이상계 용매시스템을 이용하여 물질을 고순도로 대량 분리 할 수 있는 기술인 countercurrent chromatography를 이용하여 인삼으로부터 생리황성 성분인 saponin을 대량 분리 농축하였다. 용매 조성별 인삼 saponin의 분배계수에 따른 인삼 saponin 분리에 적합한 용매시스템은 chloroform/methanol/water(40/39/21, v/v/v)으로 결정되었으며 HSCCC의 작동 조건은 chloroform/methanol/water 용매시스템의 하층부를 이동상으로 한 head to tail mode에서 이동상의 유속 5mL/min, 인삼추출물 injection량 $200{mu}L$, 컬럼회전속도 800 rpm의 조건이 적합한 것으로 판단되었다. 이러한 조건하에서 분리된 인삼saponin의 양은 $550.7{mu}g$으로 HSCCC에 주입한 인삼 추출물 $200{mu}L$중에 존재하는 총 saponin의 양 $865.5{mu}g$에 비교하여 전체 수율은 63.6%로 나타났으며 TLC로 각 분획의 순도를 확인할 수 있었다.
Ginseng saponin was isolated from panax ginseng root using high-speed countercurrent chromatography (HSCCC). Preliminary studies were performed to optimize physical properties of two-phase solvent system and operating parameters including rotation speed of column, elution mode of mobile phase, and flow rate. Two-phase solvent system for isolation of ginseng saponins was composed of chloroform, water, and methanol as blending solvent. Chloroform-aqueous methanol (4:6) systems with various concentration of methanol in water were evaluated for retention of stationary phase in column. Retention of stationary phase decreased with increasing flow rate in tail-to-head elution mode using upper phase as mobile phase and head-to-tail elution mode using lower phase as mobile phase. Latter mode produced high retention at flow rate of 5 mL/min. Optimum conditions for isolation of saponin were chloroform/methanol/water (40/39/21) solvent system; mobile phase, of lower organic layer, flow rate, of 5 mL/min, head to tail elution mode, rotation speed, of 800 rpm, and sample injection, of $200{mu}L$, Recovery yield of ginseng saponin from panax ginseng root extract by HSCCC was 63.6%, and the purity of HSCCC fractions was verified by TLC.
