Antioxidant activity and antiapoptotic effect of Asparagus racemosus root extracts in human lung epithelial H460 cells.

The present study examined the antioxidant activity and protective effect of extracts from Asparagus racemosus roots against Lipofectamine-induced apoptosis. Five fractions from a successive extraction process ranging from non-polar to more polar solvents were obtained. The total saponin content as a marker in terms of diosgenin equivalent value of the root extracts was found to be in the range of 240-420 μg/mg extract, with higher values for the ethanol and aqueous fractions. The antioxidant activity measured using the DPPH method in terms of mean effective concentration (EC(50)) of the aqueous fraction was found to be 600 μg/ml as compared to 1.5 μg/ml of ascorbic acid. It is proposed that Asparagus racemosus root extracts effectively inhibit Lipofectamine-induced apoptosis by their protective effect, and may serve as an advantageous alternative option for gene delivery.