In vitro and in vivo antioxidant activity of ethanolic extract of white button mushroom (Agaricus bisporus)

The antioxidant activities of ethanolic extract from edible mushroom Agaricus bisporus (A. bisporus) were evaluated by various methods in vitro and in vivo. In antioxidant assays in vitro, ethanolic extract of A. bisporus was found to have strong reducing power, superoxide radical, hydroxyl radical and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging activity, and moderate hydrogen peroxide scavenging activity. In antioxidant assays in vivo, mice were administered with ethanolic extract of A. bisporus via gavage for 30 consecutive days. As a result, administration of ethanolic extract significantly enhanced the activities of antioxidant enzymes in serums, livers and hearts of mice. In addition, the total phenolic content in the extract determined by Folin–Ciocalteu method was 6.18 mg of gallic acid equivalents per gram of dry weight. The main phenolic compounds in ethanolic extract analyzed by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry were determined as gallic acid, protocatechuic acid, catechin, caffeic acid, ferulic acid and myricetin. These results suggested that ethanolic extract of A. bisporus had potent antioxidant activity and could be explored as a novel natural antioxidant.