BIO FOOD TECH Project No. 7-14-011: Chaga Mushrooms

BIO|FOOD|TECH Project No. 7-14-011: Chaga Mushrooms

SUMMARY

BIOFOODTECH conducted the evaluation of a bio-active extract of Chaga mushrooms supplied by Fiddlehead Forest Products. At the request of Fiddlehead Heaven Forest Products, the attempt toassess the extract based on the concentration of Betulin was not successful since the presence of this particular bio-active molecule was not detected using the standard method. An alternative measure of total phenolics was chosen and successfully analyzed.The water extracts were assessed based on the Chaga mushroom particle size and on extraction time. Additionally, the stability of the extract was verified.

It was concluded that the extract from fine particle Chaga mushrooms has the highest concentration of total phenolics; three hours steeping is sufficient to obtain maximum transfer of bio-actives from fine particle material. The analytical data shows that the extract is stablefor at least four days when kept in the fridge.

EXPERIMENT

The Chaga mushroom extracts were prepared from three different particlesizes: fine powder, teasize, and chunks about one-quarter of an inch.

Approximately 15 g of each sample was weighed into 250 mL beakers, covered with 150 mL of hot water and steepedfor 4 h at 80-85°C. To determinethe concentration of total phenolics transferred from mushrooms into the liquid, 2 mL of extract was taken for analysis at one hour intervals; this continued for 4 h. The subsamples were kept in the fridge overnight to determine the initial concentration of total phenolics. Further tests on the third and fourth day of storage were carried out to establish the active compound’s stability in the extracts.

The following table shows the result of total phenolics concentration during four hours of steeping, and its stability over four days.

Sample Id / Sample description / Extracted on Oct. 6, 14 steep time / Total phenolics (GAEmg/kg) / Total phenolics (GAEmg/kg) / Total phenolics (GAEmg/kg)
Oct.7,14 / Oct.9,14 / Oct.10,14
N-14-06-086 / Chaga Mushrooms Tea size / 1hr / 12,804
2hr / 16,095
3hr / 18,684
4hr / 20,642 / 23,753 / 21,686
N-14-06-087 / Chaga Mushrooms Chunks / 1hr / 6,917
2hr / 10,676
3hr / 12,653
4hr / 15,468 / 17,786 / 16,197
N-14-06-088 / Chaga Mushrooms Powder / 1hr / 20,384
2hr / 25,711
3hr / 30,185
4hr / 30,003 / 29,310 / 29,926

Chaga Mushroom Steeping Time

The chart below illustrates the extraction rate of total phenolics, depending on the Chaga mushroom particle size.

Conclusions:

The highest concentration oftotal phenolics was detected inthe fine ground Chaga mushroom extract that was steeped for threeto four hours.

The three hour extraction seemed to maximize the concentration of total phenolics for fine particle material.The tea grind particles and chunks of Chaga mushrooms steeped for four hours produced extract at a lower concentration of total phenolics than that from fine particles.

Stability of Chaga Mushroom Extract

All four hour steeped extracts were stored in the fridge at about 4°Cand analyzed for total phenolics on day 1, day 3, and day 4; the data is shown in the following chart:

CONCLUSIONS:

The stability study shows that the total phenolic content inChaga mushroom extract is stable when stored in the fridge over a period of four days.

Small variations in the concentration of total phenolics increase from day 1 to day 2for the tea size and chunks of mushrooms may be explained bysolubilization during storageespecially.

Copyright @ Fiddlehead Heaven Forest Products & Bio Food Tech 2014