2.3.2. 2,2′-Azinobis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) Radical-Scavenging Test

The antioxidant capacities of fungal extracts were determined using the ABTS method with a few modifications, following the protocol outlined by Sun et al. [37]. To generate ABTS+ ions, we added potassium persulfate (K₂S₂O₈, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany) to ABTS, thoroughly mixed, and allowed to incubate in darkness at room temperature for 16 h. Stock solutions were prepared by dissolving 7.4 mM ABTS and 2.6 mM K₂S₂O₈ in deionized water, combining them in a 1:1 ratio, and incubating the mixture in darkness for 16–24 h. Subsequently, 1 mL of the stock solution was diluted with 50 mL of deionized water until an absorbance of 1.1 ± 0.002 at 734 nm was achieved. Ascorbic acid (Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA) was employed as the standard and mixed with 3 mL of the diluted ABTS+ solution. The scavenging activity of fungal extracts was evaluated by measuring the percentage of decolorization at 734 nm after 2 min of the reaction at room temperature. The ABTS+ scavenging activity (%) was calculated using the following formula: ((OD734control × OD734sample)/OD734control) × 100%. This assay was conducted in triplicate.