ABSTRACT
Objective: To establish a simple and effective extraction method for the preparation of total saponins of Panax japonicas (TSPJ). Methods: Combination of macroporous adsorption and ion exchange resin chromatography was adopted in the present study. For quality evaluation, chikusetsusaponin IVa was used as reference, and vanillin-perchloric acid was applied as chromogenic reagent to determine total saponin content at 545 nm. Results: X-5 macrophous resin offered better adsorption and desorption capacities for TSPJ than other macrophous resins. The optimum purification process was confirmed as follows: The sample solution concentration was 0.2 mg/L; The sample volume was 10 g/g, and eluting with 5 mL of 70% aqueous ethanol solutions on 1 g wet macrophous resin column. Followed this step, decoloring of TSPJ was studied and the decoloring capacity of two different types of ion exchange resins was evaluated. The result showed that 732-type cation exchange resin was the better resin for decolorization of the TSPJ. The total saponin products with higher purity and quality were obtained, with the mass fraction more than 85.0%, and the transfer rate of TSPJ was more than 70.0%. Conclusion: The results show that the total saponins can be separated and purified effectively from P. japonicus. The preparation method is simple, effective, and efficient for large-scale preparation of TSPJ.