The total antioxidant activity (TAA %) of extracts and EOs was evaluated using the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) method [23] . Pure methanol (Sigma-Aldrich) was used to calibrate the spectrophotometer. An aliquot of 2 mL of stock solution of 0.1 mM DPPH (Sigma-Aldrich) reagent dissolved in Pure methanol was added to a test tube containing 2 mL of the sample solution in methanol (200 lg/L). The mixture was mixed for approximately 10 s and left to stand in fibber box at room temperature in the dark for 30 min. The absorbance was measured at 517 nm, using a UV scanning spectrophotometer (Unico Ò 1200).
TAA % was expressed as the percentage inhibition of the DPPH radical using the following equation: TAA (%) = (A 0 -A s /A 0 ) 9 100, where TAA is the total antioxidant activity, A 0 (control) is the absorbance of DPPH solution in methanol and As is the absorbance of a DPPH solution with the tested sample (essential oils and extracts) or the positive controls (Tannic acid and (?)catechin) solutions. The control contained 2 mL of DPPH solution and 2 mL of methanol. The average values of TAA % were carried out for three replicates, and are expressed as mean values ± standard deviation (SD). Also, the antioxidant activity of each extract was expressed in terms of IC 50 (the concentration required to inhibit DPPH radical formation by 50 %), calculated from the inhibition curve [24] .
TAA % was expressed as the percentage inhibition of the DPPH radical using the following equation: TAA (%) = (A 0 -A s /A 0 ) 9 100, where TAA is the total antioxidant activity, A 0 (control) is the absorbance of DPPH solution in methanol and As is the absorbance of a DPPH solution with the tested sample (essential oils and extracts) or the positive controls (Tannic acid and (?)catechin) solutions. The control contained 2 mL of DPPH solution and 2 mL of methanol. The average values of TAA % were carried out for three replicates, and are expressed as mean values ± standard deviation (SD). Also, the antioxidant activity of each extract was expressed in terms of IC 50 (the concentration required to inhibit DPPH radical formation by 50 %), calculated from the inhibition curve [24] .