Comparative studies on extracts from Hericium erinaceus by different polarity reagents to gain higher antioxidant activities

Hericium erinaceus (H. erinaceus) is a source of exogenous antioxidants that has been traditionally used in China for the prevention and treatment of oxidative stressassociated disease. In the present study, the bioactive compounds of H. erinaceus were extracted with the following eight representative reagents: nHexane, xylene, chloroform, anhydrous ether, ethyl acetate, acetone, anhydrous ethanol and distilled water. The in vitro antioxidant activities were also evaluated. All of the extracted compounds exhibited reducing power and scavenging activity against 1diphenyl2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and superoxide anion free radicals. In addition, the antioxidant capacities varied with the used chemical reagents and exhibited dosedependent effects. Extracts from anhydrous ethanol, chloroform and acetone were capable of inhibiting lipid peroxidation. The anhydrous ethanol extracts were observed to have significant levels of antioxidant compounds since they had a strong reducing power, high scavenging rates against DPPH and superoxide anionfree radicals (>90%), and high inhibition rates on lipid peroxidation (>60%). The present study will provide reference data for the antioxidant applications of H. erinaceus in pharmaceutical use and disease prevention.