Revisión sistemática de métodos de extracción y técnicas de tamizaje fitoquímico para cinco metabolitos secundarios de especies vegetales

Abstract

The incorporation of ancestral knowledge about the use of plants with modern Biotechnology is crucial for the advancement in the research and validation of bioactive compounds. The standardization of extraction methods and phytochemical screening techniques is a benefit for researchers due to the lack of updated and accessible manuals in Spanish, which give a necessary step to promote the development of new research. The importance of secondary metabolites in plants fulfills key functions in the interaction of the plant with its environment. These compounds, such as alkaloids, flavonoids, phenols, saponins and coumarins, possess diverse biological activities that make them valuable in medicine and other applications. The choice of extraction method and solvent will depend on the type of metabolite to be extracted. The most widely implemented methods are maceration and Soxhlet extraction. At the same time, science continues to advance and develop more modern techniques such as ultrasound-assisted extraction and microwave-assisted extraction, which offer advantages in terms of efficiency and selectivity. Each of the phytochemical screening techniques employs specific reagents that interact with the metabolites to produce visible changes, or color changes, allowing the presence of certain compounds in the plant extract to be inferred. These techniques, although qualitative, provide an essential first approximation for the more detailed analysis of the secondary metabolites present in plants. The growing interest in plant species research in Ecuador, which not only contributes to scientific knowledge but also promotes the sustainable use of natural resources, underlines the importance of collecting and synthesizing this information, which will facilitate the research and development of new products based on secondary metabolites, benefiting both science and society.