Extraction, fractionation and characterization of water-soluble polysaccharide fractions from myrtle (Myrtus communis L.) fruit

Characterisation and critical processes identification for production of herbal preparations using 1H-NMR and chemometrics: A case study of Trichosanthis Pericarpium injection

INTRODUCTION

Herbal preparations are extensively utilised for the treatment of diseases in Asian countries. However, the variations in origin, climate, and production processes can lead to inconsistencies in the quality of herbal preparations. Existing quality control methods only target a few components in the finished product but ignore the control in the pharmaceutical process. Therefore, this study intends to develop a comprehensive component analysis method for intermediates in the pharmaceutical process to reveal the change patterns of substances and deepen the process understanding.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to develop a rapid and comprehensive process characterisation and critical process identification method for herbal preparations.

METHODS

Six batches of Trichosanthis Pericarpium injection (TPI) intermediates were collected from the production process. Proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H-NMR) spectra were acquired for qualitative and quantitative analysis of the se intermediates. Subsequently, chemometrics were used to identify critical processes and potential chemical markers.

RESULTS

A total of 39 components in intermediates were identified, and the transfer of 25 components during the production process was investigated. Column chromatography was determined as the critical process. Nine components were identified as chemical markers.

CONCLUSION

The application of 1H-NMR facilitated a comprehensive reflection of the chemical composition information of process intermediates, enabling investigations into the transfer of multi-component substances and accurate identification of critical processes and chemical markers.

Ion Chromatography and Related Techniques in Carbohydrate Analysis: A Review

Ion chromatography and related techniques have been the most popular separation methods used in the determination of organic and inorganic anions and cations, predominantly in water and wastewater samples. Making progress in their development and introducing new stationary phases, methods of detection and preparation of samples for analyses have given rise to the broadening of their analytical range. Nowadays, they are also used for substances that are not ionic by nature but can convert to such forms under certain conditions. These encompass, among others, carbohydrates, whose role and significance in humans' lives and environment is invaluable. Their presence in the air is mostly due to the industrial burning of biomass for energy production purposes. In addition, the content of sugars in plants, fruits and vegetables, constituting the base of human diets, affects our health condition. Given that, there is not only a need for their determination by means of routine methods but also for searching for novel analytical solutions. Based on literature data from the past decade, this paper presents the possibilities and examples of applications regarding ion chromatography and related techniques for the determination of carbohydrates in environmental samples, biomass and plants constituting food or raw materials for food production. Attention has been paid to the virtues and limitations of the discussed separation methods in this respect. Moreover, perspectives on their development have been defined.

Unlocking the potential of Opuntia species mucilage in chemistry

Herein, we describe a detailed protocol to extract the mucilage from different species of the genus Opuntia spp. (i.e., Opuntia Ficus (OFi), Opuntia Dillenii (ODi) and Opuntia Robusta (ORo)). The extracted mucilage was characterized by NMR, FTIR-ATR, HPLC, and TGA. OFi was found to have the highest phenolic content, 7.84 ± 1.93 mg catechol/g mucilage. The mucilage from the three species were characterized by having a high content of monosaccharides, being mannose and glucose the most abundant components (ca. 48-73 % and 23-35 %, respectively). In the context of biomass revalorization, the mucilage was proven to serve as a reducing and stabilizing agent in the synthesis of gold nanoparticles (AuNP/mucilage). The synthesis was optimized with a mucilage concentration of 2 mg/mL using 12.5 μL of KAuCl4 and was carried out at 80 °C for 90 min. This protocol afforded spherical nanoparticles with an average size of 9.7 ± 4.0 nm that were stable for at least 14 days, as demonstrated by TEM. Synthesized AuNP/mucilage was evaluated as a plasmonic catalyst for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol as model reaction, showing a considerable enhancement in its kapp of 97 % under white light and a decrease of 24.8 % in its activation energy.

Iranian Traditional Medicine (ITM) and Natural Remedies for Treatment of the Common Cold and Flu

Traditional Iranian medicine is usually used for both prevention and relief of cold and flu symptoms in China, Iran, and many other Asian countries all over the world. There are 4 kinds of influenza viruses. Unlike type B, which may cause seasonal epidemics, type A viruses can cause pandemics, and influenza C may lead to mild human infection with little public health effects. A literature review was done by using multiple databases such as ISI Web of knowledge, PubMed, Science Direct and Google Scholar. The most notable antiviral medicinal plants for flu and cold are honeysuckle flowers, thyme leaf, green chiretta, andrographis, peppermint oil and leaf and calendula. The most important expectorant medicinal plants for cold and flu are snake root, tulsi, licorice root, slippery elm, clove, and sage leaf. Recommended immunostimulant medicinal plants for cold and flu are eucalyptus, Echinacea root, ginseng, garlic, slippery elm, marshmallow, Usnea lichen, Isatis root, ginger root, and myrrh resin. Iranian traditional medicine, which is one of the oldest schools of traditional medicine, is one of the main concepts of disease and health, and it can be considered as an important complementary and alternative medicine, as in some cases, modern medicine has many side effects, low efficiency, and high costs. Medicinal plants and herbs, which are included in many traditional systems, have significant and promising bioactive components in organic life.

Antioxidant, antitumor and immunomodulatory activities of water-soluble polysaccharides in Abrus cantoniensis

Abrus cantoniensis is a vegetative food in tropical areas of Asia and claimed as folk beverages and soups consumed for cleansing liver toxicants and preventing liver diseases. Polysaccharides (ACP-І and ACP-II) were extracted with hot water from A. cantoniensis, and isolated by DEAE cellulose chromatography. The chemical properties as well as antioxidant, antitumor and immunomodulatory activities of ACP-I and ACP-II were investigated. The results showed that the ACP-I (9.09kDa) contained only glucose and ACP-II (38.45kDa) consisted of rhamnose, arabinose, galactose and glucose. ACP-II exhibited higher oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) and hydroxyl radical prevention capacity (HRPC) than ACP-I with ORAC values and HRPC values of 53.42±3.32μmol Trolox equiv./g DW and 34.84±5.07μmol Trolox equiv./g DW. Besides, in the wound healing assay, ACP-II exhibited potent migration inhibitory effects on MCF-7 cells. ACP-II could also significantly stimulate the proliferation of splenocytes and thymocytes, and enhanced NO production of peritoneal macrophages. These findings suggest that the polysaccharide ACP-II in A. cantoniensis could be served as a novel potential functional food.

Optimisation of extraction and sludge dewatering efficiencies of bio-flocculants extracted from Abelmoschus esculentus (okra)

The production of natural biopolymers as flocculants for water treatment is highly desirable due to their inherent low toxicity and low environmental footprint. In this study, bio-flocculants were extracted from Hibiscus/Abelmoschus esculentus (okra) by using a water extraction method, and the extract yield and its performance in sludge dewatering were evaluated. Single factor experimental design was employed to obtain the optimum conditions for extraction temperature (25-90 °C), time (0.25-5 h), solvent loading (0.5-5 w/w) and agitation speed (0-225 rpm). Results showed that extraction yield was affected non-linearly by all experimental variables, whilst the sludge dewatering ability was only influenced by the temperature of the extraction process. The optimum extraction conditions were obtained at 70 °C, 2 h, solvent loading of 2.5 w/w and agitation at 200 rpm. Under the optimal conditions, the extract yield was 2.38%, which is comparable to the extraction of other polysaccharides (0.69-3.66%). The bio-flocculants displayed >98% removal of suspended solids and 68% water recovery during sludge dewatering, and were shown to be comparable with commercial polyacrylamide flocculants. This work shows that bio-flocculants could offer a feasible alternative to synthetic flocculants for water treatment and sludge dewatering applications, and can be extracted using only water as a solvent, minimising the environmental footprint of the extraction process.