ascorbic acid.

The present study was to evaluate antioxidant activity of ethanolic and aqueous extract of Benincasa hispida (Thunb.) Cogn. fruit for their therapeutic potential. In vitro antioxidant activity was performed by 1, 1- diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). For aqueous extract the scavenging activity of DPPH is 59.7% at the concentration of 200 µg/ml and the activity of H2O2 is 20.5% at concentration of 1000 µg/ml. For ethanolic extract The scavenging activity of DPPH is 77.4% at the concentration of 250 µg/ml and the activity of H2O2 is 21.3% at concentration of 1000 µg/ml. The method is compared to standard (ascorbic acid). Presence of phytochemicals like carbohydrates, proteins and amino acids, flavonoids, phenolic compounds might contribute to observed antioxidant activity. Benincasa hispida fruits are potential source of natural antioxidant compounds to replace synthetic antioxidants.