Abstract: In order to fully exploit and utilize of by-products of P. lactiflora Pall. for oil, the yeast fermentation of P. lactiflora Pall. pods (PLPPs) was carried out by microbial fermentation technology to evaluate the changes of fermentation on bioactivity and active components of PLPPs, and the molecular docking simulation was used to analyze the affinity constants between the active components of PLPPs and the main anti-aging enzymes in vivo. The results showed that the total polyphenols content of the Saccharomycopsis fibuligera (SF) fermentation product (SF-F) of PLPPs was the highest (338.29±0.99) mg GA/g DW, which was increased by 23.49% compared with that of non-fermentation (N-F). The total antioxidant activity, total reducing ability and acetylcholinesterase inhibition on SF-F were the highest, which were 38.11%, 31.89% and 107.24% higher than those of N-F, respectively. LC-MS analysis showed that the content of gallic acid in PLPPs was significantly increased after being fermented by SF, while 1,2,3,4,6-O-pentagalanyl-β-D-glucose, quercetin-3-O-β-D-glucose-7-O-β-D-gentiandiglycoside, quercetin-3-O-glucoside, and 2″-O-galacylhyperoside disappeared. Molecular docking simulation results showed that the main active components of PLPPs had a certain docking affinity with anti-aging enzymes. The results indicated that some macromolecular compounds in PLPPs were transformed into small molecular compounds by SF fermentation, which increased the total polyphenols content and bioactivity after fermentation.

Key words: Paeonia lactiflora Pall. pods, Saccharomycopsis fibuligera, bioactivity, biotransformation, molecular docking