Decoloration and alkaloid enrichment of Dactylicapnos scandens extracts based on the use of strong anion-exchange resins in tandem with strong cation-exchange silica-based materials

Alkaloids are natural bioactive ingredients but are usually present in low amounts in plant extracts. In addition, the dark color of plant extracts increases the difficulty in separation and identification of alkaloids. Therefore, effective decoloration and alkaloid enrichment methods are necessary for purification and further pharmacological studies of alkaloids. In this study, a simple and efficient strategy is developed for the decoloration and alkaloid enrichment of Dactylicapnos scandens (D. scandens) extracts. In feasibility experiments, we evaluated two anion-exchange resins and two cation-exchange silica-based materials with different functional groups using a standard mixture composed of alkaloids and nonalkaloids. By virtue of its high adsorbability of nonalkaloids, the strong anion-exchange resin PA408 is considered a better choice for the removal of nonalkaloids, and the strong cation-exchange silica-based material HSCX was selected for its great adsorption capacity for alkaloids. Furthermore, the optimized elution system was applied for the decoloration and alkaloid enrichment of D. scandens extracts. Nonalkaloid impurities in the extracts were removed by the use of PA408 in tandem with HSCX treatment, and the total alkaloid recovery, decoloration and impurity removal ratios are determined to be 98.74%, 81.45% and 87.33%, respectively. This strategy can contribute to further alkaloid purification and pharmacological profiling of D. scandens extracts, as well as other plants with medicinal value.