Preparative isolation and characterization of some minor impurities of astaxanthin by high-performance liquid chromatography.
A simple and rapid preparative high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method has been developed to isolate and characterize some minor impurities of astaxanthin using a normal-phase Lichrosorb silica column with n-hexane-acetone-tetrahydrofuran (90:2:8, v/v/v) as mobile-phase and detection at 475 nm. The isolated impurities were characterized as astacene, dehydro astacene and apoastaxanthinal by UV-vis, ESI-MS, 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy and the molecular structures were assigned. The impurities collected using the developed conditions were over 98% pure.
Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad 500007, India. rnrao@ins.iictnet.com
R Nageswara
RN
Rao
S Naseeruddin
SN
Alvi
B Nageswara
BN
Rao
D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid / Q000379:methods*; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; D021241:Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization; D013056:Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet; D024341:Xanthophylls; D019207:beta Carotene / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification
D024341:Xanthophylls; D019207:beta Carotene; C005948:astaxanthine