Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Vikrant Saluja
Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences
PCTE Group of Institutes, Ludhiana
Punjab, India
Extraction involves the separation of medicinally
active portions of plant or animal tissues from the
inactive components through the use of selective
solvents
The extracted preparation are known as Galenicals
A medicinal preparation composed mainly of
herbal or vegetable matter prepared by extraction of
crude vegetable drugs (active principles) with
suitable solvent(s).
Menstrum: Solvent used for extraction (ex. water,
alcohol, ether)
Marc: The inert fibrous and other insoluble materials
remaining after extraction
Extracts are preparations of liquid (liquid extracts and tinctures), semi-solid (soft
extracts) or solid (dry extracts) consistency, obtained from herbal drugs or animal
matter
LIQUID EXTRACTS :
• Liquid extracts are liquid preparations of which, in general, 1 part by mass
or volume is equivalent to 1 part by mass of the dried herbal drug or
animal matter.
• Liquid extracts are prepared by using ethanol of a suitable concentration or
water to extract the herbal drug or animal matter, or by dissolving a soft or dry
extract of the herbal drug or animal matter in either ethanol of a suitable
concentration or water.
TINCTURES:
• Tinctures are liquid preparations that are usually obtained using either 1 part
of herbal drug or animal matter and 10 parts of extraction solvent, or 1
part of herbal drug or animal matter and 5 parts of extraction solvent.
DRY EXTRACTS
Disadvantages: Disadvantages:
Non selective Costly
Promote hydrolysis
Promote enzymatic degration
Good media for microbial growth
It involves pouring water over the drugs and then allowing it to keep
in contact with water for the stated period(15 min) with occasional
stirring and finally filtering off the liquid.
B- At the end of infusion time, the drug can be lifted out, leaving clear liquid
which can be strained quickly.
Fresh (Dilute) Infusion
• A fresh infusion is an aqueous solution of active constituents of a vegetable drug
prepared by the process of infusion.
• Water is used as menstrum
• Fresh infusion should be used within 12 hrs after its preparation because it gets
spoiled due to bacterial and fungal growth.
• eg. Fresh infusion of Quassia
Infusion Decoction
1- Plant Soft structure (ex. Senna Hard woody structure (ex.
leaves) Cinchona bark)
2- Menstrum Boiling or cold water Boiling water
3- Procedure Infusing the drug with cold or Boiling the drug with water
hot water
4- Time Calculated as soon as water is Calculated as soon as the
added to drug water begins to boil
5- Adjustment of No adjustment Adjustment is necessary
final volume
6- Apparatus Infusion earthenware pot Any covered apparatus
7- Storage Used fresh within 12 hours Used fresh and when
stored in refrigerator used
within few days
Digestion
In this process the plant cells are subjected to the effect of menstrum
at 40 to 60°C (higher temperature than that used for maceration and
lower temperature than that used in infusion and decoction) for longer
period than that for infusion and decoction.
Strain Liquid and press the marc Decant liquid. Marc is not pressed
Mix the liquids and clarify by filtration. Filter the liquid and final volume is
Final volume is not adjusted adjusted by remaining menstrum
Double maceration
Drug is macerated twice
Menstrum is divided in to two equal parts
Sufficient menstruum is now poured over the drug slowly and evenly to saturate it, keeping the
tap at the bottom open to allow the occluded gases between particles to pass out.
When the menstruum begins to drip through the tap, the tap is closed; sufficient menstruum is
added to maintain a small layer above the drug and allowed to stand for 24 h.
The 24-h maceration period allows the solvent to diffuse through the drug, solubilize the
constituents and leach out the soluble material.
After the maceration, the outlet is opened and the solvent is percolated at a controlled rate
with continuous addition of fresh solvent.
About 75% of the volume of the finished product is collected. The marc is pressed and the
expressed liquid is added to the percolate, giving about 80%-90% of the final volume
,. Modifications of the General Process of Percolation
Reserved Percolation
Reserved Percolation
Apparatus
A flask
A soxhlet extractor
A reflux condenser
A side tube
A syphon tube
Process
The raw material is usually placed in a thimble made of filter paper and inserted
into the wide central tube of the extractor.
Its vapour passes up the larger right hand tube into the upper part of the drug and
then to the condenser where it condenses and drops back on to the drug.
When the level of the extracts reaches the top level of syphon tube, the whole of the
percolates syphon over into the flask.
The process is continued until the drug is completely extracted and the extract in the
flask is then processed.