Ultrasound extraction of bioactive compounds from thyme (Thymus vulgaris), sage (Salvia officinalis) and laurel (Laurus nobilis)

Timijan, lovor i kadulja su aromatske biljke intenzivnog mirisa koje se zbog svojih ljekovitih svojstava i arome koriste u kulinarstvu, prehrambenoj i farmaceutskoj industriji. Cilj ovog rada bio je izolirati bioaktivne spojeve iz navedenih biljaka uzastopnom ekstrakcijom s tri različita otapala (heksan, 80% aceton i 96% etanol) u ultrazvučnoj kupelji pri 65˚C u trajanju od 30 minuta. Maseni udio fenolnih spojeva (ukupni fenoli, hidroksicimetne kiseline, flavonoli, flavonoidi), karotenoida i klorofila je određen spektrofotometrijskim metodama, dok je antioksidativni kapacitet u acetonskim i etanolnim ekstraktima određen primjenom kapaciteta apsorpcije kisikovih radikala (ORAC). Najveći maseni udio fenolnih spojeva određen je u ekstraktima kadulje dobivenim ekstrakcijom sa 80% acetonom gdje je određen i najveći antioksidativni kapacitet ORAC metodom dok najveći maseni udio ukupnih karotenoida i klorofila sadrže ekstrakti lista lovora.Thyme, laurel and sage are aromatic plants with an intense aroma used in the culinary, food and pharmaceutical industries due to their medicinal properties and aroma. The aim of this study was to isolate bioactive compounds from these plants by successive extraction with three different solvents (hexane, 80% acetone and 96% ethanol) in an ultrasonic bath at 65° C for 30 minutes. The mass fraction of phenolic compounds (total phenols, hydroxycinnamic acids, flavonols, flavonoids), carotenoids and chlorophylls were determined by spectrophotometric methods, while the antioxidant capacity in acetone and ethanol extracts was determined using oxygen radical absorption capacity (ORAC) method. The highest mass fraction of phenolic compounds was determined in sage extracts obtained by extraction with 80% acetone, where the highest antioxidant capacity was determined by the ORAC method. The results showed that the largest mass fraction of total carotenoids and chlorophylls are contained in bay leaf extracts