Ultrasound-Assisted Enzymatic Extraction of Adenosine from Vietnamese Cordyceps militaris and Bioactivity Analysis of the Extract

Vietnamese Cordyceps militaris (C. militaris) has long been recognized as one of the most valuable traditional Chinese medicines. In this study, adenosine was extracted from Vietnamese C. militaris by ultrasound-assisted enzymatic extraction method (UAEE) using water as a solvent. Then, the effects of five single factors on adenosine content including pH, enzyme-to-material ratio, ultrasonic power, ultrasonic time, and ultrasonic temperature were determined. After that, three factors consisting of ultrasonic power, ultrasonic time, and ultrasonic temperature were chosen based on their effects on adenosine content. The simultaneous influence of these factors on the adenosine content was investigated by response surface method using central composite design. The adenosine content was evaluated by high-performance liquid chromatography method. Under the optimal conditions, the extract was evaluated for antioxidant and anticancer bioactivities. In addition, different extraction methods including aqueous extraction (AE), ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE), and enzyme-assisted extraction (EAE) methods were carried out to compare with UAEE. As a result, it can be concluded that UAEE is a promising method for adenosine extraction and further studies regarding isolation and purification need to be conducted.

Green Chemistry Extractions of Carotenoids from Daucus carota L.-Supercritical Carbon Dioxide and Enzyme-Assisted Methods

Multiple reviews have been published on various aspects of carotenoid extraction. Nevertheless, none of them focused on the discussion of recent green chemistry extraction protocols, especially for the carotenoids extraction from Daucus carota L. This group of bioactive compounds has been chosen for this review since most of the scientific papers proved their antioxidant properties relevant for inflammation, stress-related disorders, cancer, or neurological and neurodegenerative diseases, such as stroke and Alzheimer's Disease. Besides, carrots constitute one of the most popular sources of carotenoids. In the presented review emphasis has been placed on the supercritical carbon dioxide and enzyme-assisted extraction techniques for the relevant tetraterpenoids. The detailed descriptions of these methods, as well as practical examples, are provided. In addition, the pros and cons of each method and comparison with the standard solvent extraction have been discussed.