Antioxidant Activity, Total Phenolics and Flavonoid Contents of Some Edible Green Seaweeds from Northern Coasts of the Persian Gulf

The antioxidant activity, contents of total phenolics and flavonoids were quantified in the methanolic extracts of four Ulva species(U.clathrata,U.linza,U.flexuosa and U.intestinalis) grown at different parts of northern coasts of the Persian Gulf in south of Iran.The seaweeds were collected from Dayyer,Taheri and Northern Ouli coasts in April 2011. Methanolic extracts of the seaweeds were assessed for their antioxidant activity using DPPH radical scavenging assay and was performed in a microplate reader. All species exhibited a DPPH radical scavenging activity, and among the species, Ulva clathrata demonstrated greater antioxidant potential with a low IC50 (0.881 mg ml-1) in comparison with the other species. Also the highest phenolic content (5.08 mg GAE g-1) and flavonoid content (30.31 mg RE g-1) were observed in U.clathrata.The phenolic and flavonoid contents showed positive correlations with the DPPH radical scavenging activity (p<0.01) and negative correlations with IC50 (p<0.01).The results suggest that these edible green seaweeds possess antioxidant potential which could be considered for future applications in medicine, dietary supplements, cosmetics or food industries.