Effect of red pepper seed on Kimchi antioxidant activity during fermentation

In this study, the antioxidant activities of red pepper seed kimchi extracts were examined. The extracts were evaluated by various antioxidant assays that included determinations of total phenolic and flavonoid contents, DPPH radical scavenging, superoxide anion radical scavenging, nitric oxide scavenging, superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, metal chelating activity, and reducing power. All the kimchi extracts showed strong antioxidant activities by the tested methods. The 7% red pepper seed kimchi that was fermented for 6 days possessed the highest activity according to the performed tests. Yet, the highest scavenging activity was exhibited against nitrite, by extracts from kimchi for 0 day of fermentation rather than 6 days. All the activities for the kimchi fermented for 0 day with the addition of 7% red pepper seed increased markedly with an increase in concentration. With the exception of metal chelating and SOD activities, for the antioxidant properties assayed, the red pepper seed kimchi extracts were found to be highly effective.