Perfil químico e atividade antioxidante do extrato hidroalcóolico e frações da entrecasca de Schinus Terebinthifolius Raddi

Abstract

Plants are the source of a variety of chemical compounds, many of which have already served as important structural models for drug synthesis. These compounds, of complex chemical structure, act in the defense and perpetuation of plant species and, therefore, are considered factors of interaction between organisms. The Schinus terebinthifolius Raddi, a plant species popularly known as aroeira, originates in Peru with a wide geographic distribution and can be found in several continents including America, and throughout the Northeast, Southeast, south and Central-West coast of Brazil. Empirical knowledge shows that this plant is used in the treatment of fever, gastritis, diarrhea among other pathologies and scientific data show the presence of secondary metabolites such as terpenes, tannins and phenols in general, compounds often related to the antioxidant properties which can be correlated with some biological activities exhibited by the plant. In view of the above, the present study used this popular knowledge to make an analysis of the antioxidant potential of the hydroalcoholic extract of Schinus terebinthifolius Raddi. The results obtained were satisfactory and confirmed the presence of the phenolic compounds and terpenes already described in the literature, these are the main responsible for the antioxidant effect of the plant.