Optimized ultrasound-assisted extraction of phenolic compounds from Thymus comosus Heuff. ex Griseb. et Schenk (wild thyme) and their bioactive potential

• Published in: Ultrasonics sonochemistry Vol. 84; p. 105954
• Main Authors: Babotă, Mihai, Frumuzachi, Oleg, Gâvan, Alexandru, Iacoviță, Cristian, Pinela, José, Barros, Lillian, Ferreira, Isabel C.F.R., Zhang, Leilei, Lucini, Luigi, Rocchetti, Gabriele, Tanase, Corneliu, Crișan, Gianina, Mocan, Andrei
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 01.03.2022; Elsevier
• Subjects: Design of Experiments; Optimisation; Phenolic compounds; Short Communication; Thymus comosus Heuff. ex Griseb. et Schenk; Ultrasound-assisted extraction; Thymus comosus Heuff. ex Griseb. et Schenk; Design of Experiments; Phenolic compounds; Optimisation; Ultrasound-assisted extraction
• ISSN: 1350-4177; 1873-2828
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ultsonch.2022.105954

[Display omitted] •T. comosus is an endemic, less-studied thyme species used in Romanian folk medicine.•Optimized ultrasound-assisted extraction was applied for the recovery of its bioactive compounds.•The influence of extraction parameters on the quality of the extract was studied.•The presence of polyphenols was correlated with bioactive potential of the extract. An optimized ultrasound-assisted extractive method was developed to obtain a polyphenol-enriched extract from the aerial parts of Thymus comosus Heuff. ex Griseb. et Schenk. Optimization process was conducted based on Design of Experiment (DoE) principles, determining the influence of three independent variables (time, ultrasound amplitude, ethanol concentration) on the total phenolic content of the extract (dependent variable). Additionally, the phenolic composition of the extract was characterized through UHPLC-HRMS, revealing beside the most abundant flavonoid-type compounds the presence of salvianolic acids C, D and L in high amounts. Phytochemical profile of the extract was correlated with its antioxidant activity (tested through five complementary assays) and enzyme-inhibitory potential, showing important antiglucosidase and anticholinesterase effects. Overall, it was concluded that the developed method is suitable for obtaining a good recovery of both phenolic and non-phenolic compounds from Thymus comosus aerial parts, and their presence in the optimized extract is responsible for its pharmacological potential.