Improvements in Recovery Efficiencies of Phenols from Phenol Fraction Using Two-Stage Alkali Treatment

Experiments were carried out for the recovery of phenols from phenol fraction procured from tar distillation plant of Visakhapatnam steel plant by two stage alkali treatment, to study the effect of two-stage alkali treatment on the yield of phenols from phenol fraction. The results of the present investigation showed that two-stage alkali wash gives better yields of phenols compared to single stage alkali wash of the same phenol fraction with the same strength of alkali solution (NaOH). Also it is shown that maximum yield of phenols could be obtained with 35% strength of alkali. In the first stage 70% of 35% strength solution was used while in the second stage treatment 30% of the same strength solution was used. Improvements in the recovery efficiencies of phenols were found to be 47% more than those reported earlier in the single-stage extraction studies for the same strength of alkali solutions.

UHPLC-HR-MS/MS-Guided Recovery of Bioactive Flavonol Compounds from Greco di Tufo Vine Leaves

Leaves of Vitis vinifera cv. Greco di Tufo, a precious waste made in the Campania Region (Italy), after vintage harvest, underwent reduction, lyophilization, and ultrasound-assisted maceration in ethanol. The alcoholic extract, as evidenced by a preliminary UHPLC-HR-MS analysis, showed a high metabolic complexity. Thus, the extract was fractionated, obtaining, among others, a fraction enriched in flavonol glycosides and glycuronides. Myricetin, quercetin, kaempferol, and isorhamnetin derivatives were tentatively identified based on their relative retention time and TOF-MS2 data. As the localization of saccharidic moiety in glycuronide compounds proved to be difficult due to the lack of well-established fragmentation pattern and/or the absence of characteristic key fragments, to obtain useful MS information and to eliminate matrix effect redundancies, the isolation of the most abundant extract’s compound was achieved. HR-MS/MS spectra of the compound, quercetin-3-O-glucuronide, allowed us to thoroughly rationalize its fragmentation pattern, and to unravel the main differences between MS/MS behavior of flavonol glycosides and glycuronides. Furthermore, cytotoxicity assessment on the (poly)phenol rich fraction and the pure isolated compound was carried out using central nervous system cell lines. The chemoprotective effect of both the (poly)phenol fraction and quercetin-3-O-glucuronide was evaluated.

Virgin olive oil and its phenol fraction modulate monocyte/macrophage functionality: a potential therapeutic strategy in the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus

Monocytes and macrophages are critical effectors and regulators of inflammation and innate immune response, which appear altered in different autoimmune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Recent studies suggested that virgin olive oil (VOO) and particularly its phenol compounds might possess preventive effects on different immune-inflammatory diseases, including SLE. Here, we evaluated the effects of VOO (and sunflower oil) on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-activated peritoneal macrophages from a model of pristane-induced SLE in BALB/c mice, as well as those of the phenol fraction (PF) from VOO on the immune-inflammatory activity and plasticity in monocytes and monocyte-derived macrophages from healthy volunteers. The release of nitrite and inflammatory cytokines was lower in LPS-treated peritoneal macrophages from pristane-SLE mice fed the VOO diet when compared with the sunflower oil diet. PF from VOO similarly decreased the secretion of nitrite and inflammatory cytokines and expression of inducible nitric oxide, PPARγ and Toll-like receptor 4 in LPS-treated human monocytes. PF from VOO also prevented the deregulation of human monocyte subset distribution by LPS and blocked the genetic signature of M1 macrophages while favouring the phenotype of M2 macrophages upon canonical polarisation of naïve human macrophages. For the first time, our study provides several lines of in vivo and in vitro evidence that VOO and PF from VOO target and counteract inflammatory pathways in the monocyte–macrophage lineage of mice with pristane-induced SLE and of healthy subjects, which is a meaningful foundation for further development and application in preclinical and clinical use of PF from VOO in patients with SLE.

Effect of Oil and Phenol Extraction Methods on Polyphenol Contents and Profiles of Camellia Oils (Camellia oleifera)

A claim of a camellia oil healthcare benefits as a result of the high amount of ‘tea polyphenol’ arises a widely discussion in China currently. A laboratory solvent extracted crude oil (SECO) and a commercial cold pressed oil (CPO) were used for evaluation of oil attributes, particularly, total phenol content (TP). Effects of different solvents on phenol extraction for phenol profile were also investigated. According to GB 11765 (a Chinese standard for camellia oil quality), acid value (AV), peroxide value (PV), sensory attributes, i.e. transparency, odour and flavour of CPO met the requirements, while SECO showed turbid. TP in SECO had no significant difference compared with that in CPO, thus, the phenol profile of SECO seemed to be more complicated in comparison with that of CPO. Different solvents showed different effects on phenol profiles: low molecular alcohol aqueous solution could extract more phenolic compounds, while gallic acid as a solely compound was extracted by acetone. These factors indicate that SECO should be refined and solvent effect on phenolic compound extraction would be helpful on further research for the interested phenol fraction in camellia oil.

INDIREKTE PAPIERCHROMATOGRAPHISCHE METHODE ZUR BESTIMMUNG DER HARNOESTROGENE

ABSTRACT 1. An indirect paperchromatographic method is described for separating urinary oestrogens; this consists of the following steps: acidic hydrolysis, extraction with ether, dissociation of phenol-fractions with partition between the solvents. Previous purification of phenol fraction with the aid of paperchromatography. The elution of oestrogen containing fractions is followed by acetylation. Oestrogen acetate is isolated by re-chromatography. The chromatogram was developed after hydrolysis of the oestrogens 'in situ' on the paper. The quantity of oestrogens was determined indirectly, by means of an iron-reaction, after the elution of the iron content of the oestrogen spot, which was developed by the Jellinek-reaction. 2. The method described above is satisfactory for determining urinary oestrogen, 17β-oestradiol and oestriol, but could include 16-epioestriol and other oestrogenic metabolites. 3. The sensitivity of the method is 1.3–1.6 μg/24 hours. 4. The quantitative and qualitative determination of urinary oestrogens with the above mentioned method was performed in 50 pregnant and 9 non pregnant women, and also in 2 patients with granulosa cell tumour.