Antioxidant and chromatic characterization of phenolic content in red cabbage

Abstract

Red cabbage is a widely consumed vegetable, with a high content of health-promoting compounds:minerals, vitamins, phenols and glucosinolates. The phenols group is very well represented and includes, among others, the anthocyanin pigments, which are responsible for the specific colour of red cabbage. The present research analyses the total and individual phenolic content (measured spectrophotometrically and, respective, by HPLC), the total and monomeric anthocyanins content, the chromatic parameters (colour density, polymeric colour, percent of polymeric colour, browning index, the CIELab colour parameters: lightness, green/red colour component, blue/yellow colour component, colour intensity, tone), the antioxidant activity, as well as the pH of an ethanolic red cabbage extract. The results revealed a high content of phenolic compounds and an important antioxidant activity. The main phenols identified are: gallic acid, ellagic acid, procyanidin B1, m-hydroxybenzoic acid, ferulic acid and protocatechuic acid. The results provedan important quantity of anthocyanins, of which 82.59% are monomeric. The values of polymeric colour, percent of polymeric colour and browning index confirm the preponderance of monomeric phenols in the studied red cabbage extract.