Abstract
Alkaloids are nitrogen-containing compounds of the secondary metabolism of plants and microorganisms, which can also be found in animals, insects, and marine organisms. Because of the presence of one or more nitrogen atoms in the molecule, these compounds can form salts in the presence of acids, which are soluble in water and not in organic solvents. This characteristic is useful for their extraction from the matrix source and is explored in liquid–liquid partitioning techniques like countercurrent chromatography. Solvent systems used in classic purifications of alkaloids by this separation technique consist of an organic solvent such as chloroform or dichloromethane and a water buffer where the pH varies along the purification. The addition of other organic solvents like methanol and other alcohols to the solvent system is discussed, as well as the use of less polar systems. Recently developed techniques in countercurrent separations, such as pH-zone-refining countercurrent chromatography, are also presented. This comprehensive review covers the early work on separation of alkaloids with the Craig and Post apparatus and the evolution in the use of modern equipment for the isolation and purification of this class of bioactive natural products.
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Adapted from Powell et al. 1974
Adapted from Hermanlokkerbol and Verpoorte 1986
Reproduced from Vetter et al. 2020
Reproduced from Feng et al. 2015
Reproduced from Vieira et al. 2013
Reproduced from Zou et al. 2018
Reproduced from Sun et al. 2014
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Acknowledgements
GG Leitão would like to dedicate this review to her PhD supervisors, in Italy and Brazil, Prof. Dr. Corrado Galeffi (who taught and introduced her to CCD/CCC) and Prof. Dr Maria Auxiliadora C. Kaplan (for sending her to Italy under a fellowship from the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico), respectively. We are also grateful for financial support from CNPq and CAPES for scholarships (CML and SCM).
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GGL was responsible for the conceptualization of the review, the literature search, and the preparation of the manuscript first draft. CML and SCM performed literature search, compiled tables for the Supporting Information material, and helped on the manuscript draft. RPM contributed to contextualize the information in the field of pharmacognosy and provided critical reading and insightful recommendations for the final manuscript. All of the authors have read the final manuscript and approved the submission.
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This article is part of a Special Issue to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the Brazilian Journal of Pharmacognosy
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Leitão, G.G., Leal, C.M., Mendonça, S.C. et al. Purification of Alkaloids by Countercurrent Chromatography. Rev. Bras. Farmacogn. 31, 625–647 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43450-021-00163-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s43450-021-00163-4