Abstract

Natural radical scavengers have recently received considerable interest owing to the role of free radicals in causing oxidative stress in living organisms. Flavonoids constitute one of the most important families of molecules with antioxidant activities, a characteristic associated with the presence in their structure of hydroxyl groups bound to aromatic rings. Quercetin is a potent antioxidant whose high reactivity could be associated with the presence of the OH group in the C ring. To address the role of this group in quercetin's free radical scavenging capacity, we have carried out experimental determinations and theoretical calculations regarding the reactivity of quercetin and rutin. The reactivity of both compounds towards free radicals was assessed employing the radical anion 2,2?-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline- 6-sulfonate) and peroxyl radicals. These measurements indicate that quercetin is more reactive and has more reactive centers than rutin, suggesting that the extra OH group located in the C ring could directly contribute to reactivity of quercetin. This conclusion is in agreement with the evaluation of local reactivity indexes, such as the Fukui function. © 2004 NRC Canada.