Physicochemical and Antioxidant Properties ofPotentilla anserinaL. Polysaccharides Affected by Ultrasonication

The effects of ultrasonic treatment on the physicochemical and antioxidant properties ofPotentilla anserinaL. polysaccharides (PAPs) were investigated. A Box-Behnken design (BBD) was applied to optimize the parameters of ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE). A maximum yield of 9.43% was achieved at an extraction temperature of 66 degrees C, ultrasonic power of 205 W, and extraction time of 2.6 h. The chemical structure analyses illustrated that the two PAP extracts using UAE and hot water extraction (HWE) had the same monosaccharide composition but displayed a significant difference in the monosaccharide content, and the molecular weight of PAP(UAE)was significantly lower than PAP(HWE). Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy confirmed that the ultrasonic treatment did not change the type of glycosidic bonds compared with HWE. In addition, the results from thermogravimetric analysis indicated that different extraction methods had effects on the physical properties of PAPs to some degree. Antioxidant activity assays demonstrated that PAP(UAE)had higher superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase activities when cells were exposed to exogenous H(2)O(2)than PAP(HWE), and the malondialdehyde levels were also lowered following exposure to PAP(UAE). These findings indicated that ultrasound irradiation is a promising technique for polysaccharide extraction from plant materials.