Comparative characteristics of antioxidant capacity of some forage plants of the Baltic Sea Region (a case study of the Kaliningrad Region and Estonia)

G.N. Chupakhina¹*, M. Shansky², A. Parol², N.Y. Chupakhina³, P.V. Feduraev¹, L.N. Skrypnik¹ and P.V. Maslennikov¹

¹Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University, Universitetskaya street 2, RU236040 Kaliningrad, Russia
²Estonian University of Life Sciences, Kreutzwaldi 1, EE51014 Tartu, Estonia
³Kaliningrad State Technical University, Sovetskiy prospect 1, RU236000 Kaliningrad, Russia
*Correspondence: natalie-tch@yandex.ru

Abstract:

In this paper, we investigate changes in the antioxidant levels (anthocyanins, leucoanthocyanins, catechins) and the total water-soluble antioxidants capacity in forage plants in relation to their geography, i.e. proximity to northern or coastal areas. We demonstrate that the antioxidant content increases in unfavorable conditions, being higher in plants growing closer to the sea and in northernmost plants. Thus, since the total water-soluble antioxidants capacity is influenced by ecological factors, it may be used as one of the indicators in complex environmental assessment.

Key words:

anthocyanins, catechins, leucoanthocyanins, water-soluble antioxidants