Effect of Different Drying Methods on Functional Components and Antioxidant Activity of Heracleum moellendorffii Hance

The purpose of this study was to study the effect of drying method on functional components and antioxidant activity of Heracleum moellendorffii Hance. The Heracleum moellendorffii Hance powder was prepared by microwave drying, rotary drying, hot air drying, vacuum freeze drying and frozen storage for 90 d and then dry. The contents of flavonoids, phenolic acids, polysaccharides and coumarins in the dried Heracleum moellendorffii Hance powder were determined. The scavenging rates of ABTS⁺·, DPPH·, ·OH and \cdot \rmO_2^- in the alcohol extract of Heracleum moellendorffii Hance powder were compared. The results showed that the contents of flavonoids, phenolic acids and coumarins in dried Heracleum moellendorffii Hance by microwave were the highest, which were 7.91%, 22.19% and 4.97%, and had significant differences(P<0.05). The scavenging ability of ·OH radical and \cdot \rmO_2^- was also the best, which were 86.11% and 34.19%, respectively. With the advantages of large quantity and fast speed, it was a better choice for batch drying. The polysaccharide content of rotary drying was 12.26%, which was significantly better than other drying methods(P<0.05); vacuum freeze drying was inferior to microwave drying, but not by much; hot air drying had great influence on functional components and antioxidant activity; although the indexes of vacuum freeze-drying decreased after quick-frozen preservation, it could be used as an effective emergency measure in a certain time range. In conclusion, microwave drying was the best way to obtain dried celery products, rotary drying and vacuum freeze drying were the second. This experiment could provide a scientific basis for the development and utilization of Heracleum moellendorffii Hance.