Changes in antioxidative activity and tocopherol contents during germination of Adzuki beans

Tocopherol contents of germinating Adzuki bean seed and sprout were determined in connection with the antioxidative activity, and changes in its activity of chloroform-methanol (2 : 1) extracts were also studied. The antioxidative activity measured by an iodometric method decreased rapidly after 10 days immersion although slight changes in its activity were observed within 7 days. The antioxidative activity of non-polar lipid (NRL) fraction was detected until 3 days after immersion, but delta-tocopherol decreased rapidly after immersion. Although the antioxidative activity of polar lipid (PL) fraction in seeds was hardly detected, an increase in its activity was found within 7 days after immersion. These results suggest that some effective antioxidants are present both in NPL fraction and PL fraction of the chloroform-methanol (2 : 1) extracts, in addition to delta-tocopherol.