Development and optimization of green extraction of polyphenols in Michelia alba using natural deep eutectic solvents (NADES) and evaluation of bioactivity

The development of bioactive natural products should take traditional as well as environmental factors into account to comply with the principles of green chemistry. This study evaluates the use of natural deep eutectic solvents (NADES) for polyphenols extraction from Michelia alba (M.alba). We compared the extraction performance of traditional solvents and screened nine different NADES for the tailored solution of M. alba. Environmental impact and extraction effectiveness were both taken into account throughout development. In order to save environmental resources in experiments, the effects of ultrasonic time, water content in NADES, and liquid-solid ratio on the extraction were investigated by single-factor experiments. These parameters were optimized by Box-Behnken design using response surface methodology. The optimum extraction conditions were 17.98 min of ultrasonic time, 48.52% of NADES water content, and 59.79 g/ml of liquid-solid ratio, which resulted in a high yield of 169.17 ± 0.19 mg/g. Morphological analysis of M. alba powder before and after extraction was carried out, and the findings indicated that the tailored NADES extraction technique provided a higher yield than the conventional extraction process. Additionally, The bioactivities of M. alba extraction are predicted with network pharmacology based on HPLC-MS/MS results and are further validated with cell experiments. Therefore, the green and high-efficiency method developed in this study provides a powerful tool that can utilize M. alba to its full potential and is environmentally friendly. The excellent bioactivities of M. alba extraction shown in this study suggest the potential value of M. alba extraction in pharmaceutical, cosmetics, and food additive applications.