Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

Hello. A research study was presented to us about the xanthonoid Mangiferin, I got curious if there is a possible way for a Grade 9 student to extract the xanthonoid from mangoes. Thank you.

Hi,

Boiling water can be used to extract mangiferin from mango leaves and possibly other parts of the plant. Procedures for preparing water extracts are described in the following article:

http://www.mdpi.com/2306-5710/2/4/33/pdf

Other extraction methods use solvents and require specialized lab equipment. These would be less suitable for a school science project.

Note that any mango leaf extract will contain quite a few chemicals in addition to mangiferin. Cleaning up the extract to get high-purity mangiferin requires specialized equipment and expertise.

I hope this helps. Please ask again if you have more questions.

A. Norman