Bioactive Compounds, High Performance Liquid Chromatography Screening of Phenolic Compounds, and Antioxidant Potential Activity of Saffron (Crocus sativus L.)

Saffron (Crocus sativus L) has been widely used for many therapeutic purposes such as a pain reliever, inflammation cure due to the highly bioactive compounds, and antioxidant activities. The effect of boiling time (5, 10, and 15 min) was investigated on the bioactive compounds of saffron samples from different origins (Spain, Saudi Arabia, and Afghanistan). Depending on the origin of the saffron sample, the extraction time showed a different effect on their total polyphenol content (TPC). The highest TPC was noted in saffron from Spain boiled for 10 min (45.01 mg GAE/g DW), followed by the sample from Saudi Arabia (44.03 mg GAE/g DW) and Afghanistan (43.54 mg GAE/g DW) boiled for 15 min, respectively. The Spanish saffron extracted for 10 min significantly (p < 0.05) exhibited the highest total flavonoid content (TFC) (12.26 mg CE/g DW), while the Saudi saffron extracted for 5 min (6.06 mg CE/g DW) showed the lowest range among all the samples. There were no significant differences among the reducing power of Saudi Arabian saffron extracted for 10 min, and Spanish saffron extracted for 5 and 15 min, respectively. The reducing power of saffron samples echoed the results of the TPC and TFC. 1,2-DHB (dihydroxy benzene), chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid are increased upon the increase of boiling time in Saudi Arabian saffron samples. In a word, 10 min and 15 min boiling times achieved the best extraction for Spanish saffron followed by Saudi and Afghani saffron samples, respectively.