Asian Pac J Trop Dis 2013; 3(4):253-261 253

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Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Disease

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/apjtd

Document heading doi:10.1016/S2222-1808(13)60066-3 襃 2013 by the Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Disease. All rights reserved.

In vitro bioactivity and phytochemical screening of selected spices used

in Mauritian foods
Diksa Devi Tacouri, Deena Ramful-Baboolall, Daneshwar Puchooa*
Department of Agriculture and Food Science, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Mauritius, Réduit, Mauritius

PEER REVIEW ABSTRACT

Peer reviewer Objective: To investigate the in vitro antioxidant and antimicrobial activities along with
P rofessor P ius T . MPIANA , S cience phytochemical screening of organic and aqueous extracts of spices used in Mauritian foods.
F aculty, U niversity of K inshasa, Methods: Antioxidant activity of the crude extracts was evaluated in terms of total antioxidant
Kinshasa, DR Congo. capacity, total phenol content and total flavonoid content. The antimicrobial activity of the spices
Tel: +243 81811 6019 was determined by the agar well diffusion method against a gram positive and a gram negative
E-mail: [email protected] bacteria. The qualitative and quantitative phytochemical screening were carried out by standard
biochemical assays.
Comments Results: All six spices were found to possess alkaloids, coumarins, flavonoids, saponins, steroids,
This is a valuable research work in tannins and phenols. Total phenolic content of the extracts varied between 177 and 1 890 mg GAE/g
which authors demonstrated that six DW while the total flavonoid content varied between 2.8 and 37.6 mg QE/g DW. All six spices were
spices used in Mauritius cuisine have found to possess strong antioxidant properties as well. Highest value was obtained for cinnamon
antibacterial and antioxidant activities. [(24.930依0.198) µmol Fe2 /g DW] whilst turmeric showed the lowest antioxidant activity [(5.980依0.313)
+

And these activities can be correlated µmol Fe /g DW] (P<0.05). All extracts showed promising activity against Staphylococcus aureus
2+

to their phenolic compounds content. and Escherichia coli. The size of the inhibition zones ranged between (11.20依0.23) mm to (26.10依2.09)
Details on Page 259 mm (P<0.05) with turmeric and cinnamon being the most effective against Staphylococcus aureus
while garlic was least effective against both E. coli and S. aureus.
Conclusions: The present study reveals the presence of potential antioxidant and antimicrobial
properties in the extracts of the spices which could be further exploited.

KEYWORDS
Spices, Phytochemicals, Phenolics, Antioxidant, Antibacterial

1. Introduction many ethnic cuisines are recognized for their reliance on

“signature” herbs and spices. Turmeric in Indian cuisine;
Spices, which include leaves (coriander, mint), buds basil, garlic, and oregano in Italian and Greek cuisines;
( clove ) ,
bulbs ( garlic, onion ) , fruits ( red chili, black and lemongrass, ginger, cilantro, and chili peppers in Thai
pepper) , stem ( cinnamon) , rhizomes ( ginger) and other food represent some of the cultural diversity in the use
plant parts, have been defined as plant substances from of herbs and spices. Satia-Abouta et al. reported that the
indigenous or exotic origin, aromatic or with strong taste, cuisines of Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Mediterranean
used to enhance the taste of foods[1]. Herbs and spices are perceived by many to be healthier than the typical
have been used during the M iddle A ges for flavoring, W estern diet [2] . S everal studies have attributed the
food preservation, and/or medicinal purposes. T oday antimicrobial, antioxidant and pharmaceutical properties

*Corresponding author: Daneshwar Puchooa, Department of Agriculture and Food Article history:
Science, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Mauritius, Réduit, Mauritius. Received 10 May 2013
Tel: +2304541041 Received in revised form 15 May, 2nd revised form 25 May, 3rd revised form 15 Jun 2013
Fax: +2304655743 Accepted 1 Jul 2013
E-mail: [email protected] Available online 28 Aug 2013
Foundation Project: Supported by the Ministry of Tertiary Education, Science &
Technology, Republic of Mauritius (Grant No. R103).
254 Daneshwar Puchooa /Asian Pac J Trop Dis 2013; 3(4): 253-261

of spices and herbs to their phenolic compounds [3] . was added to a conical flask together with different solvents
Mauritian cuisine is diverse and consists of a mixture of (acetone, methanol, ethanol and water ) for extraction of
Indian, Chinese, European and African cuisines. Spices phytochemicals.
are basic ingredients in most of the dishes in Mauritius.
Also, to treat minor ailments, several kinds of extracts from 2.3. Phytochemical screening
several endemic, exotic and indigenous plants are sold as
decoctions or ‘tisanes’ in the Mauritian markets[4]. There is A qualitative phytochemical test to detect the presence
at present increasing interest both in the industry and in of alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins, steroids, tannins,
scientific research for spices and aromatic herbs because coumarins and phenols was carried out using standard
of their strong antioxidant and antimicrobial properties, procedures[10-13].
which exceed many currently used natural and synthetic
antioxidants. These properties are due to many substances, 2.4. Determination of total phenolic content
including some vitamins, flavonoids, terpenoids,
carotenoids, phytoestrogens, minerals, etc. and render The total phenolic content of plant extract was determined
spices and some herbs or their antioxidant components using Folin-Ciocalteu reagent[14]. In brief, to 250 µL of
as preservative agents in food[5]. Antioxidants have a long Folin-Ciocalteu’s reagent, 10 µL of sample was added,
history of use in the nutrition/health community and food followed by 3.5 mL of deionised water. After 3 min, 1 mL
industry. T he traditional understanding has been that of 20 % sodium carbonate was added. T he mixture was
antioxidant chemicals promote health by removing reactive vortexed and incubated at 40 °C for 40 min. It was allowed
species that may otherwise exert harmful metabolic effects. to cool in the dark. The absorbance was measured at 685
I n general, maximizing antioxidant concentrations is nm and all determinations were carried out in duplicates. A
thought to minimize the risk for chronic disease[6]. Several standard curve was obtained using various concentrations
studies have shown that spices are able to counteract of gallic acid. The results were expressed as mg gallic acid
oxidative stress in in vitro and in vivo systems [7,8] . equivalent/g dry weight of material.
According to a phytochemical database[9], the number of
different antioxidants in some plants can reach up to 40. 2.5. Determination of total flavonoid content
In the present study, an attempt was made to evaluate
the antioxidant and antimicrobial activities besides the Total flavonoids were measured by AlCl3 colorimetric
phytochemicals in six commonly used spices in Mauritian assay[15]. Briefly, to 500 µL of extract and 2000 µL of distilled
dishes with a view to evaluate their bioefficiency for their water, 5% of sodium nitrate was added. After 5 min, 150
possible pharmaceutical applications. µL of 10% AlCl3 was added. A total of 2 000 µL of sodium
hydroxide ( 1 mol ) was added after 1 min followed by
1 200 µL of distilled water. The mixture was vortexed and
2. Materials and methods incubated for 30 min. The absorbance was measured at 510
nm against a prepared blank. A yellow color indicated the
2.1. Spice materials presence of flavonoids. Quercetin was used as a standard to
generate a standard curve. The total flavonoids content of
The following spices were used in this study and they samples were determined in duplicates and the results were
were obtained from a local supermarket: ajwain seeds expressed as mg quercetin acid equivalent/g dry weight of
( Trachyspermum ammi), coriander seeds ( Coriandrum material.
sativum L.), cinnamon bark (Cinnamomum verum), fennel
seeds (Foeniculum vulgare), garlic cloves (Allium sativum), 2.6. Antioxidant activity
and dried turmeric powder (Curcuma longa).
A modified Benzie & Strain ferric reducing antioxidant
2.2. Preparation of extracts potential ( FRAP ) method was used to obtain the total
antioxidant capacity [16] . FRAP assay depends on the
A decoction method was used to obtain aqueous extracts reduction of Fe3 - TPTZ2 to Fe2 -TPTZ2. The FRAP reagent
+ +

of the spices. A total of 500 g of each spice was added to 2.5 consisting of 10 mL of 10 mmol TPTZ solution in 40 mmol/
L of boiling distilled water and left to simmer for 1 h. The L HCl and 10 mL of 20 mmol/L ferric chloride in 200 mL of
solutions were allowed to cool, filtered using muslin cloth 0.25 mol sodium acetate buffer (pH 3.6) was freshly prepared
and stored at -20 °C when not in use. Some of the solutions and warmed at 37 °C. The spice extract (20 µL) was allowed
obtained were freeze-dried and the powdered samples to react with 4 500 µL of the FRAP solution and 480 µL of
obtained were stored at 4 °C. And 25 g of the fine powder water for 30 min in the dark at 37 °C. All determinations
 Daneshwar Puchooa /Asian Pac J Trop Dis 2013; 3(4): 253-261
255

were carried out in duplicate. Absorbance was read at 593 of cinnamon showed the highest level of phenolics while
nm. The standard curve was linear between 0 and 1 mmol/L turmeric showed the lowest (P<0.05). The total phenolic
FeSO4·H2O. content of fennel and coriander was not significantly
different from each other. Also, there were no significant
2.7. Antimicrobial activity differences between phenolic content of garlic and
coriander.
An agar-well diffusion method was employed for the Table 2
determination of antibacterial activities of the aqueous Total phenol and total flavonoid contents of the six spices (n=2).
extracts of the spices. And 3.5 g of the each freeze-dried Spices Total phenol
a
Total flavonoid
b

extracts were weighed and dissolved in distilled water. Cinnamon 1890.360依27.353 20.910依1.491
And 100 µL of either S. aureus or E. coli suspension was Ajwain 1227.240依0.000 37.570依3.946
spread on EMB medium. Five wells of 0.8 mm diameter were Fennel 779.980依112.100 18.00依0.00

punched over the agar plates using sterile gel puncher (cork Garlic 271.030依10.522 3.990依0.126

borer). Then, 100 µL of the spice extracts were added into Turmeric 176.870依10.305 2.810依0.062
Coriander 594.780依42.685 10.560依0.545
the wells using a micropipette. There were five replicates
for each spice and for each bacterium tested. The plates Data are expressed as mean依standard deviation.
a
mg gallic acid equivalent/g DW; b mg quercetin equivalent/g DW; DW:
were incubated at 37 °C for 24 h. The zone of clearance
Dry weight.
around each well after the incubation period confirms the
antimicrobial activity of each spice extract. 3.3. Total flavonoid content

2.8. Statistical analysis With regards to the flavonoid contents, they varied from
(2.800依0.062)
to (37.570依3.946) (Table 2). Ajwain had the highest
T he spectrophotometric tests were performed in
flavonoids content (37.6依3.95 mg QE/g DW) whilst turmeric
duplicates and the results were expressed as mean依range. had the lowest (2.8依0.06 mg QE/g DW) (P<0.05). Flavonoid
The antibacterial results were statistically analysed using
contents of cinnamon and fennel were not significantly
Minitab statistical software version 16 for Windows at a 5%
different. T he total flavonoids of garlic was also not
significance level. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA)
significantly different from those of turmeric and coriander.
and Tukey’s test were carried out to test any significant
The decreasing order of flavonoid contents was ajwain>cinn
differ-ences among different aqueous spice extracts. Values
amon>fennel>coriander>garlic>turmeric.
of P<0.05 were considered as significantly different (α=0.05).
3.4. Antioxidant activity
3. Results
The antioxidant effectiveness of the six spice extracts was
3.1. Phytochemical screening assessed by the FRAP assay. The results are summarized in
Table 3. The highest FRAP value (P<0.05) was observed in
cinnamon with 24.93依0.198 µmol Fe2 /g DW while turmeric
+

Phytochemical screening of the extracts showed that the

solvent extracts contain most of the phytochemicals like showed the lowest antioxidant activity (P<0.05) with (5.980依
0.313) µmol Fe /g DW. Significant differences were observed
2+
alkaloids, coumarins, flavonoids, saponins, steroids, tannins
and phenols (Table 1). between the total antioxidant activities of the spices (P<0.05)
Table 1 except between garlic and fennel. The decreasing order of
Phytochemical constituents of the six spices. antioxidant activity was: cinnamon>coriander>ajwain>fenne
Spices l>garlic>turmeric.
Phytochemicals
Cinnamon Ajwain Fennel Garlic Turmeric Coriander Table 3
Alkaloids + + + - - - Total antioxidant capacity (µmol Fe equivalent per g DW) of the six
2+

Coumarins + + + + + + spice extracts (n=2).

Flavonoids + + + + - - Spice Extract FRAP (µmol Fe /g DW)
2+

Saponins + + + + + - Cinnamon 24.930依0.198

a

Steroids + + + + + + Ajwain 13.570依0.126

c

Tannins + + + - - + Fennel 12.140依0.115

d

Phenols + + + - - + Garlic 10.800依0.489

d

+: presence of phytochemical; -: absence of phytochemical. Turmeric 5.980依0.313

e

Coriander 18.530依0.581
b

3.2. Total phenolic content Data are expressed as mean依range.

Data was analysed by One-way ANOVA followed by Tukey’s multiple
The amount of phenolics varied widely, ranging between comparison test; Different letters between rows represent significant
177 and 1 890 mg GAE/g DW (Table 2). The aqueous extract difference between samples (P<0.05).
256 Daneshwar Puchooa /Asian Pac J Trop Dis 2013; 3(4): 253-261

3.5. Antimicrobial activity Table 4

Antimicrobial activities of the spice extracts against E. coli and S. aureus.
The antibacterial activities of the spices’ extracts are Spice Extract
Inhibition zone (mm)
summarised in Table 4. All the aqueous extracts of the E. coli S. aureus
Cinnamon 24.0依1.10 17.6依0.78
a d
spices showed antibacterial activities against both S.
Ajwain 22.5依1.58 19.6依1.87
ab c

aureus and E. coli. In the case of E. coli, the zones of Fennel 21.8依0.96
b
21.0依2.18
c

inhibition varied from (11.20依0.74) mm to (24.00依1.10) mm Garlic 11.2依0.74

d
11.9依1.29
e

while in the case of S. aureus it varied from (11.20依0.74) to Turmeric 18.0依2.04

c
26.1依2.09
a

(24.00依1.10). The aqueous extract of turmeric showed the Coriander 17.9依0.78 23.0依1.51
c b

highest antibacterial activity (P<0.05) against S. aureus Data are expressed as mean依standard deviation, (n=15)
with a (26.10依2.09) mm inhibition zone while the extract Data was analysed by One-way ANOVA followed by Tukey`s multiple
comparison test.
of garlic showed the lowest antibacterial activity (P<0.05) Different letters between rows represent significant difference between
against both E. coli and S. aureus with an inhibition zone samples (P<0.05).
of ( 11 . 90 依 1 . 29 ) and ( 11 . 90 依 1 . 29 ) mm respectively. W hen 3.6 Correlation between antibacterial activities of spice
S. aureus was used as the test organism, the differences extracts and total antioxidant capacity
between the antibacterial activities of the aqueous extract
of the spices were statistically significant (P<0.05) except The correlation between total antioxidant capacity and
for ajwain and fennel with no significant differences antibacterial activities of the aqueous extracts is shown in
between them. I n the case of E. coli, there were no Figure 1. The linear correlation coefficient data revealed
significant differences between the antibacterial activities that the antibacterial activities of the extracts against S.
of cinnamon and ajwain as well as between the activities aureus were negatively correlated (r=-0.231) with the total
of ajwain and fennel, and the activities of turmeric and antioxidant capacities of the spices whereas for E. coli, the
coriander (P>0.05). antibacterial activities were positively correlated (0.493) to
the antioxidant activity.

S. aureus E. coli
30.0 30.0 30.0
30.0

Total Antioxidant capacity

25.0 25.0 25.0 25.0
Total Antioxidant capacity
Zone of inhibition (mm)

Zone of inhibition (mm)

20.0 20.0 20.0 20.0

15.0 15.0 15.0

15.0
10.0 10.0
10.0 10.0
5.0 5.0
5.0 5.0
0.0 0.0
0.0 0.0 Cinamon Ajwain Fennel Garlic Turmeric Coriander
Cinamon Ajwain Fennel Garlic Turmeric Coriander
E. coli Zone of inhibition Antioxidant capacity
E. coli Zone of inhibition Antioxidant capacity
Figure 1. Relationship between total antioxidant capacity of the spice extracts and antibacterial activity.

S. aureus E. coli
30.0 2000
30.0 2000
1800
1800 25.0
Zone of inhibition (mm)

25.0 1600 1600

Zone of inhibition (mm)

Total phenolic content

20.0 1400
Total phenolic content

1400
20.0
1200 1200
15.0 1000 15.0 1000
800 800
10.0 600 10.0
600
400
5.0 5.0 400
200
200
0.0 0
Cinamon Ajwain Fennel Garlic Turmeric Coriander 0.0 0
Cinamon Ajwain Fennel Garlic Turmeric Coriander
S. aureus Zone of inhibition Total phenol
E. coli Zone of inhibition Total phenol
Figure 2. Relationship between total phenolic contents of the spice extracts and antibacterial activity.
 Daneshwar Puchooa /Asian Pac J Trop Dis 2013; 3(4): 253-261
257

S. aureus E. coli
30.0 40.0 30.0 40.0
35.0 35.0
25.0 25.0
Zone of inhibition (mm)

Zone of inhibition (mm)

30.0 30.0

Total flavonoid content

Total flavonoid content

20.0 20.0
25.0 25.0
15.0 20.0 15.0 20.0
15.0 15.0
10.0 10.0
10.0 10.0
5.0 5.0
5.0 5.0
0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Cinamon Ajwain Fennel Garlic Turmeric Coriander Cinamon Ajwain Fennel Garlic Turmeric Coriander

S. aureus Zone of inhibition Total flavonoid E. coli Zone of inhibition Total flavonoid
Figure 3. Relationship between total flavonoid contents of the spice extracts and antibacterial activity.

Total phenolic content Total flavonoid content

2000 30 40 30
1800 35
25 25
Total phenolic content

Total flavonoid content

1600
30

Total antioxidant
1400 20 20
25
1200 Total antioxidant
15 20 15
1000
800 15 10
10
600 10
5
400 5 5
200 0
0
0 Cinamon Ajwain Fennel Garlic Turmeric Coriander 0 Cinamon Ajwain Fennel Garlic Turmeric Coriander

Total phenol Antioxidant capacity Total flavonoid Antioxidant capacity

Figure 4. Relationship between total phenolic contents, total flavonoid contents of the spice extracts and Antioxidant potentials of the extracts.

3.7. Correlation between antibacterial activities of spice the antioxidant capacities of the extracts (Figure 4). The
extracts and total phenolic content linear correlation coefficient values showed that the total
antioxidant capacity was more strongly correlated to total
The correlation between antibacterial activity and total phenols (r=0.822) than it was to total flavonoid (r=0.376).
phenolic contents (Figure 2) showed that in the case of E.
coli, the antibacterial activity was strongly correlated (r=
0.790) with the total phenolic contents of the spice extracts 4. Discussion
while in the case of S. aureus, the antibacterial activity
showed a poor negative correlation (r=-0.186) with the total The results of the present study suggested that several
phenolics. phytochemicals as well as antioxidant properties are
present in all the six spices extracts. The presence of the
3.8. Correlation between antibacterial activities of spice phytochemicals can be correlated with the fact that solvent
extracts and total flavonoid content extracts showed antibacterial activity against the bacterial
strains. Phytochemicals give plants their colour, flavour,
It was observed that the antibacterial activities of the smell and are part of a plant`s natural defense system and
extracts against S. aureus was very poor (r=-0.058). However, protect them against herbivorous insects and vertebrates,
a strong correlation (r=0.728) was observed between the fungi, pathogens, and parasites[17,18]. The phytochemicals
antibacterial activities of the spices against E. coli and total alkaloids, coumarins, flavonoids, saponins, steroids,
flavonoids (Figure 3). tannins and phenols were present in the aqueous extracts of
cinnamon, fennel and ajwain. The results are in accordance
3.9. Correlation between total phenolic content, total with the findings of other authors who have studied these
flavonoid content and antioxidant potential spices[19-23]. The cinnamic acid pathway has phenylalanine
as starting material and produces many phenolic acids,
T he correlation between total antioxidant capacities coumarins, flavonoids, isoflavonoids and lignans [24] .
of the aqueous spice extracts and phenolic content was A lkaloids were absent in extracts of garlic, turmeric
also assessed. The data revealed that both total phenolic and coriander while tannins and phenols were absent in
and flavonoid contents were positively correlated with extracts of both garlic and turmeric. Some of the important
258 Daneshwar Puchooa /Asian Pac J Trop Dis 2013; 3(4): 253-261

components detected in fennel recently were trans-anethole, well as in different amounts. For example, protocatechuic
fenchone, estragol (methyl chavicol), and a-phellandrene[25]. acid, chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid, p-coumaric acid,
O n the other hand, the active ingredients of turmeric ferulic acid, apigenin, luteolin, quercetin, rutin, galangal,
include the curcuminoids diferuloylmethane (curcumin I), naringin and catechinaqueous are known to be absent
demethoxycurcumin (curcumin II), bisdemethoxycurcumin in cinnamon while chlorogenic acid rutin are known to
(curcumin III) and cyclocurcumin[26]. Perusal of literature be present in fennel extract [35]. F ennel is also known
revealed that the phytochemical content of spices may be to contain 1 , 5 -odicaffeoylquinicacid, 3 -caffeoylquinic
influenced by a number of factors including: physiological acid, 4-caffeoylquinic acid, quercetin-3-O-galactoside,
and morphological characteristics intrinsic to the cultivar, rosmarinic acid, eriodictyol-7-O-rutinoside, kaempferol-
the level of expression of the genes, and pedo-climatic 3 - O -glucoside and kaempferol- 3 - O -rutinoside as
growth conditions[27]. phenolics[36].
Phenolic compounds can be classified into phenolic In order to defend against damage from oxidation and
acids, flavonoids, tannins, phenolic volatile oils and reactive oxygen species (ROS), organisms have developed
others. Phenolic acids include two subclasses, namely complex antioxidant systems to scavenge ROS thereby
hydroxycinnamic acids (e.g. coumaric acid, ferulic acid, protecting key biological sites from oxidative damage. These
caffeic acid, and chlorogenic acid) and hydroxybenzoic antioxidants are either produced by the body or derived
acids (e.g. protocatechuic acid, gallic acid, and vanillic from diets. Consumption of food rich in antioxidants has
acid). Flavonoids constitute the largest class of phenolic been shown to play an essential role in the prevention
compounds, and they are ubiquitous in plants. Flavonoids of cardiovascular diseases, cancers, neurodegenerative
have the basic skeleton of diphenylpropanes ( C 6 - C 3 - diseases, inflammation and problems caused by cutaneous
C 6 ) with different oxidation of the central pyran ring, aging [37-42]. P henolic compounds account for a major
and further subclassified as flavones (e.g. apigenin and portion of the antioxidant capacity in many plants[43]. The
luteolin), flavonols (e.g. galangin, kaempferol, quercetin, antioxidant activity of phenolics may be due to their ability
rutin, and isorhamnetin ) , flavanones ( e.g. naringenin, to terminate free radicals and chelate metal ions by rapid
naringin, and hesperetin), isoflavones (e.g. genistin and donation of a hydrogen atom or electrons to the oxidized
daizin), and anthocyanidins (e.g. apigenidin and cyanidin). molecule or radicals[44]. In our study the highest antioxidant
The number of natural polyphenols has been estimated properties were detected in cinnamon extracts (24.93依0.198
to be over one million, because they often occur as µmol Fe /g DW) and the lowest in turmeric (5.98依0.313 µmol
2+

glycosides with one or more sugar moieties[28-30]. Phenolic Fe /g DW). The strong correlations we observed between
2+

compounds are commonly present in spices and have been antioxidant activities and phenolic content indicate phenolic
reported to have several biological activities including compounds were a major contributor to the antioxidant
antioxidant activity. In our studied spices we found high activities in these spices. This is in agreement with several
amount of phenolic compounds, an indication of their other studies that found strong correlations between high
strong antioxidant capacities. Phenolic compounds are phenol content and high antioxidant activities in grapes,
considered as one of the most effective antioxidants[31]. They tomato, vegetables and herbs and medicinal plants [45-
have been reported to possess many biological activities 48] . D ifferent phenolic compounds are responsible for

such as cytotoxic antitumour activity, vascular activity, the antioxidant properties of the six spices studied. The
antioxidant activity, antiallergic activity, antimicrobial antioxidant property of garlic preparation in hot water is
activity, anti-inflammatory activity, enzyme inhibition due to the production of dimethyl, diallyl, methyl allyl
and antimicrobial activity [32] . Q uantitative results of from thiosulfinates; the antioxidant capacity of the aqueous
phenolic acids and flavonoids in the spices studied were extract of coriander is due to the presence of linanool,
displayed. The highest total phenolic content was obtained flavonoids, coumarins, catechins, terpenes and polyphenolic
in cinnamon bark extract (1890.36依27.353 mg GAE/g DW) while curcumin is responsible for the antioxidant properties
and the lowest in turmeric extract (176.87依10.305 mg GAE/g of turmeric [49,50] . E nvironmental variables such as
DW). The phenolic compounds present in cinnamon include processing and cooking may affect to a significant extent the
2-hydroxycinnamaldehyde, cinnamyl aldehyde derivatives concentrations and biological activities of the antioxidants
and flavan-3-ols[33]. The figures obtained for turmeric in our in the spices, and consequently the amount of antioxidants
study however, is higher than the ethanolic extract (120.34 available to the consumer. Reports of the effects of cooking
mg GAE/g) and ethanol/ water extract (120.05 mg GAE/g) on the antioxidant capacity of plant-based foods indicate
obtained by another author[34]. In terms of total flavonoids this effect may be negative, positive or none at all[51-55].
content, the highest value was obtained for ajwain (37.57依 Plants produce a high diversity of secondary metabolites
3.946 mg QE/g DW) and the lowest for turmeric (2.81依0.062 in order to protect themselves from biotic stresses as well
mg QE/g DW) extracts. The differences in the total phenolic as abiotic stresses. There are many published reports on
and total flavonoid of the spices may be accounted for by spice and herb extracts against different bacteria. However,
the different phenolic compounds present in these spices as difficulties arise in comparing the results due to different
 Daneshwar Puchooa /Asian Pac J Trop Dis 2013; 3(4): 253-261
259

methodologies used including solvents, concentrations, providing funds and laboratory facilities. This project was
microbial strains and antimicrobial test methods[7]. I n supported by the Ministry of Tertiary Education, Science &
the present study, the aqueous extracts were found to Technology, Republic of Mauritius (Grant No. R103).
be susceptible to gram-positive S. aureus and gram-
negative E. coli. U sually, gram-positive bacteria are
more sensitive to extracts of spice and herbs than are Comments
the gram-negative bacteria because of the differences in
the cell envelope structure of the bacteria[56]. The gram- Background
positive bacteria do not have an outer membrane and a Spices and edible plants in general are intensively studied
particular periplasmic space that is present in the gram- for their health effects. Their health benefit depends on
negative bacteria. Antibacterial substances readily break their chemical composition. But phytochemical content of
the bacterial cell wall and cytoplasmic membrane of gram plants may be influenced by a number of factors including
positive bacteria, resulting in the cytoplasm`s leakage and pedo-climatic growth conditions. So it is necessary to
coagulation. Whereas in the gram-positive bacteria, the evaluate health benefit of some edible plants in correlation
outer membrane has a hydrophilic surface which is rich in of their phytochemical composition in a given region.
lipopolysaccharide molecules, and it provides protection
against many antibiotic molecules. Moreover the enzymes in Research frontiers
the periplasmic space have the ability to break molecules This research compared phytochemical compositions of
from the outside[3]. In our study all the six spice extracts six spices used in Mauritius cuisine and the authors tried
produced inhibitory zones against both S. aureus and E. coli to found correlation between phenolic compounds contents
and is in accordance with other similar studies. In addition, and antioxidants and antibacterial activity.
many of these spices have shown to have antimicrobial
properties against several pathogenic microorganisms[3]. Related reports
Garlic, in particular has been shown to be active against Phytochemical composition of all the six used spices is
numerous bacteria, viruses ( herpes simplex, HIV and reported and some molecules have been isolated from them.
influenza and the fungi Aspergillus luchuensis, Aspergillus Antibacterial and antioxidant activities of some of them are
flavus, Rhizopus stolonifer, Mucor sp. and Scopulariopsis also reported.
sp. [1,57-61]. Different solvent extracts of coriander have also
proven to have effective antibacterial activities against Innovations and breakthroughs
a number of bacteria including Bacillus cereus, Bacillus T his paper compares phytochemical composition,
subtilis, Pseudomonas auruginosa, Pseudomonas spp., antibacterial and antioxidant potential of spices spices used
Shigella dysentiriae, Salmonella typhi, Staphylococcus in Mauritius. Authors give the possible correlation between
coagulase, Streptococcus fecaelis[62-66]. A strong correlation chemical composition and antibacterial and antioxidant
was observed between the antibacterial activities of the potential.
spices and total phenolic content.
W e have discussed the in vitro bioactivity and Applications
phytochemicals of six spices commonly used in Mauritian These spices are well known in literature for their health
dishes. Differences between this study and others might benefits. This study shows that despite of pedo-climate
exist due to different varieties, growing conditions, and change, these species used in Mauritius cuisine still have
processing conditions amongst others. antioxidant and antibacterial activity. So they can be used
as medicinal food.

Conflict of interest statement Peer review

T his is a valuable research work in which authors
We declare that we have no conflict of interest. demonstrated that six spices used in Mauritius cuisine have
antibacterial and antioxidant activities. And these activities
can be correlated to their phenolic compounds content.
Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to the staff of the Botany and References
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