Selective extraction of antimicrobial agents from Jodina rhombifolia by supercritical fluid carbon dioxide: phytochemical profile

Abstract

The goals of this study were to determine the phytochemical profile of Jodina rhombifolia and to evaluate the ability of supercritical fluids (ScFCO₂) to selectively extract the metabolites responsible for the bioactivity. This species has simple aromatic compounds and lignan monomers, as well as glycerides containing epoxidized saturated fatty acids. Regarding the extraction by ScFCO₂, the extracts showed a higher antimicrobial activity against human pathogenic strains, with respect to the ethanolic extracts obtained from plant residues after extraction by ScFCO₂. Furthermore, the bioactive compounds were concentrated in just 1% P/P of the weight of the dry plant material. Extraction by ScFCO₂ was carried out under different conditions of pressure and temperature, with the best results being obtained at 30 °C and 30 MPa. The results obtained demonstrate the advantages of ScFCO₂ extractions over classical solvent extractions, in terms of improved safety and the ability to selectively extract the compounds of interest.

Graphical Abstract

Keywords:

• Jodina rhombifolia
• supercritical fluid extraction
• antimicrobial activity
• Staphylococcus aureus

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the CONICET Grant PIP 2015-2017 11220150100208CO SECyT-UNC Grant 2018-2020); and Consejo de Investigación, U. N. Salta Grant Project A CI N° 2377. E.M.M. thanks CONICET for a fellowship. We are grateful to G. Barboza for identification of the plant. We thank Dr. Paul Hobson, native speaker, for revision of the manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.