Analysis of chemical components by GC-MS and scavenging capacity against DPPH free radical of SFE extracts from Trigonella foenum-graecum L.

Supercritical fluid extraction( SFE) using carbon dioxide was employed to extract Trigonella foenum-graecum L.and the chemical components were determined by GC- MS. The relative contents of the chemical components were determined with peak area normalization method. Forty- nine compounds,which occupied88.37% of total constituents were identified. The major constituent was linoleic acid( 45.29%). The scavenging capacity against DPPH free radical of SFE extracts from Trigonella foenum- graecum L.was determined by spectro photometry.The extracts exhibited significant scavenging capacity against DPPH free radical in a concentrationdependent fashion with the SC50 value of 4.57 mg·m L- 1.The SFE extracts was rich in nutrients,safe and non- toxic,and had special aroma.So it could be widely used in the fields of food and perfume.