Kojic acid

Antioxidant (DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging, reducing power (CUPRAC and FRAP), phosphomolybdenum, and metal chelating (ferrozine method)) and enzyme inhibitory activities [cholinesterase (ChE) Elmann’s method], tyrosinase (dopachrome method), α-amylase (iodine/potassium iodide method), and α -glucosidase (chromogenic PNPG method)) were determined using the methods previously described by Zengin et al. (2014) (link) and Dezsi et al. (2015) (link).
For the DPPH (1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl) radical scavenging assay: Sample solution (1 mg/mL; 1 mL) was added to 4 mL of a 0.004% methanol solution of DPPH. The sample absorbance was read at 517 nm after a 30 min incubation at room temperature in the dark. DPPH radical scavenging activity was expressed as millimoles of trolox equivalents (mg TE/g extract).
For ABTS (2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline) 6-sulfonic acid) radical scavenging assay: Briefly, ABTS+ was produced directly by reacting 7 mM ABTS solution with 2.45 mM potassium persulfate and allowing the mixture to stand for 12–16 in the dark at room temperature. Prior to beginning the assay, ABTS solution was diluted with methanol to an absorbance of 0.700 ± 0.02 at 734 nm. Sample solution (1 mg/mL; 1 mL) was added to ABTS solution (2 mL) and mixed. The sample absorbance was read at 734 nm after a 30 min incubation at room temperature. The ABTS radical scavenging activity was expressed as millimoles of trolox equivalents (mmol TE/g extract) (Mocan et al., 2016a (link)).
For CUPRAC (cupric ion reducing activity) activity assay: Sample solution (1 mg/mL; 0.5 mL) was added to premixed reaction mixture containing CuCl₂ (1 mL, 10 mM), neocuproine (1 mL, 7.5 mM) and NH₄Ac buffer (1 mL, 1 M, pH 7.0). Similarly, a blank was prepared by adding sample solution (0.5 mL) to premixed reaction mixture (3 mL) without CuCl₂. Then, the sample and blank absorbances were read at 450 nm after a 30 min incubation at room temperature. The absorbance of the blank was subtracted from that of the sample. CUPRAC activity was expressed as milligrams of trolox equivalents (mg TE/g extract).
For FRAP (ferric reducing antioxidant power) activity assay: Sample solution (1 mg/mL; 0.1 mL) was added to premixed FRAP reagent (2 mL) containing acetate buffer (0.3 M, pH 3.6), 2,4,6-tris(2-pyridyl)-S-triazine (TPTZ) (10 mM) in 40 mM HCl and ferric chloride (20 mM) in a ratio of 10:1:1 (v/v/v). Then, the sample absorbance was read at 593 nm after a 30 min incubation at room temperature. FRAP activity was expressed as milligrams of trolox equivalents (mg TE/g extract).
For phosphomolybdenum method: Sample solution (1 mg/mL; 0.3 mL) was combined with 3 mL of reagent solution (0.6 M sulfuric acid, 28 mM sodium phosphate and 4 mM ammonium molybdate). The sample absorbance was read at 695 nm after a 90 min incubation at 95°C. The total antioxidant capacity was expressed as millimoles of trolox equivalents (mmol TE/g extract) (Mocan et al., 2016c (link)).
For metal chelating activity assay: Briefly, sample solution (1 mg/mL; 2 mL) was added to FeCl₂ solution (0.05 mL, 2 mM). The reaction was initiated by the addition of 5 mM ferrozine (0.2 mL). Similarly, a blank was prepared by adding sample solution (2 mL) to FeCl₂ solution (0.05 mL, 2 mM) and water (0.2 mL) without ferrozine. Then, the sample and blank absorbances were read at 562 nm after 10 min incubation at room temperature. The absorbance of the blank was sub-tracted from that of the sample. The metal chelating activity was expressed as milligrams of EDTA (disodium edetate) equivalents (mg EDTAE/g extract).
For ChE inhibitory activity assay: Sample solution (1 mg/mL; 50 μL) was mixed with DTNB (5,5-dithio-bis(2-nitrobenzoic) acid, Sigma, St. Louis, MO, United States) (125 μL) and AChE [acetylcholines-terase (Electric ell AChE, Type-VI-S, EC 3.1.1.7, Sigma)], or BChE [BChE (horse serum BChE, EC 3.1.1.8, Sigma)] solution (25 μL) in Tris–HCl buffer (pH 8.0) in a 96-well microplate and incubated for 15 min at 25°C. The reaction was then initiated with the addition of acetylthiocholine iodide (ATCI, Sigma) or butyrylthiocholine chloride (BTCl, Sigma) (25 μL). Similarly, a blank was prepared by adding sample solution to all reaction reagents without enzyme (AChE or BChE) solution. The sample and blank absorbances were read at 405 nm after 10 min incubation at 25°C. The absorbance of the blank was subtracted from that of the sample and the cholinesterase inhibitory activity was expressed as galanthamine equivalents (mgGALAE/g extract) (Mocan et al., 2016b (link)).
For Tyrosinase inhibitory activity assay: Sample solution (1 mg/mL; 25 μL) was mixed with tyrosinase solution (40 μL, Sigma) and phosphate buffer (100 μL, pH 6.8) in a 96-well microplate and incubated for 15 min at 25°C. The reaction was then initiated with the addition of L-DOPA (40 μL, Sigma). Similarly, a blank was prepared by adding sample solution to all reaction reagents without enzyme (tyrosinase) solution. The sample and blank absorbances were read at 492 nm after a 10 min incubation at 25°C. The absorbance of the blank was subtracted from that of the sample and the tyrosinase inhibitory activity was expressed as kojic acid equivalents (mgKAE/g extract) (Mocan et al., 2017 (link)).
For α-amylase inhibitory activity assay: Sample solution (1 mg/mL; 25 μL) was mixed with α-amylase solution (ex-porcine pancreas, EC 3.2.1.1, Sigma) (50 μL) in phosphate buffer (pH 6.9 with 6 mM sodium chloride) in a 96-well microplate and incubated for 10 min at 37°C. After pre-incubation, the reaction was initiated with the addition of starch solution (50 μL, 0.05%). Similarly, a blank was prepared by adding sample solution to all reaction reagents without enzyme (α-amylase) solution. The reaction mixture was incubated 10 min at 37°C. The reaction was then stopped with the addition of HCl (25 μL, 1 M). This was followed by addition of the iodine-potassium iodide solution (100 μL). The sample and blank absorbances were read at 630 nm. The absorbance of the blank was subtracted from that of the sample and the α-amylase inhibitory activity was expressed as acarbose equivalents (mmol ACE/g extract) (Savran et al., 2016 (link)).
For α-glucosidase inhibitory activity assay: Sample solution (1 mg/mL; 50 μL) was mixed with glutathione (50 μL), α-glucosidase solution (from Saccharomyces cerevisiae, EC 3.2.1.20, Sigma) (50 μL) in phosphate buffer (pH 6.8) and PNPG (4-N-trophenyl-α-D-glucopyranoside, Sigma) (50 μL) in a 96-well microplate and incubated for 15 min at 37°C. Similarly, a blank was prepared by adding sample solution to all reaction reagents without enzyme (α-glucosidase) solution. The reaction was then stopped with the addition of sodium carbonate (50 μL, 0.2 M). The sample and blank absorbances were read at 400 nm. The absorbance of the blank was subtracted from that of the sample and the α-glucosidase inhibitory activity was expressed as acarbose equivalents (mmol ACE/g extract) (Llorent-Martínez et al., 2016 (link)).
All the assays were carried out in triplicate. The results are expressed as mean values and standard deviation (SD). The differences between the different extracts were analyzed using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by Tukey’s honestly significant difference post hoc test with α = 0.05. This treatment was carried out using SPSS v. 14.0 program.

Ten days cultures of A. flavus ASU45 growing on the optimum modified Czapek’s glucose broth medium were filtrated, centrifuged at 5000 xg for 10 min., and extracted using ethyl acetate (1:1, filtrate: solvent). KA was measured according to Sanjotha et al. [13 ] by ferric chloride reagent at 540 nm using a spectrophotometer. For crystallizing KA; ethyl acetate extracts were stored for 1 day at 5 °C, then evaporated using a rotatory evaporator at 70 °C (120 rpm), and then KA crystals were removed in clean filter paper until complete drying [52 (link), 54 ]. Kojic acid crystals were characterized using FTIR, XRD, and scanning electron microscope. IR spectral data were revealed in spectrophotometer type Nicolet iS10 (4000–500 cm⁻¹), PXRD pattern was revealed in the 2θ range of 10–80° via Philips PW 1710 X-ray diffractometer working at 40 kV and 40 mA (λ = 1.54060A°) equipped with nickel filtered CuKα radiation. Kojic acid crystals were photographed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) (JSM 5400 LV; JEOL, Japan).

Kojic acid (Sigma-Aldrich, Bangalore, India), an inhibitor of tyrosinase, was used to inhibit the l-DOPA pathway of melanization in A. flavus. A mycelial plug of 5-mm diameter was inoculated into a Petri dish containing the PDA culture medium with or without Kojic acid (dissolved in 70% dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) in different concentrations ranging from 100 to 5 mg/ml. Plates were incubated for 10 days at 30 °C, the growth and pigmentation were recorded as described earlier (Pal et al. 2014 (link)). The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values of Kojic acid for three A. flavus strains were also determined. After 10 days of incubation, dry conidia were collected and used for further experiments.

The nanoparticles were prepared based on the method described by Marinho et al., 2022 (link) with slight modifications. The nanoparticles were produced by an emulsification process, using water with 6% kojic acid and 2% silk fibroin solution. Initially, the KA and a mixture of ethanol and isopropanol (1:1) were mixed under constant magnetic agitation (300 rpm) for 5 min. The aqueous phase containing a silk fibroin solution was then slowly added, and the system was continuously agitated for 30 min using a vortex. Nanoparticles were stored at refrigerator temperature (4°C) after preparation. The droplet size, PDI and zeta potential of the nanoparticles were determined using a ZS zetasizer (Malvern, United Kingdom). Each sample was diluted with distilled water (1:10) to avoid multiple scattering effects, in accordance with Sarquis et al., 2020 (link), and all measurements were made in triplicate at 25°C. The average droplet size was expressed as mean diameter.