Separation and purification of 10-deacetylbaccatin III by high-speed counter-current chromatography

High-speed counter-current chromatography (HSCCC) was used for the separation and purification of 10-deacetylbaccatin III from the needle extract of Chinese yew (Taxus chinensis). The crude needle extract (500 mg/5 ml) was first separated with a two-phase solvent system composed of n-hexane-ethyl acetate-ethanol-water (2:5:2:5, v/v) and the partially purified fraction was again purified with a different solvent system composed of n-hexane-chloroform-methanol-water (5:25:34:20, v/v). HPLC analysis of the final fraction showed that the purity of 10-deacetylbaccatin (20 mg) was over 98%. The chemical structure was confirmed by fast atom bombardment MS and 1H NMR.