Your question is badly formulated.

"to evaluate lipid peroxidation in herbal extracts" does not make any sense. Do you want to evaluate the antioxidant activity of herbal extracts?

Oxidative stress is defined as a condition that may occur when there are too many free radicals in the body. "Oxidative stress in biological systems." What are your biological systems?

These are several papers in which different antioxidant assays are compared.

doi/abs/10.1080/10715760290006411

doi.org/10.1080/87559120802304269

//doi.org/10.1016/S0008-6363(00)00097-3

Can u be more specific why u prefer lipid peroxidation for assessing antioxidant assay, since there where many other assays for evaluating antioxidant potential? What kind of biological system u mentioned?

When evaluating antioxidant effects of plant extracts, HPLC-based methods (especially for MDA or other lipid peroxidation products) are generally more reliable and specific than TBARS. The FOX assay may also serve as a good alternative, while DPPP fluorescence can be useful in cellular or membrane models. For best results, a multi-method approach is often recommended

In our work on antioxidant profiling of Helichrysum maracandicum extracts, we focused on lipid peroxidation because it represents a biologically relevant endpoint of oxidative stress, especially in membrane-rich systems such as liver mitochondria. While the TBARS assay (based on MDA quantification) is indeed widely used due to its simplicity, I agree it can lack specificity in plant matrices because some polyphenols, sugars, and pigments may form TBA-reactive adducts.

From my review of the literature and experimental experience:

• HPLC-based TBARS is the most reliable modification when working with complex herbal extracts, as chromatographic separation removes non-MDA interferences and improves reproducibility.
• FOX assay is useful for detecting primary lipid hydroperoxides, but reducing compounds in plant extracts may affect the readings.
• DPPP fluorescence offers high specificity for lipid hydroperoxides in membranes but requires specialized equipment.

In my opinion, for medicinal plant antioxidant studies, the optimal strategy is to combine HPLC–TBARS with one complementary method (e.g., FOX or DPPP), and to include additional non-lipid assays (DPPH, ABTS, FRAP) for a more complete antioxidant profile. This combination provides both biological relevance and analytical specificity.

High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)

This method is considered the most reliable when working with complex herbal extracts. Chromatography allows the separation of malondialdehyde (MDA) from other interfering substances, improving the accuracy of results. This method is widely used in clinical and research studies to assess lipid peroxidation.

HPLC is definitely good in quantifying MDA. MDA is a marker of lipid peroxidation. Why do you believe that MDA is the best marker?