Bioactivities of feral peach (Prunus persica Batsch var. davidiana Max.) flower extracts and Prunus mume flower extracts

Abstract

In this study, we investigated the antibacterial, antioxidant, and whitening effects of Prunus persica Batsch var. davidiana Max. (Feral Peach) and Prunus mume (white and pink) flowers. The extracts of the three kinds of flowers showed antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus. aureus. The chloroform fractions of the white Prunus mume, Feral Peach, and pink Prunus mume flowers exhibited antibacterial activities of 84, 49, and 30%, respectively, against Staphylococcus. aureus at a concentration of 0.5 mg/mL. The flower extracts of the three species also exhibited antibacterial effects against Pseudomonas. aeruginosa. The chloroform fractions of the Feral Peach and pink Prunus meme flowers exhibited antibacterial activities of 36 and 30%, respectively, at a concentration of 0.5 mg/mL. These extracts did not exhibit any significant antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus. epidermidis and Escherichia. coli. The extracts of the three kinds of flowers did not significantly affect the survival of HaCaT cells. The distilled water fraction of the pink Prunus mume flower extract exhibited antioxidant effects at concentrations of both 20 and 40 μg/mL. The ethyl acetate fraction of the pink Prunus mume flower extract exhibited an antioxidant activity superior to glutathione at a concentration of 40 μg/mL. The flower extracts did not significantly affect the survival rate of B16F10 cells. The chloroform fraction of the Feral Peach flower exhibited a whitening effect of 18% at a concentration of 40 μg/mL. Based on these results, we conclude that the three kinds of flower extracts are raw materials exhibiting antibacterial, antioxidant, and whitening effects.