ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY, TOTAL PHENOLIC AND FLAVONOID CONTENT OF SOME LOCAL AND CULTIVATED ALMONDS (Prunus dulcis L.)

In this study, bioactive content (total phenolic and total flavonoid content, antioxidant activity) of 11 local and 13 foreign almond accessions sampled from a national almond repository collection in Southern Anatolia region in Turkey were investigated. The total phenolic content of methanol extract of almond kernels was determined according to the Folin Ciocalteu method. Antioxidant activities of the extracts were evaluated by a 2,2'-diphenylpicrylhydrazyl (DPPH), ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and beta-carotene bleaching assays. Total phenolic content was observed in kernel of almond accessions between 45.58 (cv. Primorski) and 93.64 mg GAE/g (cv. Garrigues), respectively. Total flavonoid content was the highest in cv. Garrigues (51.15 mg CE/g) while the lowest value was observed in cv. Ferraduel (11.71 mg CE/g). A wide variation of antioxidant activity of almond kernels was found in all antioxidant determining method and cv. Garrigues in general showed the highest antioxidant activity values in all three methods