Abstract
The active germplasm bank (AGB) of Carapichea ipecacuanha (Brot.) L. Andersson at Embrapa Eastern Amazon, in the city of Belém, PA, was the first of its kind to be opened in Brazil for this endangered medicinal species and holds important accessions for agricultural and reproductive research, including the production of active principles. This study aimed to chemically characterize 42 accessions from that AGB by simultaneously quantifying cephaeline and emetine contents in roots using high-performance liquid chromatography with a diode-array detector (HPLC-DAD). Cephaeline concentrations ranged from ‘undetected’ to 1.76%, whereas emetine concentrations were found between 0.64% and 2.49%. The overall emetine/cephaeline ratio varied from 0.43 to 3.52. The differences among mean concentrations of alkaloids observed by comparing the Scott-Knott test at 5% probability suggest the chemical variation among the samples assessed. Therefore, it is concluded such chemical differences may favor the selection of genetic material for commercial purposes based on the production of emetine and/or cephaeline, likewise may contribute to breeding programs.
Highlights
The selectivity of the method was assessed by comparing the retention times (RT) observed for the analytical standards with those observed for the sample
The purity of three points of the chromatographic peak attributed to emetine was evaluated, as well as cephaeline, comparing the UV spectra obtained at the beginning and the end of the elution
The Carapichea ipecacuanha active germplasm bank of Embrapa Eastern Amazon maintains the genetic diversity of a species in danger of extinction with adequate management
Summary
Andersson (Rubiaceae) is an endangered species with high medicinal and economic value commonly known in Brazil as Poaia or in English as Ipecac. It is a distylous subshrub occurring exclusively in the understory of dense forests in countries of South America such as Brazil, Colombia, and Ecuador, spreading into Central America until Nicaragua. The commercial potential of C. ipecacuanha is based on its amebicidal, emetic, and expectorant properties mainly due to the presence of isoquinoline alkaloids cephaeline and emetine. The concentration of those active principles in Brazilian ipecac has made the country one of the major exporters of the product worldwide. The commercial exploration of the species began as early as the 18th century, little has been done in terms of its cultivation in the country (Silva, et al, 2019; Silva, et al, 2020)
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