Activity guided isolation of antioxidants from the leaves of Ricinus communis L.

An activity-guided isolation and purification process was used to identify the DPPH (l,l-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl) free radical scavenging components of the food plant (Ricinus communis L.) of Eri silkworm. Dry leaves of R. communis L. were extracted with different solvents and tested for their antioxidant activity against DPPH•. The MeOH:water (8:2) extract showed strong DPPH radical-scavenging activity, and was subjected to column chromatography over silica gel. Gallic acid, quercetin, gentisic acid, rutin, epicatechin and ellagic acid were isolated as active components and characterised by different spectroscopic techniques.