Abstract
The objective of this study was to develop an ultrasonic-assisted procedure for the extraction of total phenolics from Citrus aurantium L. blossoms (CAB) and evaluate the free radical scavenging activity and anti-HMG-CoA reductase activity of the total phenolics. In this work, a Box– Behnken design based on single-factor experiments was used to explore the optimum extraction process. Under the optimum conditions (extraction solvent 70.31% ethanol, extraction temperature 61.94 °C, extraction time 51.73 min, and liquid-to-solid ratio 35.63 mL/g), the extraction yield of total phenolics was 95.84 mg gallic acid equivalents (GAE)/g dry matter (DM), which was highly consistent with the theoretical value (96.12 mg GAE/g DM). The higher contents of total phenolics and five main phenolic compounds obtained from the optimized ultrasonic-assisted extraction (UAE) proved its efficiency when compared with conventional heat reflux extraction (HRE). The total phenolic extract showed excellent free radical scavenging properties against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH·), 2,2′-azino-bis-(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) radical (ABTS+·), hydroxyl radical (·OH) and superoxide anion radical (·O2−), with IC50 values of 197.007, 83.878, 218.643, and 158.885 μg/mL, respectively; the extracts also showed good inhibition of β-hydroxy-β-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase (HMG-CoA reductase) activity, with an IC50 value of 117.165 μg/mL. Total phenolics from CAB could be a potential source of natural free radical scavenger and HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor.
Highlights
Free radicals, atoms or groups containing unpaired electrons, are fairly active, which is essential for any physiological metabolism of an organism [1]
The IC50 of total phenolic extract from Citrus aurantium L. blossoms (CAB) was 158.885 μg/mL, whereas the IC50 of trolox was 112.520 μg/mL. These results proved that the total phenolic extract from CAB can scavenge ·O2 − effectively
The optimum ultrasonic-assisted extraction (UAE) technology to obtain total phenolics from CAB was successfully developed through single-factor experiments coupled with the Box–Behnken design
Summary
Atoms or groups containing unpaired electrons, are fairly active, which is essential for any physiological metabolism of an organism [1]. Modern medical studies have demonstrated that free radicals can lead to DNA, protein and lipid oxidative damage and have a direct relationship with cancer, cardiovascular diseases, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disorders [2,3,4,5,6,7]. Dietary supplementation of exogenous free radical scavengers, is associated with a reduced incidence of those frightening diseases. Despite the enormous development of chemical synthesis, many excellent natural free radical scavengers with fewer side effects from edible or medicinal plants have been successfully exploited over the past several. Plants are rich in various bioactive compounds, in which phenolics have attracted increasing attention due to their pre-eminent free radical scavenging property
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