Extraction Of Traditional Chinese Medicine By Microwave

Microwave is an electromagnetic ware between 300 MHz to 300 GHz, it has strong penetrability and thermal efficiency. Microwave extraction is a new extracting method of natural medicine (or traditional Chinese medicine), it takes advantage of the excellent feature of the microwave to strengthen the extraction process (or the preliminary treatment), when extracting the active ingredients from the plants.On the one hand, microwave has strong penetrability, thermal efficiency and the ability to making the plant cell in piece, comparing to the extracting method of traditional decoction; on the other hand, microwave can deactivate the enzyme, which result in degradation of the active ingredients in the cells, so that the active ingredients can avoid to destroy when the natural drugs are storing or extracting.But, microwave technology was just beginning to apply to extracting the chemical composition from natural drugs, and which needed further studies.Aim: Studying the extracting efficiency of microwave on the difference herbals, including flowers, roots, fruits, leaves; And optimizing the extracting process by orthogonal design.Methods: Comparing the extracting efficiency of rutin from the sophora japonica by microwave extracting, decoction and circulation reflux with alcohol. And optimizing the extracting process by orthogonal design; Comparing the extracting efficiency of matrin from the Sophora flavescens Ait by microwave extracting and decoction. Comparing the extracting efficiency of rheum emodin from the cassia seed by microwave extracting and decoction, and comparing the chemical compositions of two extracting solution by chromatogram fingerprint. Comparing the extracting efficiency of icariine from the herba epimedii by microwave extracting and decoction, and studying the extracting efficiency with difference extractive factors.Results: The weight of dry extract show that microwave extraction is nearly the same as decoction and circulation reflux with alcohol; in other words, the total amount of rutin that was extracted by microwave in 50min was in keep with decoction in 150min. We extracted rutin from sophora japonica, in the same time, researched the effects of four factors, the result show that: extracting time > water-solid ratio > times of extraction > firepower, in other words, extracting time was the most important factor. Then, the optimum condition is that: mixing into 50 times water, heating up to boil by microwave four times, 15min at a time. The extracting efficiency of rheum emodin from the cassia seed by microwave extracting was better than decoction, and the total amount of matrin that was extracted by microwave in 3min was in keep with decoction in 30min. The extracting efficiency of matrin from the Sophora flavescens Ait by microwave extracting was better than decoction, in addition, the chemical compositions of two extracting solution were nearly the same. The extracting efficiency of icariine from the herba epimedii by microwave extracting was better than decoction, and the total amount of icariine that was extracted by microwave in 10min was in keep with decoction in 30min.; and the optimum condition is that: mixing into 140 times water in pH11, steep in water 60min, heating up to boil by microwave 3 times, 15min at a time.Conclusions: Microwave extraction is rapid and highly active, and it can be widely used to extract the Traditional Chinese Medicine.