A Multiparametric Protocol for the Detailed Phytochemical and Antioxidant Characterisation of Plant Extracts

Medicinal and herbal plants are abundant sources of phytochemicals, which are biologically active compounds with potential health benefits. The characterisation of phytochemicals has been the subject of many studies, but there is a lack of comprehensive assays to accurately assess the main phytochemical categories and their antioxidant properties. To address this, the present study has developed a multiparametric protocol comprising eight biochemical assays, which quantify the major categories of phytochemicals, including polyphenols, tannins and flavonoids, as well as their antioxidant and scavenging potential. The presented protocol offers several advantages over other methods, including higher sensitivity and significantly lower cost, making it a simpler and more affordable approach compared to commercial kits. The protocol was tested on two datasets with seventeen distinct herbal and medicinal plants, and the results demonstrated its effectiveness in accurately characterising the phytochemical composition of plant samples. The modular design of the protocol allows its adaptation to any spectrophotometric instrumentation, while all assays are simple to follow and require a minimum number of analytical steps.