Flavonoid Isolation From Intact Plants: A Nanoparticle-Based Approach

Flavonoids became a major focus of attention because of their many health benefits. Recent years have also seen renewed interest in natural dyes many of which are flavonoids. Currently, flavonoids are isolated from plants using biochemical preparative techniques that allow ample time for chemical modifications of in planta-existing flavonoids and that complicate downstream analyses of flavonoid activities. We have developed a nanoparticle-based approach for flavonoid isolation from intact plants. This method involves incubation of plants with anatase TiO2 nanoparticles and precipitation of secreted flavonoid-nanoparticle conjugates. In addition to being quick, this method yields nanoconjugates that can be used for bio-delivery of flavonoids, and it is sustainable because plants survive the treatment and after a recovery period, can be reused. Our main goal is to understand, optimize and broaden the scope of the nanoparticle-based isolation of flavonoids. To achieve that, we aim (1) to determine the nanoparticle uptake, intracellular trafficking and secretion mechanisms that underlie the flavonoid-nanoconjugate production, (2) to test the effects of flavonoid pathway mutations on the specificity of nanoconjugate formation and (3) to evaluate the applicability of the method to a range of crop species. Because the successful completion of these aims is expected to alter our abilities to study and use flavonoids, this project addresses the Program Area priority: “Discovery and characterization of nanoscale phenomena, processes, and structures relevant to agriculture and food".