Antioxidant Activity of Essential Oil From Carum Carvi L. Cultivated in North-Eastern Romania

Essential oils have significant antioxidant activity, being used frequently as preservatives in the food and cosmetic industries. Aim: To assess the in vitro antioxidant activity of essential oil from Carum carvi L. (caraway) cultivated in northeastern Romania. Materials and Methods: The essential oil was isolated by hydrodistillation from dried caraway fruits. The chemical composition was investigated by gas chromatography and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry analyses. Antioxidant activity was evaluated by three different in vitro antioxidant assays (DPPH∙ and ABTS•+ scavenging and reducing power assays). Butylhydroxyanisole was used as reference standard. Results and Discussion: Carvone was the major compound of essential oil of caraway fruits (48.53%), followed by limonene (44.42%). Evaluation of the antioxidant activity (DPPH∙and ABTS•+ scavenging activity and reducing power) revealed significant effects, with IC50 values of 46.51 ± 1.61 µg/mL, 5.34 ± 0.07 µg/mL and 7.64 ± 0.22 µg/mL, respectively, as compared to those of the reference standard, butylhydroxyanisole (6.09 ± 0.27 µg/mL, 1.49 ± 0.00 µg/mL and 3.39 ± 0.07 µg/mL, respectively). Conclusions: Essential oil of Carum carvi cultivated in northeastern Romania belongs to carvone chemotype. Due to its high antioxidant activity it might be a potential alternative to conventional preservatives in the food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries.