Abstract:
Objective: To preliminarily investigate the antioxidant activity of ethanol and water extracts from
Zizyphus jujube bud tea and their anti-aging effects on
Caenorhabditis elegans. Methods: Using
Zizyphus jujube bud tea as raw material, this study determined the total flavonoid and total phenol contents, as well as
in vitro antioxidant activity of ethanol extracts with different concentrations (25%, 50%, 75%) and water extracts at different temperatures (50, 75, 100 ℃). The optimal ethanol extract and water extract were selected to evaluate their anti-aging effects on
Caenorhabditis elegans. Results: The 50% ethanol extract and 100 ℃ water extract exhibited optimal activity, with total flavonoid contents of 266.15 and 177.61 mg/g, respectively, and total phenol contents of 399.07 and 278.65 mg/g, respectively. Both extracts maintained high levels of free radical scavenging capacity, total reducing power, and total antioxidant capacity (
P<0.05). Additionally, both extracts extended the lifespan of
C. elegans (by 20.83% and 8.33%, respectively,
P<0.05), enhanced survival rates under stress conditions (anti-ultraviolet radiation, anti-high-temperature heat damage, anti-hydrogen peroxide oxidation,
P<0.05), and increased the superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) activities in
C. elegans while reducing contents of superoxide anion (O
2-), hydrogen peroxide (H
2O
2), and malondialdehyde (MDA) (
P<0.05). Notably, there were distinct differences between the two extracts. The 50% ethanol extract had a superior effect compared to the 100 ℃ water extract in enhancing CAT activity, reducing MDA content, and prolonging the natural lifespan of nematodes (
P<0.05); the 100 ℃ water extract, by contrast, exhibited better performance in increasing SOD activity (
P<0.05), decreasing the levels of O
2- and H
2O
2 (
P<0.05), and improving the nematodes' tolerance to adverse environments (
P<0.05). Conclusion: Both ethanol and water extracts of
Zizyphus jujube bud tea exhibit significant
in vitro antioxidant activity and can delay the aging of
Caenorhabditis elegans.