Phytochemical Constituents and Antioxidant Activities in Leaves of 14 Breeding Lines of Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz)

Two (2) month-old leaves of fourteen (14) breeding lines of cassava, consisting of five (5) parental lines and nine hybrids, were evaluated for their phytochemical constituents. The objective of the study was to determine total flavonoid, phenolic and antioxidant activity in the leaves of the breeding lines. The 14 breeding lines were grown in the research farm of the Biotechnology and nuclear Agriculture Research Institute between March and September 2011. Analyses were carried out at the laboratories Ghana Atomic Energy Commission (GAEC) between July and August 2011. The randomized complete block design, with three replicates, was used. Results indicate statistically significant differences in Total Flavonoid Contents (TFCs), Total Phenolic Contents (TPCs) and Total Antioxidant Activities (TAAs) recorded for both the ethanolic and aqueous extracts of the breeding lines. Hyb-9 gave the highest total flavonoid content of 179.90±0.21 mg/g/QE (ethanol extract) as well as total phenolic contents of 128.25 mg/g/GAE and 95.33+3.61 mg/g/GAE for both ethanol and aqueous extracts, respectively, while Security gave the highest value for total flavonoid content of 96.7+0.03 (aqueous extract). Similarly, Larbi recorded the highest TAA in ethanolic extract (82.88+3.07%), while Hyb-15 gave the highest value of aqueous extract (80.92+2.79%). In general there was strong positive correlation among the TFC, TPC and TAA. Most hybrids exhibited higher TFCs and TPCs than their parents in the ethanolic extracts.