doses (5, 10 and 20 kGy) and disappeared in non-irradiated (control) seed extract of C. carvi. Moreover, the 5 and 20 kGy doses only showed C-O peak of ethers, alcohols, esters and carboxylic acids at 1000 cm^-1 (Table 3).

CONCLUSIONS:

Different doses (5, 10 and 20 kGy) of γ-irradiation have a variable effect on total contents of phenolic and flavonoids, antioxidant effects and FT-IR fingerprint of F. vulgare and C. carvi. The 5 and 10 kGy are the most effective doses affected the total contents of phenolic and flavonoids in F. vulgare and C. carvi seeds. Whereas, DPPH scavenging activity, Fe²⁺-chelating activity and reducing power activity are mostly affected by the 5 and 20 kGy doses which lead to improvement of food and/or medicinal quality of such seeds. Further studies are needed to evaluate the potential impact of gamma radiation on individual chemical composition and other biological properties of F. vulgare and C. carvi seeds.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST:

The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest.

REFERENCES:

1 Milan K, Hemang D, Purnima K and Prakash V. Enhancement of digestive enzymatic activity by cumin (Cuminum cyminum L.) and role of spent cumin as a bionutrient. Food Chem. 110; 2008:678-683.

2 Stasiuk M and Kozubek A. Biological activity of phenolic lipids. ‎Cell Mol Life Sci. 67; 2010:841-860.

3 Mohamed AA, Ali SI, Sameeh MY and Abd El-Razik TM. Effect of solvents extraction on HPLC profile of phenolic compounds, antioxidant and anticoagulant properties of Origanum vulgare. Research J Pharm and Tech. 9 (11); 2016:2009-2016.

4 Finley JW, Kong AN, Hintze KJ, Jeffery EH, Ji LL and Lei XG. Antioxidants in foods: state of the science important to the food industry. J Agric Food Chem. 59 (13); 2011:6837-6846.

5 Gende LB, Maggi MD, Fritz R, Eguaras MJ, Bailac PN and Ponzi MI. Antimicrobial activity of Pimpinella anisum and Foeniculum vulgare essential oils against Paenibacillus larvae. J Essent Oil Res. 21 (1); 2009:91-93.

6 Soobrattee MA, Neergheen VS, Luximon RA, Aruma OI and Bahrn T. Phenolics as potential antioxidant therapeutic agents: mechanism and actions. Mutat Res. 579; 2005:200-213.

7 Agarwal R, Gupta SK, Agarwal SS, Srivastava S and Saxena R. Oculohypotensive effects of Foeniculum vulgare in experimental models of glaucoma. Indian J Physiol Pharmacol. 52; 2008:77-83.

8 El Bardai S, Lyoussi B, Wibo M and Morch N. Pharmacological evidence of hypotensive activity of Marrubium vulgare and Foeniculum vulgare in spontaneously hypertensive rat. Clin Exp Hypertens. 23(4); 2001:329-343.

9 Wong PYY and Kitt DD. Studies on the dual antioxidant and antibacterial properties of parsley (Petroselinum crispum) and cilantro (Coriandrum sativum) extracts. Food Chem. 97; 2006: 505-515.

10 Fatemi F, Allameh A, Khalafi H, Rajaee R, Davoodian N and Rezaei MB. Biochemical properties of γ irradiated caraway essential oils. J Food Biochem. 35; 2011:650-662.

11 Gagandeep S, Dhanalakshi E, Mendiz A, Rao R and Kale R. Chemopreventive effects of Cuminum cyminum L. in chemically induced forestomach and uterine cervix tumors in marine model system. ‎Nutr Cancer. 7; 2003:171-180.

12 Ferrie M, Bethune T, Arganosa G and Waterer D. Field evaluation of doubled haploid plants in the Apiaceae: dill (Anethum graveolens L.), caraway (Carum carvi L.), and fennel (Foeniculum vulgare Mill.). Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult. 104; 2011:407-413.

13 Matsumara T, Ishikawa T and Kitazima J. Water-soluble constituents of caraway: aromatic compound, glucoside and glucides. Phytochemistry. 61; 2002:455-459.

14 Thongphasuk P and Thongphasuk J. Effects of irradiation on active components of medicinal plants: A review. Rangsit Journal of Arts and Sciences. 2 (1); 2012:57-71.

15 Perez MB, Calderón NL and Croci CA. Radiation-induced enhancement of antioxidant activity in extracts of rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.). Food Chem. 104; 2007:585-592.

16 Mohamed AA. Effect of low dose gamma irradiation on some phytochemicals and scavenger ability of in vitro culantro (Eryngium foetidum L.) plantlets. Med Aromat Plant Sci Biotechnol. 3; 2009:32-36.

17 Slinkard K and Singleton VL. Total phenol analyses: Automation and comparison with manual methods. ‎Am J Enology Vitic. 28; 1977:49-55.

18 Chang C, Yang M, Wen H and Chern J. Estimation of total flavonoid content in propolis by two complementary colorimetric methods. J Food Drug Anal. 10(3); 2002:178-182.

19 Mohamed AA, Ali SI, EL-Baz FK and EL-Senousy WM. New insights into antioxidant and antiviral activities of two wild medicinal plants: Achillea fragrantissima and Nitraria retusa. Int J Pharma Bio Sci. 6(1); 2015:708-722.

20 Zhu K-X, Su C-Y, Guo X-N, Peng W and Zhou H-M. Influence of ultrasound during wheat gluten hydrolysis on the antioxidant activities of the resulting hydrolysate. Int J Food Sci Technol. 46; 2011:1053-1059.

21 Harrison K and Were LM. Effect of gamma irradiation on total phenolic content yield and antioxidant capacity of Almond skin extracts. Food Chem. 102; 2007:932-937.

22 Khattak KF and Simpson TJ. Effect of gamma irradiation on the extraction yield, total phenolic content and free radical-scavenging activity of Nigella staiva seed. Food Chem. 110(4); 2008:967-972.

23 Oufedjikh H, Mahrouz M, Amiot MJ and Lacroix M. Effect of gamma irradiation on phenolic compounds and phenylalanine ammonia-lyase activity during storage in relation to peel injury from peel of Citrus clementina Hort. Ex. Tanaka. J Agric Food Chem. 48; 2000:559-565.

24 Oktay M, Gülçin İ and Küfrevioğlu Öİ. Determination of in vitro antioxidant activity of fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) seed extracts. LWT-Food Sci Technol. 36(2); 2003:263-271.

25 Polovka M and Suhaj M. Detection of caraway and bay leaves irradiation based on their extracts antioxidant properties evaluation. Food Chem. 119; 2010:391-401.

26 Variyar PS, Limaye A and Sharma A. Radiation-induced enhancement of antioxidant contents of soybean (Glycine max Merrill). J Agric Food Chem. 52; 2004:3385-3388.

27 Huang SJ and Mau JL. Antioxidant properties of methanolic extract from Antrodia camphorate with various doses of γ-radiation. Food Chem. 105; 2007:1702-1710.

28 Duh PD, Tu YY and Yen GC. Antioxidant activity of water extract of harng Jyur (Chrysanthemum morifolium Ramat). LWT-Food Sci Technol. 32; 1999:269-277.

29 Shimada K, Fujikawa K, Yahara K and Nakamura T. Antioxidative properties of xanthan on the autoxidation of soybean oil in cyclodextrin emulsion. J Agric Food Chem. 40; 1992:945-948.

30 Ahn HJ, Kim JH, Kim JK, Kim DH, Yook HS and Byun MW. Combined effects of irradiation and modified atmosphere packaging on minimally processed Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa L). Food Chem. 89; 2005:589-597.

31 Rani MU and Meena R. Comparative study on antioxidant potential and phytochemical composition of Cumin and Fennel. J Herbs Spices Med Plants. 20(3); 2014:245-255.

32 Bocco A, Cuvelier ME, Richard H and Berset C. Antioxidant activity and phenolic composition of citrus peel and seed extracts. J Agric Food Chem. 4; 1998:2123-2129.

33 Kahkonen MP, Hopia AI, Vuorela HJ, Rauha JP, Pihlaja K, Kujala TS and Heinonen M. Antioxidant activity of plant extracts containing phenolic compounds. J Agric Food Chem. 47; 1999: 3954-3962.

34 Sahaya SS, Janakiraman N and Johnson M. Phytochemical analysis of Vitex altissima L. using UV-VIS, FTIR and GC-MS. Int J pharm Sci Drug Res. 4(1); 2012:56-62.

35 Moses AG and Robert MN. Fourier Transformer Infra-Red spectrophotometer analysis of Urtica dioica medicinal herb used for the treatment of diabetes, malaria and pneumonia in Kisii Region, Southwest Kenya. World Appl Sci J. 21(8); 2013:1128-1135.

36 Geethu MG, Suchithra PS, Kavitha CH, Aswathy JM, Dinesh B and Murugan K. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy analysis of different solvent extracts of water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes mart solms.) an allelopathic approach. World J Pharm Pharm Sci. 3(6); 2014:1256-1266.

37 Ragavendran P, Sophia D, Arul Raj C and Gopalakrishnan VK. Functional group analysis of various extracts of Aerva lanata (L.,) by FTIR spectrum. Pharmacologyonline. 1; 2011:358-364.

38 Rajurkar NS, Gaikwad KN and Razavi MS. Evaluation of free radical scavenging activity of Justicia adhatoda: a gamma radiation study. Int J Pharm Pharm Sci. 4; 2012:93-96.

Received on 26.04.2018 Modified on 12.05.2018

Research J. Pharm. and Tech 2018; 11(8): 3323-3329.

DOI: 10.5958/0974-360X.2018.00611.X

Radiation dose (kGy)	*F. vulgare*				*C. carvi*
Radiation dose (kGy)	TP	TF	DPPH	Fe⁺² chelation	TP	TF	DPPH	Fe⁺² chelation
5	4.81± 0.03^c	1.41± 0.01^d	0.183	1.169	2.63± 0.05^a	1.05± 0.01^a	0.229	1.666
10	3.79± 0.05^a	1.09± 0.03^a	0.289	1.579	3.41± 0.02^c	1.76± 0.02^c	0.187	1.671
20	4.31± 0.01^b	1.12± 0.02^b	0.212	1.157	3.31± 0.04^b	1.54± 0.04^b	0.180	1.420
Control	4.37± 0.02^b	1.31± 0.01^c	0.217	1.240	3.27± 0.03^b	1.58± 0.04^b	0.182	1.608
BHT	-	-	0.086	-	-	-	0.086	-
EDTA	-	-	-	0.028	-	-	-	0.028