## 1 Introduction  
Cistus is a genus of flowering plants found in the Mediterranean region. Cistus plants grow in rocky areas, sandy plains, and on mountain peaks. They have distinctive-looking flowers that are yellow, red, white, or violet in color [1]. They contain many bioactive compounds and due to these, cistus plants have been used, since ancient times, to prepare herbal remedies. One major class of bioactive compounds in Cistus plants is polyphenols [2]. Polyphenols are a class of naturally occurring plant metabolites that have attracted much attention, due to their wide range of biological activities, which include antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticarcinogenic effects. The health-promoting effects of polyphenols have been attributed to their ability to scavene free radicals and modulate signaling pathways involved in cell proliferation, cell death, and inflammation [3, 4].  
Generally, the most popular methods for the extraction of phenolic compounds are based on the use of organic solvents, such as methanol, ethanol, acetone, and ethyl acetate. However, the use of these solvents has some drawbacks, such as the high cost and the need for special disposal methods as they are hazardous and environmentally unfriendly [5, 6]. Some methods use water as the extraction solvent, albeit with lower extraction yields [5, 6]. To date, there are a few reports focusing on the extraction of polyphenols from Cistus plants [7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12].  
In recent years, deep eutectic solvents (DESs) have emerged as a promising alternative to organic solvents for the extraction of polyphenols from plants. DESs comprise of a hydrogen bond acceptor and a hydrogen bond donor, resulting in a mixture with alternate properties from that of the individual components [13; 14]. They exhibit a series of advantageous properties, such as negligible vapor pressure, low toxicity, and biocompatibility, while they are non-flammable. Moreover, their physicochemical properties, and as a result, their extractive potential, can be tuned, either by altering the components, or their ratio [15]. Several studies have shown that DESs can be a more efficient and less expensive extraction method than organic solvents [16; 17; 18; 19].  
Another important parameter for the extraction of polyphenols from plants is the extraction technique employed. The conventional techniques include percolation, decoction, Soxhlet extraction, etc. [5; 6]. However, other, non-conventional techniques (e.g., ultrasound-assisted extraction, microwave-assisted extraction, etc.) have been developed, with each technique exhibiting different pros and cons [5; 6]. One of the latest techniques that has been developed and used for polyphenols extraction is pulsed electric fields (PEFs). The PEF method is a technique that electroporates cell membranes, resulting in the maximization of the extraction yield [20]. Moreover, PEFs use a minimal amount of energy, rendering the method environmentally friendly. It is noteworthy that the PEF method is a non-thermal technique. As such, many polyphenolic compounds that are thermally unstable are kept intact in the resulting extracts [20]. Due to the multiple favorable characteristics that PEFs exhibit, the number of reports on the method's usage for the extraction of bioactive compounds from plants is increasing [21; 22; 23; 24; 25]. Furthermore, it can be comparable in terms of efficiency with other methods, such as ultrasound treatment [23].  
In this study, the extraction of polyphenols from _Cistus creticus_ was examined. Four DESs were prepared and examined for their potential to extract polyphenols and they were compared to water and a hydroethanonic mixture. Moreover, the effect of the PEF method on the extraction process was evaluated. Finally, the composition of the extract in volatile components was also evaluated, so as to gain a better overview of the volatile compounds that potentiate the extract for additional uses.