The term "marine natural products" covers an extremely broad and diverse range of compounds derived and isolated from marine biological sources. Up to now, marine natural products have attracted the attention of scientists from a variety of disciplines, including chemistry, pharmacy, biology and ecology. In particular, in the pharmaceutical field, the bioprospecting of marine natural products has yielded a considerable number of drug candidates. The isolation of marine natural products is a huge undertaking. Thanks to technological advances, this process has become almost a routine process used in different industries.
Isolation Techniques for Marine Natural Products
Alfa Chemistry provides customers with high-level marine natural product isolation services. We will use the most appropriate technology to meet the isolation needs of marine natural products. The technologies we can offer include, but are not limited to the following.
- Countercurrent Chromatography (CCC)
CCC is a branch of liquid chromatography. It uses a support-free liquid stationary phase that is retained by gravity or centrifugal force. The analytes can enter the entire stationary phase, resulting in an efficient separation. At present, CCC has become a common preparation-scale separation technology, especially in the isolation of marine natural products. Compared with traditional solid-liquid chromatography, CCC has the following advantages:
(i) It eliminates the complications sometimes encountered with other chromatographic systems, such as sample loss and deactivation, tailing of solute peaks and contamination [1].
(ii) It is an economical and solvent-saving process as it simplifies the processing steps and reduces solvent consumption.
(iii) It has greater preparation capacity and better selectivity.
- Thin-Layer Chromatography (TLC)
TLC is a kind of liquid chromatography in which the mobile phase is liquid and the stationary phase is a thin layer of material on the plate [2]. This layer of material is known as the sorbent. Like other forms of chromatography, TLC involves the dynamic and rapid equilibration of molecules between two phases (mobile and stationary phase). TLC has broad application prospects in the separation of various components from mixtures. This technique has become one of the simplest and most versatile methods for isolating marine natural products due to its simplicity, low cost, fast development time, high sensitivity and good reproducibility.
Column chromatography is a technique used to purify individual compounds from a mixture of compounds. Column chromatography includes a stationary solid phase that adsorbs and separates the compounds passing through it with the help of a liquid mobile phase. The specific separation mechanism is as follows [3]: the mixture to be separated is dissolved in a suitable solvent and added to the top of the column. The mobile phase is continuously added to the top of the column and the liquid continues to flow through the column. Compounds are separated according to their different migration through the column. At present, column chromatography has become one of the most effective methods for the separation of marine natural products.
Our Advantages
- We have a reliable instrumentation platform to ensure standardization of experimental practices.
- We provide one-stop technical services to solve your project challenges.
- We offer flexible and targeted technical services to help our customers reduce their capital and time costs.
- We will strictly keep confidential the content entrusted by the customer, and can sign a confidentiality agreement.
If you have any questions about the service, please feel free to contact us. Alfa Chemistry looks forward to being your project partner.
References
- Lu, Y.; et al. A comparative study of upright counter-current chromatography and high-performance liquid chromatography for preparative isolation and purification of phenolic compounds from Magnoliae officinalis. Journal of separation science. 2006, 29(3): 351-357.
- Santiago, M.; et al. Thin layer chromatography. Methods in enzymology. 2013, 533: 303-324.
- Lewis, S. W.; et al. Liquid and thin-layer chromatography. Encyclopedia of Forensic Sciences. 2013, 586-589.
For Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic or therapeutic procedures.
