Total Antioxidant Status (TAS) Assay

Total Antioxidant Status (TAS) testing assesses a sample's overall ability to neutralize free radicals. This test provides an integrated measurement of all antioxidant compounds present in a product, including polyphenols, vitamins, pigments, bioactive peptides, and other protective molecules. In animal health, it is a crucial indicator for classifying raw materials, optimizing formulations, and demonstrating the nutritional or functional benefits of an ingredient.

The principle is based on a spectrophotometric measurement: the sample is exposed to a stable radical or a radical generator, and then the absorbance is measured. The observed decrease is proportional to the total antioxidant capacity. The result allows for the comparison of different extracts, verification of the quality of a raw material, or monitoring of a product's stability over time.

TAS analysis is used to analyze plant extracts, nutritional powders, liquid supplements, fortified premixes, and functional foods for animal health. It provides a general indicator where other targeted methods, such as HPLC analysis of polyphenols, only measure one or a few specific molecules.

Affected matrices

The test applies in particular to the following matrices:

• dry plant extracts
• nutritional powders and premixes
• liquid supplements for animals
• functional solutions
• foods enriched with antioxidant compounds

It can be combined with other analyses to obtain a more complete profile, such as the measurement of total polyphenols or the precise quantification of active molecules by liquid chromatography.

Industrial applications

The TAS assay meets the needs of manufacturers of animal supplements, producers of plant extracts, formulators of nutritional ingredients, and laboratories working on oxidative stress. It allows for:

• evaluate the antioxidant power of an ingredient
• optimize a formulation
• compare different plant sources
• monitor the oxidative stability of a product
• to enhance the value of an ingredient through analytical data

In animal nutrition, this test contributes to the validation of functional claims and to the safety of formulations intended for the welfare and performance of animals.

Further analysis of the YesWeLab catalogue

TAS testing can be usefully complemented by other services from the YesWeLab catalogue, including:

• the measurement of total polyphenols to characterize plant antioxidants
• the dosage of curcumin, a major antioxidant pigment
• the dosage of berberine or palmatin , plant alkaloids with high antioxidant potential
• UV-Vis spectrophotometric analyses used for the quantification of many phenolic compounds

These combinations allow for a broad and precise view of a product's antioxidant properties.

YesWeLab Services

YesWeLab collaborates with a network of partner laboratories specializing in physicochemical and nutritional analyses. Depending on your matrix and your objective (R&D, quality control, formulation optimization), we select the most suitable method and laboratory.

Our team assists you with sample preparation, analysis selection, and results interpretation. The YesWeLab platform allows you to easily centralize your requests and track your analyses.

Contact

To obtain a quote or discuss a specific need, you can contact our scientific team.