Phytochemical Analysis and Antioxidant Activity of Mentha piperita L. (Peppermint) from Iraq
Keywords:
DPPH , GC-FID , Mentha piperita L. , Phenolic quantification , Phytochemistry , RP-HPLCAbstract
Background: Mentha piperita L. (Lamiaceae) owes its pharmacological reputation to two chemically distinct fractions, a non-volatile phenolic pool and a volatile essential oil. These are seldom characterized within the same study, and no phytochemical data appear to exist for material of Iraqi origin. Methods: Dried aerial parts of Iraqi origin, obtained from a laboratory plant collection, were macerated in parallel in ethanol and ethyl acetate (50.5 g/500 mL, 72 h, 25±2°C). Seven phenolic compounds were quantified by RP-HPLC (C18-ODS column, UV 220 nm) against certified reference standards. Essential oil recovered by Clevenger hydrodistillation (3 h) was profiled by GC-FID (ZB-1 column, 30 m). Antioxidant capacity was assessed by DPPH radical scavenging (30–500 ppm) against ascorbic acid, with IC50 derived by log-linear regression (n=3). Results: Gallic acid was the most abundant phenolic (74.90 μg/mL in ethanol; 70.22 in ethyl acetate), followed by quercetin (62.55; 55.99), rutin (40.12; 51.44), caffeic acid (34.55; 44.14), ferulic acid (20.33; 32.69), apigenin (14.15; 27.74) and kaempferol (9.15; 19.88 μg/mL). Menthol (47.22%) and menthone (15.14%) dominated the oil, with six identified constituents accounting for 74.49% of total peak area. Both extracts surpassed ascorbic acid in radical scavenging: IC50 74.48 ppm for the ethanolic extract (1.61-fold, p=0.0041) and 86.68 ppm for the ethyl acetate extract (1.38-fold, p=0.0157). Conclusions: Antioxidant activity tracked the identity of individual phenolics, chiefly gallic acid and quercetin, rather than total phenolic content. The values reported are analytical replicates from a single batch and require confirmation across independent batches.
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