Antioxidant activity of extracts from in vitro cultures of Salvia officinalis L.

Methanolic and acetone extracts from organ (shoots and hairy roots) and undifferentiated (cell and callus) cultures of Salvia officinalis, as well as from shoots and roots of in vitro regenerated plants were evaluated for their antioxidant properties using three various in vitro models: scavenging of the free radicals using DPPH, transition metal reduction in phosphomolybdenum assay and inhibition of lipid oxidation. The concentrations of rosmarinic acid, diterpenoids (carnosic acid and carnosol) and total phenolic compounds in each extract were determined. The methanolic hairy root and root regenerated plant extracts possessed the strongest effects on reducing Mo and DPPH radical scavenging. On the other hand the best protective effect against linoleic acid oxidation was observed for acetone extracts of shoots obtained from in vitro culture followed by the extracts of shoots of intact plants grown in the field, without statistically significant differences between them. (C) 2006 Published by Elsevier Ltd.