Caftaric Acid Isolation from Unripe Grape: A Green Alternative for Hydroxycinnamic Acids Recovery

Phenolic acids represent about one-third of the dietary phenols and are widespread in vegetable and fruits. Several plants belonging to both vegetables and medical herbs have been studied for their hydroxycinnamic acid content. Among them, Echinacea purpurea is preferentially used for caffeic acid-derivatives extraction. The wine industry is a source of by-products that are rich in phenolic compounds. This work demonstrates that unripe grape juice (verjuice) presents a simple high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) profile for hydroxycinnamic acids (HCAs), with a great separation of the caffeic-derived acids and a low content of other phenolic compounds when compared to E. purpurea and other grape by-products. Here it is shown how this allows the recovery of pure hydroxycinnamic acids by a simple and fast method, fast protein liquid chromatography (FPLC). In addition, verjuice can be easily obtained by pressing grape berries and filtering, thus avoiding any extraction step as required for other vegetable sources. Overall, the proposed protocol could strongly reduce the engagement of solvent in industrial phenolic extraction.

Automated summary

Phenolic acids, particularly hydroxycinnamic acids, are prevalent in vegetables and fruits. Unripe grape juice (verjuice) has been found to have a simple HPLC profile for hydroxycinnamic acids, making it suitable for fast and easy FPLC recovery of pure hydroxycinnamic acids. By pressing grape berries and filtering, verjuice can be easily obtained without requiring extraction steps typically needed for other plant sources, offering a potential reduction of solvent usage in industrial phenolic extraction.