Carbonaceous sorbents alongside an optimized magnetic solid phase extraction (MSPE) towards enrichment of crude Paclitaxel extracts from callus cultures of Taxus baccata

Here, a number of synthesized and commercial nano-sorbents including graphene (G), multi-wall carbon nanotube (MWCNT), graphene oxide (GO), reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and magnetic nanoparticles anchored on GO (Fe(3)O(4)NPs@GO) followed by graphite (Gt) powder were employed for paclitaxel pre-purification from callus culture-derived extract of Taxus baccata. Based on our preliminary work, rGO and Fe(3)O(4)NPs@GO exhibited the maximum potential, not only to remove impurities, but also to ameliorate taxol purity. According to the results of response surface methodology (RSM) developed for the superior nano-sorbent (i.e., Fe(3)O(4)NPs@GO), for both proposed quadratic polynomial models, statistically substantial relationships obtained between the actual and predicted values (p < 0.0001). Furthermore, both agitation power and sorbent dosage compared to the sorption temperature exhibited more efficacies on the two responses of interest [i.e., efficiency of calli-derived pigments removal (ECPR) and efficiency of taxol purity (ETP)]. Based on the results of simultaneous optimization to attain the highest ratio of ECPR ( 96.35%) and ETP ( 30.60 %), the values of 29.9 g/L, 29.6 degrees C and 165.5 rpm were respectively predicted for sorbent dosage, sorption temperature and agitation power, and subsequently certified through experimental rechecking survey. Remarkably, the sorption capacity and magnetism feature of the magnetic nano-sorbent remained nearly constant, even upon nine consecutive treatments. Considering the results as a whole, the combination of magnetic solid-phase extraction (MSPE) using the current Fe(3)O(4)NPs@GO nano-sorbent and RSM can be recommended as a simple, cost-effective and fast route for sorbent-assistant pre-purification investigations of paclitaxel. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.