Valorization of Waste Water of Rosa damascena Oil Distillation Process by Ion Exchange Chromatography

Water steam distillation is a classical method of rose oil production from the flowers of Rosa damascena Mill. This process produces considerable amount of waste water. In this study, ion-exchange column chromatography (Amberlite was the stationary phase) was used to prepare polyphenol-enriched fraction of waste water with improved biological activity. Phenol, flavonoid, and anthocyanin contents were examined before and after using column. Antioxidant activities, DNA protection ability, xanthine oxidase inhibition, and cytotoxicity of this fraction were also determined. The use of Amberlite increased phenol, flavonoid, and anthocyanin contents in fraction compared to the sample before fractionation. The IC(50) values of various antioxidant assays comprises 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl-hydrate (DPPH), ferric-reducing antioxidant power assay (FRAP), and 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) which were 226.66 ± 1.25, 126.03 ± 0.11, and 241.43 ± 0.33 for waste water, and these values for fraction were 63.21 ± 0.90, 34.6 ± 0.17, and 50.59 ± 0.75 μg/ml, respectively. The Trolox equivalent values of fraction in oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assay were 0.34 ± 0.04, and the EC(50) values in cellular antioxidant activity were 91.24 ± 0.32 μg/ml. The xanthine oxidase inhibition capacity of fraction (100 μg/ml) was 96.4 ± 0.02% μg/ml. The comet assay analysis showed that this fraction (25–100 μg/ml) protects human lymphocytes against H(2)O(2)-induced DNA damages significantly. The IC(50) values of cytotoxicity assay were 248.145 ± 35.56 and 227.14 ± 16.51 μg/ml after 24 and 48 h, respectively. There has been great attention to the valorization of waste materials. Recovered fraction could be considered as a proper antioxidant, DNA damage-protection agent, and xanthine oxidase inhibitor. Using a nontoxic solid phase such as Amberlite is a fruitful way to concentrate bioactive ingredients which can be used in pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industry.