Tropical Journal of Pharmaceutical Research

Original Research Article | OPEN ACCESS

Extraction and Purification of Flavonoids from Radix Puerariae

Pengyue Li, Yang Lu, Shouying Du , Jie Bai, Huimin Liu, Qingli Guo, Yiwang Guo

School of Chinese Materia Medica, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing 100102, China;

For correspondence:- Shouying Du Email: dushouying@263.net Tel:+01084738615

Received: 30 July 2013 Accepted: 9 November 2013 Published: 24 December 2013

Citation: Li P, Lu Y, Du S, Bai J, Liu H, Guo Q, et al. Extraction and Purification of Flavonoids from Radix Puerariae. Trop J Pharm Res 2013; 12(6):919-927 doi: 10.4314/tjpr.v12i6.9

© 2013 The authors.
This is an Open Access article that uses a funding model which does not charge readers or their institutions for access and distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0) and the Budapest Open Access Initiative (http://www.budapestopenaccessinitiative.org/read), which permit unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited..

Abstract

Purpose: To develop an efficient method for the purification of flavonoids from Radix puerariae.

Methods: Optimal extraction technology was obtained using orthogonal test. Through adsorption and desorption tests, 8 resins with different polarity, diameter, and surface area were studied. Finally, a novel macroporous resin, HPD200A, was applied in the work. Desorption tests were performed in a glass column packed with HPD200A resin, and several parameters of purification were studied. The content of puerarin and flavonoids in the samples were tested by a HPLC and a UV-Vis Spectrophotometer, respectively.

Results: Optimum extraction technology was confirmed as follows: extraction time is 1.5 h; ratio of solvent to material 12; and repetition of extraction 3 times. Optimum purification technology was confirmed as follows: decoction is concentrated into 1.05 ~ 1.10 g/ml; 95 % ethanol is added to remove the impurities and the volume ratio is 1.5 : 1; the concentration of loading sample is 0.25 g/ml (based on the weight of the crude drug), the volume of loading sample is 2 BV (bed volume). The mobile phases of desorption are water (2BV) and 30 % ethanol (4BV) in succession. The contents of puerarin and flavonoids in the extract were improved greatly after the purification procedure, by up to 32 and 75 %, respectively.

Conclusion: This efficient method has potential for purification and preparation of flavonoids in the future.

Keywords: Puerarin, Flavonoids, Extraction, Purification, Macroporous resin