Biological and antioxidant activity of calendula officinalis

The article presents the results of studying the biological and antioxidant activity of Calendula officinalis. For this purpose, quantitative determination of some groups of biologically active substances in the pharmaceutical raw material of calendula officinalis flowers produced by JSC Krasnogorskleksredstva (PharmaTsvet) was performed using spectrophotometric and titrimetric methods. The analysis established the content of tannins - 4.10%, ascorbic acid - 19.80 mg%, carotenoids - 1.70 mg%, chlorophyll - 1.10 mg%, flavonoids - 0.86%. To determine the antioxidant activity, aqueous and aqueous-alcoholic (40% ethanol) extracts were used, prepared in the mass ratio “raw material : extractant” - 1 : 30. The study of the criterion of total antioxidant activity was carried out by the voltammetric method using the TA-07 analyzer. During the experiment, the effect of extraction time on the kinetic criterion was assessed. For water decoctions, the antioxidant activity index ranged from 0.830 to 1.650 μmol / l × min, for water-alcohol decoctions – from 4.107 to 4.648 μmol / l × min, which is comparable with the results of measuring the kinetic criterion for ascorbic acid – 1.430 μmol / l × min (GSO, C = 1 mg / ml) and exceeded the value of dihydroquercetin – 1.460 μmol / l × min (GSO, C = 1 mg / ml, 40% ethanol). The obtained results expanded the information on the biological and antioxidant activity of calendula officinalis flowers and can be used in developing recipes for infusions, decoctions and other biologically active additives.