In vitro antioxidant and anticancer activities of extracts from a fermented food

Solvent extracts were prepared from Manda Enzyme(R) one of the fermented health foods, and their activities of radical scavenging and cancer cell growth inhibition were evaluated. Manda Enzyme(R) was extracted with 55% ethanol, and then fractionated into n-hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, methanol-soluble and methanol-insoluble fractions. The antioxidant activities were in the order chloroform > ethyl acetate > other fractions and of each fraction were positively related to the amount of total phenolics and the intensity of brown color. The cancer cell growth inhibitory activities were in the order n-hexane > chloroform > other fractions. Proliferation of HRT-18, HCT-48 and HepG2 human cancer cells was inhibited by the treatment of the n-hexane fraction of Manda Enzyme(R) at a concentration of 400 mugImL to the extent of 75, 89 and 90%, respectively. From these results, it is considered that Manda Enzyme(R) has chemically different ingredients showing strong antioxidant and anticancer activity in vitro.