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antiplasmodial, hepatoprotective and anticancer have been reported. 9 The seeds are used mainly as a traditional food spice in the South-South and SouthEast regions of Nigeria. Apart from nutritional and organoleptic properties, spices are recognized as active and cytoprotective agents. 5 The antioxidant properties of spices and their health benefits are well documented. Antioxidants protect biological systems against adverse effects of free radicals. 10-12 A study on the phytochemical composition of A. angustifolium reported the presence of flavonoids, cardiac glycosides, terpenoids, tannins, alkaloids and saponins. 13 Epidemiological studies indicate that long term intake of diets rich in antioxidants provid some protection against development of cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, osteoporosis and neurodegenerative diseases. 14 The beneficial effect of antioxidants have resulted in increased research interest in them. Hydroxyl radical is extremely reactive. This short-lived molecule is generated from oxygen (O2) during cellular metabolism. 15 Hydroxyl radicals cause oxidative damage to cells because they can attack biomolecules located a few nanometers from the site of generation, 16 and are involved in cellular disorders such as neurodegeneration, 17 cardiovascular diseases 18 and cancers. 19 Hydroxyl radical generation is associated with Fenton reaction, a redox reaction in which free iron (Fe 2+) reacts with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and the Haber-Weiss reaction that generates Fe 2+ when superoxide reacts with ferric iron (Fe 3+). Also, the activation of H2O2 by transition metal salts, ozone and UV-light can also generate • OH in living cells. 20,21 In vivo, Nitric oxide (NO) reacts at a slow rate with O2 producing an orange-brown gas; nitrogen dioxide (• NO2), a very reactive species. Further reactions between NO and • NO2 produce nitrite (NO2-). 22 The biological actions of NO are mediated by guanylate cyclase and cyclic guanosine monosphosphate. Nitric oxide traverses adjacent cell membranes and enters the cytosol, where it activates guanylyl cyclase by binding to the "haem" component of porphyrin ring. The cytotoxic

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