Abstract Detail

Ethnobotany

Senchina, David S [1], Perera, M Ann [2].

Alkamide and Caffeic Acid Derivative Levels in Alcohol Extracts from Fresh vs. Dried Echinacea laevigata (Asteraceae) Flower, Leaf, Stem, and Root.

Herbal medicines produced from Echinacea spp. are currently popular for treating or preventing upper respiratory tract infections, though collective clinical studies are equivocal.    Lack of consistent outcomes across studies has been attributed to variations in how echinacea supplements are prepared or stored prior to human consumption (e.g., species selected, harvesting conditions, storage and processing conditions).   One critical factor is plant drying.   Most studies that investigated plant drying used high temperatures and rapid drying times, analogous to procedures used by commercial manufacturers, and reported that purported bioactive molecules such as alk(yl)amides and caffeic acid derivatives diminish during drying.   Little is known about drying conditions more similar to those used by lay herbalists.   In this investigation, Echinacea laevigata [C. L. Boynt & Beadle] Blake (Asteraceae) was harvested from the North Central Regional Plant Introduction Station in Ames, Iowa with permission.   Some plant material was immediately sectioned (flower, leaf, stem, and root) with each tissue being extracted separately in a 50% ethanol/50% water solvent; separately, other plants were left intact and stored in a climate-controlled environment for ten months prior to identical extraction.   HPLC was used to quantify levels of: alkamides 2a, 2b, 8a, 8b, 10a, 10b, 11, 12, 13, and 14; caffeic acid derivatives including caftaric acid, chlorogenic acid, and cichoric acid; echinacoside; and ketone 23.   Although extracts produced from dried tissue tended to have higher levels of these compounds, paired samples t-tests indicated no statistically significant differences between extracts from fresh vs. dried material for flower, leaf, or root tissues; dried stem tissue was hardened to the extent it could not be processed using our extraction methods.   Root extracts contained the greatest diversity of measured phytochemicals, whereas flower extracts contained the highest quantities.   Taken together with previous results, the data suggest that the different drying methods of lay herbalists and commercial manufacturers have differing effects on alkamide and caffeic acid derivative levels in echinacea plant material.

1 - Drake University, Biology, 415 Olin Hall, 2507 University Ave., Des Moines, Iowa, 50311, US
2 - Iowa State University, W. M. Keck Metabolomics Facility, 0124 Molecular Biology Building, 2437 Pammel Dr., Ames, IA, 50011-1079, USA

Keywords:
echinacea
smooth coneflower
alkamide
caffeic acid derivative
drying.

Presentation Type: Poster
Session: P2, Ethnobotany Posters
Location: Virtual/Virtual
Date: Tuesday, July 20th, 2021
Time: 5:00 PM(EDT)
Number: P2ET003
Abstract ID:313
Candidate for Awards:None