Sustainable extraction of Lycium barbarum leaf Phenolics using deep eutectic solvents: Optimization, bioactivity, and functional food potential.

Lycium barbarum leaf (LBL) is rich in phenolic compounds; however, its industrial utilization remains limited due to suboptimal extraction methods. This study employed ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) in conjunction with deep eutectic solvents (DESs) to extract LBL phenolics. Among eleven tested DESs, choline chloride-lactic acid (ChCl-LA) demonstrated the highest extraction efficiency. A phenolic yield of 18.62 mg/g was achieved under the optimized conditions. The obtained LBL extract (LLE) was further enriched using screened XAD7HP resin. The enriched LLE contained 15 main phenolics. The phenolic content, antioxidant activity, and α-glucosidase inhibition rate of LLE generally decreased by 15.95-24.17 % after in vitro digestion. LLE (0.1 mg/mL) significantly alleviated ethanol-induced oxidative damage in AML-12 cells, elevating their survival rate from 52.18 % to 70.56 %. To summarize, the LLE can be obtained efficiently and sustainably by the combination of UAE assisted DESs and macroporous resin, which may facilitate the application of LLE in function foods.