Solvent-free microwave extraction of essential oil from Dryopteris fragrans and evaluation of antioxidant activity

Solvent-free microwave extraction (SFME) of the essential oil from Dryopteris fragrans and its antioxidant activity were investigated. A central composite design combined with response surface methodology was applied to study the influences of extraction time, irradiation power and humidity (proportion of water pretreatment). A maximal extraction yield of 0.33% was achieved under optimal conditions of extraction time 34 min, irradiation power 520 W and humidity 51%. Sixteen compounds, representing 89.65% of the oil, were identified, of which the major ones, (1R,4S,11R)-4,6,6,11-tetramethyltricyclo[5.4.0.0(4,8)]undecan-1-ol (30.49%), 1R,4S,7S,11R-2,2,4,8-tetramethyltricyclo[5.3.1.0(4,11)]undec-8-ene (22.91%) and, 1,4,4a,5,6,7,8,8a-octahydro-2,5,5,8a-tetramethyl-1-naphthalenemethanol (15.11%), accounted for 68.51% of the oil. The antioxidant activity of the essential oil was assessed by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), β-carotene/linoleic acid, and reducing power assay, the IC50 values were 0.19, 0.09 and 0.18 mg/mL, respectively. All these results suggest that SFME represents an excellent alternative protocol for production of essential oils from plant materials.