Antioxidant-rich Clitoria ternatea L. flower and its benefits in improving murine reproductive performance

Abstract

C. ternatea is often used as a natural food colouring besides improving the aesthetic value of foods. It contains various antioxidants and bioactive compounds, which exert many functions, such as counteracting oxidative stress, anti-proliferative and anti-inflammatory activities. This study evaluated the antioxidant activity of C. ternatea flower extract and its protective effect on bisphenol A (BPA)-induced oxidative injury in female murine reproductive system. DPPH free radical scavenging activity (EC₅₀ 12.47 ± 2.96 mg/mL) and total phenolic content (4.59 ± 0.09 mg GAE/g) of C. ternatea flower extract were determined. Then, Institute Cancer Research (ICR) dams were administered with BPA and/or C. ternatea extract for six weeks to study on uterine histomorphology, percentage of pregnancy and offspring development. It was found that the uterus weight to body weight ratio from dam co-administered with BPA and C. ternatea was lower than dam treated with BPA alone, although no histopathological effect was found. However, the percentage of pregnancy and litter size from C. ternatea-fed group were both higher compared to BPA-fed dam. In conclusion, C. ternatea extract showed high antioxidant activity and exert potential protective effects against BPA on the reproduction performance in terms of improving the percentage of pregnancy and litter size.

Keywords:
C. ternatea; edible flower; antioxidant; endocrine disrupting agent; bisphenol-A