High yield of podophyllotoxin from leaves of Podophyllum peltatum by in situ conversion of podophyllotoxin 4- O-beta-D-glucopyranoside.

Rehydration of powdered tissues of Podophyllum peltatum L. prior to extraction with an organic solvent allows endogenous beta-glucosidases to hydrolyze lignan 4-O-beta-D-glucosides in situ and increase the yield of podophyllotoxin. Aqueous extraction of rhizomes and leaves of P. peltatum yielded 4- to 10-fold greater quantities of podophyllotoxin than the traditional ethanolic extraction. Most significantly, leaves were shown to contain over 52 mg of podophyllotoxin per g of dry weight (5.2%), exceeding levels previously reported from any source. These results point to the use of leaves harvested from cultivated P. peltatum as an attractive alternative to the destructive collection of natural populations.