Abstract
Effective synthetic antioxidants such as butylated hydroxyanisole(BHA) and butylated hydroxytoluene(BHT) have been widely used in the food industry, but they are suspected to be toxic and carcinogenic effects. Therefore, the development of safely available natural antioxidants such as ascorbic acid, ${\alpha}$-tocopherol, ${\beta}$-carotene, flavonoids and selenium is essential. In particular, flavonoids, 2-phenyl-benzo-${\alpha}$-pyrones, are polyphenolic compounds that occur ubiquitously in food of plant origin. flavonoids occur in foods generally as O-glycosides with sugars bound usually at the C\ulcorner position. And variations in their heterocyclic ring gibes rise to flavones, flavonols, flavanones, flavanols, catechins, anthocyanidins, chalcone and isoflavones. Vegetables, fruits, and beverages are the main dietary sources of the flavonols, primarily as quercetin, kaempferol, and myricetin and the corresponding flavones, apigenin and luteolin. These flavonoids have biological activity such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antithrombotic, antimutagenic, anticarcimogenic antiallergic and antimicrobial activity effects in vitro and in vivo. Flavonoids posses strong antioxidant activities acting as oxygen radicals scavenger, metal chelators and enzyme inhibitor. The antioxidant activity of flavonoids is determined by their molecular structure and more specially, by the position and degree of hydroxylation of the ring structure. All flavonoids with the 3`, 4`-dihydroxy(ortho-dihydroxy) posses marked antioxidant activity. And antioxidant activity increases with the number of hydroxyl groups substituted on the A-and B-rings. There is as yet no certainty about the effect of the presence of a double bond between C\ulcorner and C\ulcorner on the antioxidant activity of flavonoids.
