EFFECT OF CULTIVATING CONDITIONS ON THE SUPEROXIDE AND FREE RADICAL-SCAVENGING ACTIVITIES OF ANTRODIA CINNAMOMEA

Abstract

ABSTRACT Scavenging activities on superoxide anion and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radicals of Antrodia cinnamomea fermentation filtrate from the submerged culture were determined. We prove that controlling the medium composition can dramatically enhance the antiradical activity. The C/N ratio was available utilized preferentially for the scavenging activity on superoxide anion radical, rather than for DPPH radical. A relatively high glucose concentration (8%) was favorable for superoxide anion radical-scavenging activity. Flushing the culture medium with yeast extract (0.8%) had a stimulating effect on superoxide anion radical-scavenging. In addition, peptone appeared to be significantly inhibitory for superoxide anion radical. Phosphate ion, magnesium ion and thiamine were probably not essential for DPPH radical-scavenging activity. By optimizing the effects of additional nutrition, the scavenging effects on superoxide anion and DPPH radicals increased to 61.43 ± 1.64% and 27.24 ± 0.95%, respectively. PRACTICAL APPLICATION Antrodia cinnamomea is a mushroom used as a traditional health care in Taiwan. Fruit bodies of A. cinnamomea are expensive and scarce, partially due to their rareness and difficulty of cultivation. Thus, both the mycelia and fermentation filtrate of A. cinnamomea from the submerged culture are mainly prepared for use in the formulation of nutraceuticals and functional foods. As previously studied, A. cinnamomea may constitute a good source of healthy compounds, namely polysaccharides, suggesting that it could be useful in the prevention of diseases in which free radicals are implicated. Presented is a study about how controlling the mushroom culturing composition of the medium can dramatically enhance the free radical-scavenging activity. A. cinnamomea fermentation filtrate from the submerged culture prepared may be a new health care food supplement or functional food for special use in the future.