Increasing the efficiency of the separation and purification process for paclitaxel by pre-treatment with water

Abstract In this study, a water pre-treatment method for the separation and purification of an anticancer agent paclitaxel from plant cell cultures was developed. When the methanol extract obtained by biomass extraction was pre-treated with water, a high yield (>99%) of high-purity (∼12.1%) paclitaxel was observed within a short period of time (∼10 min). In addition, in the follow-up pre-purification process, using a crude extract obtained by water pre-treatment, high-yield (∼87.9%), high-purity (50% or higher) paclitaxel was obtained in a short operating time (∼2.9 h). Thus, the efficiency of the separation and purification process for paclitaxel was improved dramatically by water pre-treatment, particularly in terms of the reduction of operating times and the simplification of processes.