Extraction of Dittany (Origanum dictamnus) using supercritical CO2 and liquid solvent

Different extraction processes of dittany (Origanum dictamnus) for the recovery of extracts enriched with bioactive components were examined in this work. More specifically, hydrodistillation, extraction with a liquid organic solvent, supercritical CO2 extraction, as well as a combination of supercritical and liquid extraction were applied in order to recover improved extracts with respect to their antioxidant activity. The latter was determined by using a free radical method (DPPH). The antioxidant activities of the extracts obtained were compared with those of carvacrol, a main component of dittany, and BHT, a common synthetic antioxidant. It is shown that the combination of the conventional liquid extraction with supercritical extraction could be a promising alternative process for the recovery of extracts enriched with bioactive compounds.

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► Dittany extracts were obtained using hydrodistillation, liquid extraction and supercritical CO2 extraction.
► SCCO2 was used as a purification method of ethyl acetate dittany extract.
► Increase of pressure and co-solvent amount in SFE result in higher yields but less active extracts.
► The highest antiradical activity was exhibited by the purified with SCCO2 product.