Abstract: Alpinia zerumbet (Pers.) Burtt and Smith (Zingiberaceae) is a perennial ginger growing in tropical and subtropical regions. It has a high valuable economic importance and it is considered as a multi-purpose plant. Previous studies have suggested that the biological activities of A. zerumbet leaves are due to its high contents of dihydro-5, 6-Dehydrokawain (DDK) along with phenolic compounds. In this study, three different extraction procedures (boiling water, autoclaving and ethanol) as well as two different drying methods (air-drying and oven-drying at 70°C) were used to obtain the extracts. The results showed that the significant high DDK content was recovered when A. zerumbet leaves were extracted with boiling water or oven-dried at 70°C. Although, autoclaving or boiling water extraction methods gave significantly higher amounts of phenolic compounds than ethanol, no significant difference was observed between both methods. Furthermore, air-drying and oven-drying at 70°C methods resulted into significant decrease in contents of phenolic compounds than not-dried A. zerumbet leaves. Thus, extraction and drying methods markedly affect the contents of DDK and phenolic compounds of A. zerumbet leaves.
A.A. Elzaawely and S. Tawata, 2011. Effect of Extraction and Drying Methods on the Contents of Kava Pyrones and Phenolic Compounds in Alpinia zerumbet Leaves. Asian Journal of Plant Sciences, 10: 414-418.
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