Extraction of artemisinin from Artemisia annua L

疟疾在世界范围内造成了许多死亡，主要是在非洲。大多数受这种疾病影响的人是五岁以下的儿童。已经提出了几种治疗方法来对抗这种疾病，但在迄今研究的化合物中，青蒿素因其治疗效果而显示出潜力。采用不同的溶剂提取方法从青蒿叶等天然资源中分离青蒿素。然而，获得的青蒿素的量和纯度仍然是一个挑战。本项目的主要目的是利用超临界流体萃取法从青蒿素中提取青蒿素，超临界流体萃取法是一种绿色环保的提取技术。超临界流体萃取法是以二氧化碳为溶剂，从青蒿素提取液中提取青蒿素。超临界流体萃取法提取的青蒿素是一种易分离、易表征的产品。超临界流体萃取的结果(在产量和产品质量方面)将与传统的溶剂萃取进行比较。高产量的纯青蒿素将使加拿大生产的青蒿素商业化，并将加强加拿大的农业部门。青蒿素的成功提取和商业化还具有社会效益，有可能为影响第三世界的一种普遍疾病疟疾提供负担得起的治疗方法。

Malaria has caused many deaths worldwide, mainly in Africa. Most people affected by this disease are children under five years of age. Several treatments have been proposed to combat this disease but, among the compounds studied to date, artemisinin has shown potential due to its therapeutic effect. Different solvent extraction methodologies have been used to isolate artemisinin from natural sources such as Artemisia annua L leaves. However, the amount and purity of the artimisinin obtained are still a challenge. The main objective of this project is to use supercritical fluid (SCF) extraction, an environmentally-friendly "green" technology, to extract artemisinin from Artemisia annua L leaves provided by Bio-Share International Ltd. SCF extraction using carbon dioxide as the solvent allows easy separation of the solvent from the extracted arteminisin, leaving a product that is easy to isolate and characterize. Results from SCF extraction (in terms of yield and product quality) will be compared to conventional solvent extraction. A high yield of pure artimisinin will allow commercialization of artimisinin produced in Canada and will strengthen Canada's agricultural sector. Successful extraction and commercialization of artimisinin also has a social benefit of potentially providing an affordable treatment for malaria, a widespread disease affecting the third world.