Ultrasound and heating treatments improve the antityrosinase ability of polyphenols.

This paper focused on improving antityrosinase ability of quercetin, cinnamic acid, and ferulic acid (named Q-CA-FA) from Asparagus by combining heating with ultrasound treatments. Fluorescence spectroscopy and UPLC-MS were used to evaluate inhibitory mechanisms. Results showed that the impacts of combining heating (150 °C for 30 min) with ultrasound (600 W for 30 min) treatments were similar to heating treatment (150 °C for 120 min) alone, and the inhibition rate could reach 98.2% in the addition of 5 mM Q-CA-FA. Fluorescence quenching indicated that treated Q-CA-FA-tyrosinase complex was more stable, but combining treatments did not change the major force between tyrosinase and polyphenols. Thermodynamic analysis illustrated that the randomness of compounds was also increased. Interestingly, 2-hydroxy-3-(3-hydroxy-4-methoxy-phenyl)-propionic acid 4-(2,3-dihydroxy-propyl)-phenyl ester was newly detected, which might be the major reason for enhancing antityrosinase ability. Taken together, these results provide a creative insight on increasing antityrosinase activity by combining heating with ultrasound treatments.