Cytoprotective and antioxidant activity studies of jaggery sugar

Jaggery and other sugars namely white, refined and brown sugars were evaluated for cytoprotectivity on NIH 3T3 fibroblasts and erythrocytes, DPPH radical scavenging activity, reducing power and DNA protection. In addition, total phenol content and phenolic acid composition were also determined. Results indicated a total phenolic content of 26.5, 31.5, 372 and 3837 μg GAE/g for refined, white, brown and jaggery, respectively. The HPLC analysis revealed the presence of different phenolic acids in brown sugar and jaggery. On NIH 3T3 cells oxidation, at 4 mg/ml concentration, jaggery showed 97% protection compared to brown sugar, and both sugars effectively reduced erythrocyte oxidation. A dose dependent reducing power and DPPH radical scavenging activity was also observed for jaggery and brown sugar. An EC50 of 7.81 and 59.38 μg/ml were observed for jaggery and brown sugar in the DPPH scavenging assay. In DNA oxidation studies, higher protection was observed in jaggery followed by brown, white and refined sugar treated samples.