Optimization of ethanol extraction and further purification of isoflavones from soybean sprout cotyledon

Isoflavones from cotyledons of soybean sprouts were extracted with aqueous ethanol and further concentrated to obtain a product with a high concentration of isoflavone. The ethanol concentration, extraction time and reaction temperature were optimized by using response surface methodology (RSM). Isoflavones in aqueous ethanol were concentrated by a three-step procedure comprised of solid phase extraction (SPE) with Diaion HP-20 and Amberlite-XAD-2 adsorption columns, acid hydrolysis, and liquid–liquid extraction. The maximum amount of isoflavone in aqueous ethanol extracts (11.6 mg/g solid) was obtained when isoflavones in cotyledons (2.18 mg/ g solid) were extracted with 80–90% (v/v) aqueous ethanol above 90 °C for more than 100 min. The isoflavone extracts, obtained by SPE with a Diaion HP-20 column contained 100 mg/g solid. The liquid–liquid extraction (LLE) with ethyl ether further concentrated the extracts up to 229 mg/g solid, retaining 63% of the initial isoflavones.