Effect of fruit size, solvent and extraction methods on resin extractability of Daemonorops sp. (Jernang)

Dragon blood is a red color resin exuded from the fruit of rattan species of Daemonorops sp. The plants are mainly found in the rain forest of South-Eastern Asia, particularly Sumatera and Malaysian Peninsula. The resin has been used since ancient times in the Chinese medicines as hemostatic, antidiarrhetic, antiulcer, antimicrobial, wound healing, antitumor, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant. It is used also as a coloring agent for ceramic industry. Besides its huge benefits, there is only little information about postharvest handling of Daemonorops' fruit. This study explained the effect of solvent type, fruit size, and traditional handling methods of Daemonorops' fruits in order to extract the highest amount of resin. The results showed that eluent strength had played a determining role during the resin extraction process; ranging from the strongest to the weakest was ethanol- chloroform-, and hexane, consecutively. Regarding fruit sizes, the smaller the fruits; the higher the amount of extracted resin was obtained. The relationship between fruit size and extractable resin was negative exponential. Among the three types of processing methods in terms of the yield of extracted resin, the direct extraction of fruits was more pronounced compared to the other two traditional handling methods, namely the dry and the wet ones. The results highlighted that better understanding on the postharvest handling; particularly improved of extraction method is a key in the production of dragon blood resin.