Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Extracting 4-O-Methylhonokiol from Magnolia bark?

Maily - 20-10-2016 at 23:53

I am looking for a way to extract specifically 4-O-Methylhonokiol (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/4-O-Methylhonokiol) from Magnolia bark. There are different plant extracts readily available on the market containing honokiol and magnolol as a dietary supplement to aid anxiety and help sleep, but i am specifically looking for the 4-O-Methylhonokiol and thought the easiest way to achieve this is by extracting it myself from the bark. But i really just starting to inform myself if its possible to just extract this one molecule and how. I hope you can help me by answering the following questions:

1.) What is more "easy"/possible to achieve: extraction from the bark or synthesis? Maybe using the honokiol from a purchased supplement and converting it to 4-O-Methyho...?
2.) What method do i use?
3.) Is this possible to achieve as private person without access to industrial grade apparatus?

(sorry for my spelling mistakes, english is not my native language and school has been over for some time)

Maroboduus - 21-10-2016 at 18:29

Have a look at Patent EP232740281. It gives instructions for isolation (need an HPLC rig), and references for making crude extracts, making it by methylating honokiol, and synthesizing it from scratch.

You'll probably need to learn quite a few things, and buy a fair amount of equipment, unless you're already an amateur organic chemist.

That stuff is also available commercially according to the patent.

Maily - 22-10-2016 at 20:53

thanks for your input! Unfortunatley i cannot find the patent you mentioned in the databases i have searched.
Furthermore i concluded to go the way of methylating honokiol (90% pure) since it is avaiblable at a reasonable price.
Still help is needed. Since honokiol has two hydroxylgroups, how is it possible to just seperate the one hydrogenatom at the specific place (without leaving the other at its place) and adding the methylgroup? Is it even possible?

Maroboduus - 23-10-2016 at 09:43

Quote: Originally posted by Maroboduus  
Have a look at Patent EP232740281. It gives instructions for isolation (need an HPLC rig), and references for making crude extracts, making it by methylating honokiol, and synthesizing it from scratch.

You'll probably need to learn quite a few things, and buy a fair amount of equipment, unless you're already an amateur organic chemist.

That stuff is also available commercially according to the patent.


SORRY!, that was EP2327402B1. Please pardon my defective memory, I should really write stuff like that down.

Maily - 25-10-2016 at 01:53

No Problem! I read the patent and it is more or less what i was orignally looking for. Though i run on a tight budget, i want to specifiy my quest: what is the most economic way to get 4-O-Methylhonokiol. I thought about using Honokiol as a substrate since it is widley used in the health/supplement industry and then methylating it. Anyhow i am at the beginning of my quest and i doubt it is as easy as i imagine (unfortunatley the patent did not hold any explanation of how to do it even it claimed it). Help appreciated. :-)