Adsorption and Desorption Characteristics of Total Flavonoids from Acanthopanax senticosus on Macroporous Adsorption Resins

We examined the application of six different resins with the aim of selecting a macroporous resin suitable for purifying Acanthopanax senticosus total flavonoids (ASTFs) from Acanthopanax senticosus crude extract (EAS) by comparing their adsorption/desorption capacities, which led to the selection of HPD-600. Research on the adsorption mechanism showed that the adsorption process had pseudo-second-order kinetics and fit the Freundlich adsorption model. Moreover, the analysis of thermodynamic parameters indicated that the adsorption process is spontaneous and endothermic. The optimal conditions for purification of ASTFs were determined as sample pH of 3, 60% ethanol concentration, and 3 BV·h⁻¹ flow rate, for both adsorption and desorption, using volumes of 2.5 and 4 BV, respectively. The application of macroporous resin HPD-600 to enrich ASTFs resulted in an increase in the purity of total flavonoids, from 28.79% to 50.57%. Additionally, the antioxidant capacity of ASTFs was higher than that of EAS, but both were lower than that of L-ascorbic acid. The changes in ASTFs compositions were determined using ultra-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC–MS/MS), with the results illustrating that the levels of seven major flavonoids of ASTFs were increased compared to that in the crude extract.