Development of a general separation strategy by countercurrent chromatography using sanshools from Zanthoxylum bungeanum oleoresin as a case study

Three kinds of sanshools were separated from Zanthoxylum bungeanum oleoresin by high-speed countercurrent chromatography. Sanshools are a series of amide compounds extracted from the Zanthoxylum bungeanum. Due to similar structures, polarities, and dissociation constants, it was challenging to select an appropriate solvent system for their complete separation by countercurrent chromatography. To address this challenge, a solvent-system-selection strategy was proposed to identify a relatively suitable solvent system. Additionally, a separation procedure incorporating multi-elution modes selection was established to separate similar compounds in a logical order. Ultimately, a solvent system comprising n-hexane:ethyl acetate:methanol:water in a ratio of 19:1:1:5.67 was selected. Three amide compounds with high purity were obtained through the use of recycling elution mode to improve separation resolution: hydroxy-ε-sanshool (8.4 mg; purity: 90.64%), hydroxy-α-sanshool (326.4 mg; purity: 98.96%), and hydroxy-β-sanshool (71.8 mg; purity: 98.26%) were obtained from 600 mg sanshool crude extract. The summarized solvent-system-selection strategy and separation procedure incorporating multi-elution modes may instruct countercurrent chromatography users, particularly novices, seeking to separate compounds with highly similar chemical properties.     

An efficient high-speed counter-current chromatography method for the preparative separation of sesquiterpenoids from the rhizomes of Cyperus rotundus L. combined with evaluation of the anti-inflammation activity in vitro and molecular docking

Cyperus rotundus L. has been extensively used in ancient medication for the treatment of different disorders worldwide, in which sesquiterpenes are the most representative components. In this study, sesquiterpenes were effectively purified by two-dimensional counter-current chromatography in combination with continuous injection and inner-recycling mode with a solvent system of n-hexane/ethyl acetate/methanol/water (1:0.2:1:0.2, v/v/v/v). For one-dimension separation, continuous injection mode was used with three times injection and the inner-recycling mode was adopted for the separation of two mixtures for two-dimensional separation. Finally, four sesquiterpenoids, including scariodione ( 1 ), cyperenoic acid ( 2 ), scariodione ( 3 ), and α-cyperone ( 4 ), were obtained with purities over 98%. Mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance were applied to identify their structures. The results from the anti-inflammation effect with zebrafish demonstrated that cyperenoic acid exhibited stronger anti-inflammation activity. Molecular docking results suggested that cyperenoic acid possessed lower binding energies –9.4545 kcal/mol with 1CX2 to form formed hydrogen bond interaction with ARG120. In general, all the obtained findings proved that the strong anti-inflammation capacity of cyperenoic acid can have the potential of being adopted for treating diseases resulting from inflammation.     

Biphasic alcoholysis coupled with high-speed countercurrent chromatography for high performance on separating phorbol from Croton tiglium Linn extracts

Phorbol is a tetracyclic diterpenoid found in Euphorbia tirucalli, Croton tiglium, and Rehmannia glutinosa, and is nuclear of various phorbol esters. The rapid obtaining of phorbol with high purity highly contributes to its application, such as synthesizing phorbol esters with designable side chains and particular therapeutic efficacy. This study introduced a biphasic alcoholysis method for obtaining phorbol from croton oil by using polarity imparity organic solvents in both phases and established a high-speed countercurrent chromatography method for simultaneous separation and purification of phorbol. The optimized operation conditions of biphasic alcoholysis were a reaction time of 91 min, a temperature of 14°C, and a croton oil-methanol ratio of 1:30 (g:ml). The phorbol during the biphasic alcoholysis was 3.2-fold higher in content than that obtained in conventional monophasic alcoholysis. The optimized high-speed countercurrent chromatography method was using the ethyl acetate/n-butyl alcohol/water at 4.7:0.3:5 (v:v:v) with Na₂SO₄ at 0.36 g/10 ml as the solvent system, using the mobile phase flow rate of 2 ml/min, the revolution of 800 r/min, under which the retention of the stationary phase was achieved at 72.83%. The crystallized phorbol following high-speed countercurrent chromatography was obtained as high purity of 94%.     

Isolation of three glucaric acids from Leonurus japonicus Houtt. by using high-speed countercurrent chromatography combined with semi-preparative high-performance liquid chromatography

The isomerism of glucaric acids and the complexity of the composition of Leonurus japonicus Houtt. increased the difficulty of the separation of glucaric acids from the herb. In the present study, three glucaric acids were isolated from Leonurus japonicus Houtt. by using high-speed countercurrent chromatography combined with semi-preparative high-performance liquid chromatography. Cation exchange resin chromatography was applied to remove the alkaloids and enrich the glucaric acid fractions. Preliminary separation of the glucaric acid extract by high-speed countercurrent chromatography was carried out at 45℃ by using an optimized solvent system of ethyl acetate/n-butanol/formic acid/water (1:1:0.01:2, v/v/v/v) with satisfied stationary phase retention and separation factor. The semi-preparative high-performance liquid chromatography was used for further separation and purification of the target fractions, and three monomeric compounds were obtained with purities of 90.0, 91.0, and 95.3%. UV spectroscopy, NMR spectroscopy, and mass spectrometry were employed to identify their structures, which were assigned as 2-syringyl glucaric acid, 2,4-disyringyl glucaric acid, and 3,4-disyringyl glucaric acid, respectively, and 2,4-disyringyl glucaric acid was reported for the first time.     

Scale-Up Preparation of Crocins I and II from Gardenia jasminoides by a Two-Step Chromatographic Approach and Their Inhibitory Activity Against ATP Citrate Lyase

Crocins are highly valuable natural compounds for treating human disorders, and they are also high-end spices and colorants in the food industry. Due to the limitation of obtaining this type of highly polar compound, the commercial prices of crocins I and II are expensive. In this study, macroporous resin column chromatography combined with high-speed counter-current chromatography (HSCCC) was used to purify crocins I and II from natural sources. With only two chromatographic steps, both compounds were simultaneously isolated from the dry fruit of Gardenia jasminoides, which is a cheap herbal medicine distributed in a number of countries. In an effort to shorten the isolation time and reduce solvent usage, forward and reverse rotations were successively utilized in the HSCCC isolation procedure. Crocins I and II were simultaneously obtained from a herbal resource with high recoveries of 0.5% and 0.1%, respectively, and high purities of 98.7% and 99.1%, respectively, by HPLC analysis. The optimized preparation method was proven to be highly efficient, convenient, and cost-effective. Crocins I and II exhibited inhibitory activity against ATP citrate lyase, and their IC₅₀ values were determined to be 36.3 ± 6.24 and 29.7 ± 7.41 μM, respectively.     

The Peculiar Dynamics of Cavitation Bubbles

Details from cavitation bubble dynamics are reported: jet formation, counterjet formation, shock wave radiation and light emission. Multiple shock wave radiation from single bubble collapse with jet formation could be time resolved by high speed photography with 20 million frames per second. An explanation of counterjet formation is given. Pictures of the light emission (sonoluminescence) in acoustic cavitation are presented.     

聚晶立方氮化硼刀具切削高锰钢的磨损机制

在半精加工试验条件(切削深度ap=0．5mm，进给量f=0．3mm／r，干切)下研究了聚晶立方氮化硼刀具切削奥氏体高锰钢时的磨损机制，用WDH-Ⅱ型光电温度计测量了切削温度，用工具显微镜测量后刀面磨损量，进而考察了切削时间和切削速度对后刀面磨损量的影响，采用S-250MK型扫描电子显微镜观察刀具前、后刀面的磨损形貌和组成变化．结果表明：当切削温度为400～750℃时，聚晶立方氮化硼刀具同高锰钢中的γ相及其析出相(Fe，Mn)3C之间产生严重的机械磨损；当切削温度超过800℃时，聚晶立方氮化硼刀具同高锰钢单一γ相之间产生扩散磨损；聚晶立方氮化硼刀具适合于高速切削.     

FJZ-1000型超高速转镜分幅相机及其应用

FJZ-1000型超高速转镜分幅相机最高摄影幅频为1107幅/s，画幅总数160幅，尺寸7.5 mm10 mm。光学系统中新加入场镜以使相机的所有画幅均完整成像，使相机摄影频率全面达到标称值的技术指标。配备了新型数字化微机控制台，使相机的操作更加方便，并且实现了两台气动相机的联合拍摄，与脉冲X光机也进行了联动实验。相机达到了设计技术性能指标，实验取得了满意的结果。     

轴对称空泡流的脉动性态研究

本文采用高速摄影技术对定常来流中１／４平头轴对称体的不稳定的空泡形态特征进行了水洞试验研究。试验结果揭示了由于空泡形态断裂而产生的低频脉动现象，这一现象在跨空泡流情况下尤为明显，常使空泡长度和厚度在大幅范围内拟周期地变动，其频率特性比较稳定，有别于空泡末端局部泡团脱落而产生的脉动。     

Experimental and FEM study of windshield subjected to high speed bird impact

Both experimental and finite element model (FEM) results are presented for the dynamic strength behavior of windshield subjected to bird impact. The experimental data taken from a series of high speed photographs are compared with the numerical results predicted by using FEM in which the windshield was modeled entirely with solid elements and the bird body was approximately simulated by an elastic-plastic material with failure element behavior. Effective plastic strain and element pressure were adopted as the failure criteria and once the pressure or the effective plastic strain of an element reached the critical value, the element would lose the tensile resistance capability completely. The deflection and stress distribution in the windshield were obtained. It is shown that the result from the finite element analysis agrees with those from the full-scale bird impact test. The project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (10272011)