Impact of Drying Methods on Bioactive Compounds and Antioxidant Properties of .

species have been used as herbal medicines in traditional Asian medicine. One of the species that has the potential as a medicinal plant and is still limited in its studies is . This study investigated the effects of drying methods, namely, freeze drying (FD) and hot air drying (HAD), on bioactive compounds, phenolics, flavonoids, and antioxidants in leaves and stems. The content of bioactive compounds in . leaves and stems was identified with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. In addition, the antioxidant activity of was also measured. The results of GC-MS on contain major bioactive compounds including gamma.-Sitosterol, Glutinol, Friedelan-3-one, Squalene, Ergost-5-en-3-ol, (3.β.)-, Erythritol, and Neophytadiene. The main component identified in the leaf and stem extracts of is gamma-sitosterol (± 15%), which shows anticancer and antidiabetic effects. The antioxidant activity in with the FD method was higher than that with the HAD method. This study suggests that FD was considered appropriate and should be used to maintain the content of important bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity in . These findings suggest that further research and development of bioactive compounds essential for their pharmacological properties in may be warranted, with the potential for developing new drugs.