Biotransformation of ginsenosides from Korean wild-simulated ginseng (Panax ginseng C. A. Mey.) using the combination of high hydrostatic pressure, enzymatic hydrolysis, and sonication

High hydrostatic pressure is a non-thermal processing technique for extracting functional compounds from herbal plants. This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of the combination of high hydrostatic pressure (HHP), enzymatic hydrolysis, and sonication for extracting wild-simulated ginseng (WSG) to improve yields of major and minor ginsenosides. By using LC-MS/MS analysis, the total ginsenoside yield was enhanced by 25.62% by increasing the pressure of HHP and sonication treatment (HHP-soni) extraction from 100 to 300 MPa. Furthermore, compared to HHP-soni at 100 MPa, adding two commercial food-grade enzymes (Viscozyme and Pectinex) resulted in a 1.23-1.43-fold increase in total ginsenoside contents, as well as a 1.09-1.95-fold increase in the contents of seven major ginsenosides. Similarly, HHP-soni with enzymes increased the yields of five minor ginsenosides (Ro, Rh1, F2, CO, and Rg3) by 1.76-30.24 times compared to extraction with Pectinex at 0.1 MPa. Ginsenoside compound K and protopanaxadiol were detected after extraction using Pectinex with HHP-soni, but not after extraction using Pectinex and sonication at 0.1 MPa. While the contents of the stereoisomers 20(S)-Rg3 and 20(R)-Rg3 were similar after extraction at pressures of 100 and 200 MPa, the 20(S)-Rg3 content was 1.87 times higher than the 20(R)-Rg3 content after HHP treatment at 300 MPa. From the analytical data, we inferred the hydrolytic pathways of the major to minor ginsenosides, and specifically the ginsenoside Rb1 standard, when using Pectinex under experimental conditions. These findings suggest that the combination process of HHP, sonication, and Pectinex treatment could improve the quality of WSG.