<i>In Vitro</i> Studies on the Radical Scavenging Activity of Hulless Barley Pigment

In the present study, the in-vitro scavenging activities of hydroxyl, superoxide anion and DPPH radical of hulless barley pigment were studied. The results indicated that hulless barley pigment had excellent radical scavenging activity which was equivalent to the standard antioxidant, vitamin C. It was found that the radical scavenging effect of hulless barley pigment is gradually strengthened along with the increasing of concentration. In the range of test concentration, the maximum scavenging rate of the pigment to hydroxyl, superoxide anion and DPPH radical was 92.9%, 90.6% and 88.3% and the IC 50 was 4.2, 5.0 and 1.6 mg/L, respectively. Moreover, the scavenging velocity of hulless barley pigment was examined. It was observed that the radical scavenging activities of hulless barley pigment also increased with reaction time. These results suggested that colored hulless barley can be used for a new source of natural pigment with antioxidant activity.