"Betulin is an abundant, naturally occurring, triterpene with potential as a renewable monomer in microporous polyesters. Its firm structure avoids microporous collapse and its hydroxyl group arrangement builds a kink into polymeric chains, giving the end material a high free volume. These structural features satisfy conditions for intrinsic microporous material. In white birch trees (Betula papyrifera), betulin comprises up to 30% of the dry mass of the bark. The high concentration of betulin in outer birch bark creates an economic opportunity to harvest large scale amounts of biocompatible, biodegradable and cost effective starting material for green polyester synthesis. A saprophytic fungus, the tinder polypore (Fomes fomentarius), associates with and may parasitize B. papyrifera. Since birch trees are such an abundant source of betulin, the impact of this fungus on betulin concentration in B. papyrifera was measured over time. Samples of birch bark from trees with and without the polypore were collected each month from May until August. The betulin was extracted using ethanol and quantified using HPLC. Statistical analysis for the descriptive study was performed in R using a two-way"analysis of variance (ANOVA) and a Tukey post hoc test with a p-value of &lt;0.05. There was a significant difference in mean betulin concentration between trees with or without the fungus (F = 4.1227; df = 1,40; p &lt; 0.05) and months (F = 6.7109; df = 3,40; p &lt; 0.001), but no significant interaction occurred between the two. Fallen trees with the fungus had a significantly higher mean betulin concentration than those without (p &lt; 0.05). Mean betulin concentration in August was significantly higher than other months (p &lt; 0.05), with the most significant difference between August and July (p &lt; 0.001)."

Betulin concentration in Betula papyrifera bark: A comparison of living trees v.s. fallen trees in the presence of fomes fomentarius

ACS Spring 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.