A Sustainable Approach to Cantharellus cibarius Oil with Bioactive Properties through Supercritical Fluid Extraction

Cantharellus cibarius, sometimes known as the “boreal chanterelle”, is a member of the phylum Basidiomycota and one of the most sought edible mushrooms in the world. This study compared the use of supercritical fluid extraction (SFE), which is regarded as a mild and green extraction method, with traditional solvent extraction to obtain C. cibarius oils. The optimized parameters of the SFE were obtained through a Box–Behnken design, and the SFE approach provided oil yields that exceeded conventional extraction yields with ethyl acetate (10.1% w/w vs 8.1% w/w) while exhibiting better selectivity for the accumulation of lipophilic bioactives. Most importantly, the supercritically extracted oil showed significant radical scavenging activities (65% inhibition against ABTS, compared to 58% in the conventionally ethyl acetate-extracted oil), antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, as well as bactericidal effects against Bacillus cereus, Escherichia coli, and Salmonella typhi . The C. cibarius oils extracted through a green technology could be a potential application as condiments with retained bioactive properties.