Phytochemical Analysis of <em>Bixa orellana</em> L. Seeds by GC-MS and Evaluation of Antioxidant Activity

Oxidative stress results from an imbalance of reactive oxygen species and antioxidant mechanisms and is associated with chronic and degenerative diseases. The use of natural and artificial antioxidants is commonly prescribed to manage it. In nature, some plants synthesize specialized metabolites with significant biological activity. This applies to Bixa orellana L., which contains carotenoids and terpenes. The present study purpose to per-form a phytochemical analysis of B. orellana seeds and determine their antioxidant activity using in vitro assays. The seed extract obtained by maceration in hexane, ethyl acetate, and methanol was analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). In vitro antioxidant activity was also evaluated using the DPPH assay, with ascorbic acid as the reference control. A two-way ANOVA followed by Dunnett's multiple comparisons test was performed. A total of 141 volatile and semi-volatile compounds were identified, mainly terpenes, esters, and fatty acids, among which geranylgeraniol (27.50%), ish-warane (11.01%), and geraniol acetate (7.76%) were the most prominent. The extract showed significant dose-dependent antioxidant activity, with an IC50 of 0.5108 mg/mL-1, compared to ascorbic acid with an IC50 of 0.2266 mg/mL-1. The results indicate that the seeds of B. orellana L. possess metabolites capable of inhibiting free radicals such as DPPH.