Toward a More Sustainable Sample Preparation in Phytochemistry: Case Studies in Four Subclasses of Alkaloids

Autor(es)

Chibli, Lucas Apolinario ; de Lima, Bruna Ribeiro ; Carneiro, Ariadne Magalhaes ; Figueiro, Harley Cardoso ; Cicek, Serhat Sezai ; Spiegler, Verena ; Funari, Cristiano Soleo

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: Journal of Natural Products; v. 87, n. 3, p. 10-pg., 2024-02-21.

Resumo

The fact that alkaloids are bases has been the most explored chemical feature of their extraction and purification procedures. The main drawback of these procedures is that they employ undesirable chemicals, with HCl and CH2Cl2 probably being the most commonly employed chemicals in their subsequent steps. This work tested the hypothesis that advantages in recovery efficiency support this common practice. Experiments were conducted in three laboratories, monitoring the alkaloids harmine (1), boldine (2), vincamine (3), and mescaline (4) extracted from Banisteriopsis caapi, Peumus boldus, Vinca minor, and Trichocereus macrogonus var. pachanoi, respectively. The research demonstrated that HCl could be replaced with citric acid (CA) without loss or even better extraction performance. The recommended EtOAc could completely replace CH2Cl2 in three out of four study cases and partially in the fourth case without harming the extraction efficiency. In addition, the alternative solvents tert-amyl methyl ether (TAME) and n-butyl acetate (BuOAc) could enhance the extraction of alkaloids. These results might incentivize natural products laboratories to consider sustainability more routinely, thus being closer to current practices in the pharmaceutical industry, which has been replacing solvents and processes with greener ones. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 18/01786-1 - EMU concedido no processo 2017/06216-6: cromatógrafo líquido de ultra alta eficiência
• Beneficiário: Cristiano Soleo de Funari
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Programa Equipamentos Multiusuários
• Processo FAPESP: 14/50926-0 - INCT 2014: biodiversidade e produtos naturais
• Beneficiário: Vanderlan da Silva Bolzani
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Programa BIOTA - Temático
• Processo FAPESP: 17/06216-6 - Desenvolvimento de metodologias analíticas verdes na busca por compostos orgânicos de alto valor agregado em resíduos agrícolas
• Beneficiário: Cristiano Soleo de Funari
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Jovens Pesquisadores