Determination of Harmine and Harmaline in Peganum harmala Seeds by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography

Ultrasound-assisted solid phase microextraction-HPLC method based on Fe3O4@SiO2-NH2-molecularly imprinted polymer magnetic nano-sorbent for rapid and efficient extraction of harmaline from Peganum harmala extract

In the present study, a magnetic molecularly imprinted polymer (MMIP) was synthesized for the extraction of harmaline from Peganum harmala by dispersive solid-phase microextraction (DSPME). The MMIP for selective and intelligent extraction of harmaline with excellent functionality and high selectivity was synthesized using the sol-gel method with functionalized superparamagnetic core-shell nanoparticles, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EDMA) as a cross-linker, methacrylic acid (MAA) as a functional monomer, and 2,2-azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN) as a porogen. To study the properties and morphology of the coated polymer, FT-IR spectroscopy, FESEM, TEM images, and VSM were used. The DSPME-HPLC-UV equipment was used to quantify and analyze the data obtained from harmaline extraction. In this research, the efficiency of the synthesized polymer in harmaline extraction was modeled and optimized using the response surface methodology based on central composite design (RSM-CCD). In addition, for modeling the isotherm of harmaline sorption by the MMIP, Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm equations were used. The obtained results showed that the extraction of harmaline with the MMIP was well described with Freundlich isotherm. The results of the validation of the method showed that the measurement of harmaline in the concentration range of 1.0-4000 ng mL^-1 followed a linear relationship (R² = 9986.0). Moreover, the accuracy or repeatability index (% RSD) was determined to be < 10, and the LOQ and LOD values were 0.526 and 0.158 ng mL^-1, respectively. The results of this study showed that the DSPME technique by using the synthesized MMIP as an effective sorbent with high efficiency and capacity could be utilized for pre-concentration and extraction of harmaline from real and complex samples.

Potential Risks of Plant Constituents in Dietary Supplements: Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis of Peganum harmala Seeds

The free online trading of herbal mixtures useful for various purposes facilitates the circulation of dangerous herbs or plant parts. This is the case, for example, of the illegal trade in seeds of Peganum harmala (Pgh), which contain alkaloids capable of inhibiting monoamine oxidase (MAO) and are therefore used in hallucinogenic preparations, such as the psychedelic drink ayahuasca. The precise identification of these seeds and their distinction from other very similar but not dangerous seeds are necessary for forensic purposes and represents an advance in avoiding the adulteration of mixtures. In this work, we show the qualitative identification of Pgh seeds by optical and electron microscopy and the parallel development of a real-time qPCR test, which reveals, in a species-specific manner, the presence of Pgh DNA up to quantities lower than 1 pg. In addition to the species specificity and high sensitivity, the reaction accurately quantifies the presence of seeds or parts of seeds of Pgh in complex herbal mixtures, thus giving an indication of the danger or otherwise of the product.

A Fast and Reliable UHPLC-MS/MS-Based Method for Screening Selected Pharmacologically Significant Natural Plant Indole Alkaloids

Many substances of secondary plant metabolism have often attracted the attention of scientists and the public because they have certain beneficial effects on human health, although the reason for their biosynthesis in the plant remains unclear. This is also the case for alkaloids. More than 200 years have passed since the discovery of the first alkaloid (morphine), and several thousand substances of this character have been isolated since then. Most often, alkaloid-rich plants are part of folk medicine with centuries-old traditions. What is particularly important to monitor for these herbal products is the spectrum and concentrations of the present active substances, which decide whether the product has a beneficial or toxic effect on human health. In this work, we present a fast, reliable, and robust method for the extraction, preconcentration, and determination of four selected alkaloids with an indole skeleton, i.e., harmine, harmaline, yohimbine, and ajmalicine, by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. The applicability of the method was demonstrated for tobacco and Tribulus terrestris plant tissue, the seeds of Peganum harmala, and extract from the bark of the African tree Pausinystalia johimbe.