Podophyllotoxin is an active chemotherapy agent found in the leaves of certain plants including Mayapple and Junipers. It is used to treat prostate and colon cancer, and as an antibiotic for genital warts. Our aim was to evaluate if steam distillation of Juniperus scopulorum to remove essential oils affects the amount of isolable Podophyllotoxin in these samples. Juniper samples were collected by the University of Wyoming. The steam distillations of the leaf samples (used in the fragrances industry) had varying distillation times. The experiment was to determine the optimal distillation time to allow for extraction of essential oils and Podophyllotoxin in high yields. Using a standard protocol, leaf samples were extracted with buffer and Podophyllotoxin levels were measured using HPLC and MS. We report our results to date.

Isolation of podophyllotoxin from <i>Juniperus scopulorum</i> post essential oil extraction

245th National Meeting (2013)

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Isolation of podophyllotoxin from Juniperus scopulorum post essential oil extraction