New Insight into Extraction of Bioactive Substances from Various Species of Hawthorn Fruits with Emphasis on Microwave-Assisted Techniques and Their Industrial Potential: A Review

Microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) is emerging as a highly efficient and sustainable method for isolating bioactive compounds from plant matrices. In contrast to conventional techniques, the MAE significantly reduces solvent and energy consumption while enhancing extraction yield and preserving thermally insensitive compounds. This study explores the application of the MAE for the recovery of health-promoting biologically active substances from hawthorn fruits—plants traditionally valued in both European and Chinese medicine for their cardioprotective, neuroprotective, anti-inflammatory, and many other treatment effects. Despite their well-documented therapeutic potential, the use of the MAE for hawthorn extraction remains underreported in the literature. The presented paper highlights the chemical composition and antioxidant properties of hawthorn extracts obtained by the MAE, with particular attention to total polyphenol and flavonoid content and their antioxidant properties (ferric-reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH), (2,2-azinobis) (3-ethyl-beznothaizoline-6-sulfonic acid) radical (ABTS)). Comparative analysis with other extraction techniques confirms the competitiveness of the MAE in both efficiency and quality of recovered compounds. The study also discusses the potential application of hawthorn extracts in advanced formulations across the food sector. By addressing a clear research gap and proposing optimized, scalable extraction conditions, this work contributes to the development of more effective technologies for harnessing the therapeutic and nutritious value of natural products.