Screening natural antioxidants in peanut shell using DPPH–HPLC–DAD–TOF/MS methods

Peanut shell, a byproduct in oil production, is rich in natural antioxidants. Here, a rapid and efficient method using DPPH–HPLC–DAD–TOF/MS was used for the first time to screen antioxidants in peanut shell. The method is based on the hypothesis that upon reaction with 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), the peak areas of compounds with potential antioxidant activities in the HPLC chromatogram will be significantly reduced or disappeared, and the identity confirmation could be achieved by HPLC–DAD–TOF/MS technique. With this method, three compounds possessing potential antioxidant activities were found abundantly in the methanolic extract of peanut shell. They were identified as 5,7-dihydroxychromone, eriodictyol, and luteolin. The contents of these compounds were 0.59, 0.92, and 2.36 mg/g, respectively, and luteolin possessed the strongest radical scavenging capacity. DPPH–HPLC–DAD–TOF/MS assay facilitated rapid identification and determination of natural antioxidants in peanut shell, which may be helpful for value-added utilization of peanut processing byproducts.