A PROCESS FOR THE PREPARATION OF (-)-EPICATECHIN FROM A NEW NATURAL SOURCE NAMELY DICHROSTACHYS CINEREA

摘要

This invention relates to a process for preparation of (-)-epicatechin from Dichrostachys cinerea. Dichrostachys cinerea is a medicinal plant used in the traditional Indian system of medicine and is widely advocated in diuretic, lithotriptic, anodyne, digestive, constipating, and inflammatory conditions. Dichrostachys cinerea hence is a new plant source for (-)-epicatechin and its presence in this plant in good yields makes this invention more important. The process steps are: a) extracting the dried wood powder characterized in that of Dichrostachys cinerea with hexane; b) extracting the residue of step (a) with chloroform; c) extracting the residue of step (b) with methanol solution to obtain a methanolic extract; d)concentrating the methanolic extract of step (c) under vacuum; e) adsorbing the concentrated methanolic extract of step (d) on silica gel and loading on silica gel column ; f) eluting the column with chloroform methanol gradient, g) collecting the fraction eluted at 6 % methanol in chloroform, and concentrating the eluted fraction of step (g) to obtain pure (-)-epicatechin.