Organ-oriented phytochemical profiling and radical scavenging activity of Alcea spp. (Malvaceae) from Iran

Polyphenol content and antioxidant activity of flowers and herbage of three species of the genus Alcea were determined. Flowers showed high total phenolic content and yielded values ranging from 26.83 (Alcea aucheri var. lobata) to 82.59 (A. aucheri var. aucheri) mg GAE/g DW. Total anthocyanin content was highest (934.98 mg/ml) in the flowers of A. auchrei var. aucheri (A12), whereas the content was minimal (1.34 mg/ml) in the herbage of Alcea koelzii (A2). The highest total flavonoid content was recorded in A. koelzii (16.15 mg Q/g DW), while the lowest value was achieved in A. aucheri var. lobata (8.06 mg Q/g DW). The highest concentration of mucilage was recorded in the flowers from Alcea arbelensis (32%), whereas those of A. aucheri var. lobata yielded the lowest value (1.05%). Principal component analysis scatter plot, derived from all data for flowers in 13 Alcea specimens revealed a different quantitative phytochemical profile. The strongest radical scavenging activity, measured by DPPH method, was recorded in A. aucheri var. aucheri with an IC50 of 34.06 μg/ml.