Bioactivities of different polar fractions from three water caltrop pericarps

Pericarps from thee different Chinese water caltrop cultivars were collected and extracted by using 95% ethanol and separated to different polar fractions. The determination of bioactive components indicated that polyphenols, flavonoids and saponins were concentrated in ethyl acetate and chloroform fractions, respectively. Ethyl acetate and n-buthanol fractions exhibited higher antioxidant capacities than other fractions tested by DPPH and Fe 3+ reducing power methods. Ethyl acetate and chloroform fractions showed antiproliferative activities to gastric cancer cell SGC7901, and ethyl acetate fraction was stronger than chloroform fraction in vitro. Moreover, pericarps of Trapa quadrispinosa contained more polyphenols and exhibited higher antioxidant capacity than others, and T. acornis pericarps contained more flavonoids and saponins and showed stronger antiproliferative activity than others.