PHENOLICS CONTENT, ANTIOXIDANT POTENTIAL, α-GLUCOSIDASE AND α-AMYLASE INHIBITORY ACTIVITIES OF FOUR FOLIAR EXTRACTS FROM PINUS SPECIES

The current study focused on determining the contents of total phenolics (TP), flavonoids (FC), condensed tannins (CT), the flavonoid profiles, antioxidant potentials and α-glucosidase and α-amylase inhibitory capacities of the foliar extracts of Pinus engelmannii Carr., Pinus arizonica Engelm., Pinus durangensis Martínez and Pinus cembroides Zucc. Specific variations were found in TP, FC, CT, antioxidant potentials and α-glucosidase and α-amylase inhibitory activities. Pinus durangensis highlighted for its high level of FC (3.70 mg/g dry extract), high DPPH^● scavenging activity, high ABTS^●+ reducing potential, as well as its high inhibitory activity of α-glucosidase and α-amylase, whereas Pinus engelmannii for its high values of TP (340.15 mg/g dry extract) and CT (72.49 mg/g dry extract). Particularly, Pinus durangensis could support the development of hypoglycaemic treatments. The flavonoid profiles obtained by HPLC were species-specific, thus may be used for the development of chemical fingerprinting and quality control tools for the botanical authenticity of the bioactive extracts of these species of Pinus.