Total phenolic content (TPC). The TPC was determined according to the Folin–Ciocalteau method [18]. Briefly, the reaction mixture was composed by 0.1 mL of extract (concentration of 1667 mg L−1), 7.9 mL of distilled water, 0.5 mL of Folin–Ciocalteau reagent (a mixture of phosphomolybdate and phosphotungstate) and 1.5 mL of 20% sodium carbonate, placed in opaque flasks. The flasks were agitated, held for 2 h, and the absorbance was measured at 765 nm. The TPC was calculated according to a standard curve, prepared previously with galic acid as standard. The results (mean value of the triplicate assays) were expressed as milligrams of galic acid equivalent (GAE) per gram of the extract (mg GAE g−1).