Metabolomic Profiling of Natural Products.
Kowalsick, Amanda.
2015
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Abstract: Plant-based diets have been used for therapeutic purposes, including
the prevention and treatment of disease dating back to early times. The upsurge in consumer
demand for health-enhancing, biologically active products can be attributed to the growing
awareness that diets rich in plant-based materials may help to combat chronic diseases.
Plants produce a diverse array of secondary ... read moremetabolites which assist in the protection and
reproduction of the plant. Variation in secondary metabolites produced by plants in
response to abiotic and biotic stresses is a key factor that dictates the nutritional,
functional and sensory quality of plant-based products. The chemical content of plant
volatile extract varies with regards to plant species, geographical origin, cultivar, plant
organ, maturity, and environmental factors, making identification of individual
constituents difficult. The complex nature of plant-based products makes it difficult to
identify all of the constituents by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) alone. The
work described herein employs automated sequential, multidimensional gas
chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-GC/MS) to obtain matrix-specific, retention time/index
and mass spectrometry libraries for natural products. Once targeted metabolite libraries
are produced, spectral deconvolution of GC/MS data provides a reliable, unambiguous means
to identify constituents in various natural products. Specifically, juniper berry essential
oil constituents were tracked from starting materials through the manufacturing process to
final gin product as a means to determine product and manufacturing quality. Differences in
gin products from several manufacturers were observed based on juniper berry content.
Matrix-specific citrus metabolites were used to identify individual oil content in citrus
oil mixtures and gin products to determine product authenticity. Finally, metabolites were
used to track seasonal variations in teas harvested before and after the onset of the East
Asian Monsoon in SW China. Volatile extracts were prepared using two different sample
preparation techniques to produce a more comprehensive investigation into the effects
extreme weather events have on plant physiology. Striking differences in concentration were
observed within and among chemical families in as little as five-days after the monsoon
rains began.
Thesis (Ph.D.)--Tufts University, 2015.
Submitted to the Dept. of Chemistry.
Advisor: Albert Robbat, Jr..
Committee: Samuel Thomas, Jonathan Kenny, and Jessalin Howell.
Keywords: Analytical chemistry, and Plant sciences.read less - ID:
- hd76sb084
- Component ID:
- tufts:21461
- To Cite:
- TARC Citation Guide EndNote
