Understanding plant to extract ratios in botanical extracts

Abstract

Dietary supplement current good manufacturing practice (cGMP) requires establishment of quality parameters for each component used in the manufacture of a dietary supplement to ensure that specifications for the identity, purity, strength, composition, and limits on contaminants are met.* Compliance with botanical extract ingredient specifications is assured by using scientifically valid methods of analysis, the results of which are reported on certificates of analysis (CoAs). However, CoAs routinely include additional data that are not amenable to verification through methods of analysis. Such descriptive information may include Plant to Extract ratios, which are ratios of the quantity of botanical article used in the manufacture of the extract to the quantity of extract obtained. Plant to Extract ratios can be misleading when their meaning is not clearly understood.Plant to Extract ratios do not completely describe botanical extracts because other important factors influence the make-up of final extracts, such as the quality of the raw starting material (as can defined by pharmacopeial standards), extraction solvent(s) used, duration and temperature of extraction, and percentage and type of excipients present. Other important qualitative descriptions may include constituent “fingerprinting.” Despite these issues, Plant to Extract ratios are often used as a measure of extract strength for dosage calculations. This article defines and clarifies the meaning of Plant to Extract ratios and their proper use in describing and labeling botanical extract ingredients and finished products containing them.

Exploring the Antioxidant Potential of Talisia esculenta Using In Vitro and In Vivo Approaches

“…In addition [71], the EC50 values observed for the leaf and fruit peel extracts of Nephelium lappaceum concerning DPPH were 320 µg/mL and 35 µg/mL, respectively. These differences might be associated with the specific extraction methods, solvents used, and time of extraction [64,72]. The data presented here show that the leaf extract of T. esculenta was six times more effective at scavenging 50% of the DPPH radical when compared with Nephelium lappaceum, reinforcing the potential of the former as an antioxidant.…”

Suitability of botanical extracts as components of complex mixtures used in herbal tea infusions—challenges and opportunities

“…By enabling the effective delivery of non-polar ingredients into a simple infusion, extracts (both native extracts and extracts that have undergone post-extraction processing) ( Monagas et al, 2022 ) open many additional options for the formulation of effective medicinal infusions. While informed by traditional knowledge and insights on herbal preparation and delivery, the technologies described above offer new horizons in herbal pharmacy.…”

“…This allows for a consistent level of phenolic compounds and alkamides, which are assayed for compliance with internal specifications (based on pharmacopoeial standards) before the extract is used to manufacture finished products. A normalized extract, which declares the native extract DER range, the excipient content range, and potentially the final normalized DER, can be used to assess a final extract’s phytoequivalence for the purpose of assessing therapeutic efficacy either alone or as part of a formulation ( Monagas et al, 2022 ).…”

“…Native extracts often present a range of DERs due to natural variability of the starting material. Depending in part on the specific herb to be extracted and its content of water- or ethanol-soluble extractives, these can range from averages of 4–10:1, up to 33:1 ( Monagas et al, 2022 ). Normalized extracts offer a consistent DER by adding variable amounts of excipients.…”

Application of Response Surface Methodology for Optimizing the Extraction Conditions of Total Saponins from Polyscias fruticosa (L.) Harms Planted in Southern Vietnam

“…Extraction plays a crucial role in the recovery of saponins from the roots of P. fruticosa. The efficiency of extraction is attributed primarily to a variety of factors including extraction temperature, time [6], solvent/sample ratio [7], and particle size of the plant material [8]. Traditionally, the optimization of medicinal plant extraction has been conducted by screening the effect of one variable at a time on an experimental response [9].…”