Black rice leaves (Oryza sativa L.) are a major part of rice straw left in open fields after rice harvest as agricultural waste. In this study, crude ethanolic extract (CEE) and various solvent fractions (hexane (Hex), ethyl acetate (EtOAc), n-butanol (n-BuOH), and aqueous fractions) of black rice leaves were investigated for their bioactive compound contents as well as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer activities. The results demonstrated that among all the fractions, the n-BuOH fraction presented the greatest contents of total phenolics and flavonoids, while anthocyanins were found to be abundant in the n-BuOH and aqueous fractions, which also exhibited powerful antioxidant abilities according to DPPH and ABTS radical-scavenging assays and a reducing power assay. Regarding anti-inflammatory activity, CEE and EtOAc reduced the production of NO and cytokine secretion (PGE₂, IL-6, and IL-1β) but displayed less effect on tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) release in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced RAW 264.7 cells. They also significantly decreased iNOS and COX-2 protein expression. Additionally, the phenolics-rich ethyl acetate fraction showed the greatest activity against HepG2 liver carcinoma cells, inhibited cell growth, increased the Sub-G1 population, and induced apoptosis via mitochondrion-dependent mechanisms. In conclusion, black rice leaves, a byproduct of rice, exhibited strong antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer capacities and might be useful for application in functional foods and the pharmaceutical industry.

Hypericum formosanum is a valuable herb in Taiwan. In this study, response surface methodology was employed to optimize the ultrasound-assisted extraction of flavonoids from Hypericum formosanum. A central composite design with three variables (ethanol concentration, extraction time, and extraction temperature) was applied. Experimental results were fitted to the second order polynomial model and one-way analysis of variance was used to determine the goodness of fit of the model and the optimal conditions for responses. The optimal conditions for the maximum extraction yield of total flavonoid content (101.1 mg/g) using ultrasound-assisted extraction were ethanol concentration, 73.5%; extraction time, 38.3 min; and extraction temperature, 62.5 °C. The predicted result was consistent with the experimental result obtained under optimal extraction conditions. Hyperoside, astilbin, quercitrin, and quercetin from Hypericum formosanum extract (HFE) were identified by Ultra performance liquid chromatography-diode array detector-mass (UPLC-DAD-MS). HFE significantly reduced matrix metalloproteinase-1 protein expression in human skin keratinocyte cells, induced by advanced glycation end products.

Sambucus formosana is most commonly used as a traditional herb medicine in Taiwan. In this study, high performance liquid chromatography equipped with photodiode array detection-mass (HPLC–DAD-ESI-MS) method was developed for the identification and quantification of bioactive phenolics. The developed method was also validated for accuracy, precision, limit of detection, and quantification. In this method, chlorogenic acid, rutin, isoquercetrin, nictoflorin, astragalin, and quercetin were quantified in linearity range of 10–100 (μg/mL) with a correlation coefficient of greater than 0.996. High recovery (86.5–93.1%) and good reproducibility were obtained for six phenolics with the relative standard deviation ranging from 1.7–3.1%. Therefore, the proposed method for simultaneous quantification of six bioactive phenolics in the extract and fractions of S. formosana using HPLC–DAD-ESI-MS detection under the optimized conditions is accurate and validated. Among the results, methanol extract showed the greatest values of total phenolic content (93.1 mg gallic acid equivalent/g). Additionally, the methanol extract revealed best antioxidant capacity based on the DPPH scavenging activity and anti-glycation activity (IC₅₀ was observed at 97.1 and 77.9 μg/mL, respectively).

Light-evoked retinal photodamage is considered an important factor contributing to functional vision deterioration and can even lead to light maculopathy or dry age-related macular degeneration. Loss of visual acuity (VA) and visual contrast sensitivity function (VCSF) are the major symptoms of retinal degenerative diseases. Cordyceps militaris is a carotenoid-rich Chinese medicinal fungus with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and immunomodulatory functions. C. militaris extract is a natural substance, and its bioactive constituents have been shown to confer health benefits, but their application in retinal tissue and functional vision protection in vivo remain incompletely understood. In the present study, we evaluated the influence of water-soluble, carotenoid-rich C. militaris extracts on the visual performance of light-damaged mouse retinas in vivo, using adult female CD-1^® (ICR) albino mice. We showed that oral administration of this C. militaris extract (10 mg/kg, twice daily) protected the neural retina tissue against light-evoked photoreceptor cell death, reduced Müller cell hypertrophic gliosis, and elevated GSH levels and promoted the recovery of VA- and VCSF-thresholds, especially for high spatial frequency-characterized vision. These results suggest that, probably because of its water-soluble carotenoids, C. militaris extract has the potential to prevent or treat light-induced visual dysfunction.

This study established a validated method for the quantitative and qualitative determination of eight signature compounds in Eccoilopus formosanus. We used multiple-reaction monitoring scanning for quantification, and switched the electrospray ion source polarity between positive and negative modes in a single chromatographic run. The precursor-to-product ion transitions were m/z 355/163, m/z 181/163, m/z 265/122, m/z 269/117, m/z 170/152, m/z 377.2/180.7, m/z 169/124.8 and m/z 193/134 for chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid, thiamine, apigenin, pyridoxamin, riboflavin, gallic acid and ferulic acid, respectively. The developed method was also validated for accuracy, precision and limit of quantification. In this method, eight compounds were quantified with correlation coefficients of greater than 0.995. A high recovery (81.5–94.1%) and good reproducibility was obtained for five phenolics and three vitamins with the relative standard deviation, ranging from 1.2 to 3.5%. This method may be applied to the determination of both phenolics and water-soluble vitamins in cereal grain. The results may suggest that the extract of E. formosanus could be a good source of bioactive phytochemicals.

Ligilactobacillus salivarius has been identified as a putative probiotic, its functional mechanisms and genomic characteristics remain under investigated. In this study, L. salivarius strain PM-A0006 was comprehensively evaluated through integrated whole-genome sequencing and phenotypic characterization. Whole-genome sequencing of L. salivarius PM-A0006 revealed a circular chromosome of 1,877,957 bp with GC content of 32.96% and no virulence factor-related genes were identified. The antibacterial and anti-biofilm activity of cell-free supernatant (CFS) and extracellular vesicles (EVs) was tested on Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC25923) using measurement of inhibition-zone diameters, minimum inhibitory concentration, crystal violet staining and scanning electron microscopy. The results demonstrated that both the CFS and EVs exhibited robust antibacterial and anti-biofilm activities. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis revealed that the CFS and EVs were rich in phenyllactic acid, which may be related to their antibacterial properties. Probiotic-derived CFS and EVs are promising antimicrobial candidates due to their safety profiles and multifaceted health benefits. This study demonstrates that the metabolites of L. salivarius PM-A0006 present a safe and potential alternative strategy for preventing staphylococcal risk in food safety.