Stellenbosch College researchers determine uncommon phenolic compounds in Hashish leaves for the primary time.
Chemists at Stellenbosch College (SU) have uncovered the primary proof of a uncommon group of phenolic compounds, often called flavoalkaloids, in Hashish leaves.
Phenolic compounds—significantly flavonoids—are extremely valued within the pharmaceutical area due to their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-carcinogenic results.
Of their examine, the researchers analyzed three commercially cultivated Hashish strains from South Africa and recognized 79 distinct phenolic compounds. Of those, 25 had by no means earlier than been reported in Hashish, and 16 had been tentatively labeled as flavoalkaloids. Notably, these uncommon compounds had been discovered primarily within the leaves of only one pressure. The findings had been printed within the Journal of Chromatography A.
Challenges of finding out plant phenolics
Dr Magriet Muller, an analytical chemist within the LC-MS laboratory of the Central Analytical Facility (CAF) at Stellenbosch College and first writer on the paper, says the evaluation of plant phenolics is difficult attributable to their low focus and excessive structural range.
“Most crops include extremely advanced mixtures of phenolic compounds, and whereas flavonoids happen broadly within the plant kingdom, the flavoalkaloids are very uncommon in nature,” she explains.
“We all know that Hashish is extraordinarily advanced – it accommodates greater than 750 metabolites – however we didn’t count on such excessive variation in phenolic profiles between solely three strains, nor to detect so many compounds for the primary time within the species. Especially the first evidence of flavoalkaloids in Cannabis was very exciting.”
Developing new analytical methods
As part of her postgraduate work in SU’s Department of Chemistry and Polymer Science, she designed advanced analytical techniques that integrate comprehensive two-dimensional liquid chromatography with high-resolution mass spectrometry to achieve detailed characterization of phenolic compounds.
“We were looking for a new application for the methods that I developed, after successfully testing them on rooibos tea, grapes, and wine. I then decided to apply the methods to Cannabis because I knew it was a complex sample, and that Cannabis phenolics have not been well characterized,” she explains.
According to Prof. André de Villiers, her study leader and main author on the paper, he was blown away by the chromatographic results that Muller obtained: “The excellent performance of two-dimensional liquid chromatography allowed separation of the flavoalkaloids from the much more abundant flavonoids, which is why we were able to detect these rare compounds for the first time in Cannabis.” He leads the analytical chemistry research group in SU’s Department of Chemistry and Polymer Science.
Prof. De Villiers says it is obvious there is still much to gain from studying Cannabis, as the bulk of research in this field to date has been focused on the pharmacological properties of the mood-altering cannabinoids.
“Our analysis again highlights the medicinal potential of Cannabis plant material, currently regarded as waste. Cannabis exhibits a rich and unique non-cannabinoid phenolic profile, which could be relevant from a biomedical research perspective,” he concludes.
Reference: “Comprehensive two-dimensional liquid chromatographic analysis of Cannabis phenolics and first evidence of flavoalkaloids in Cannabis” by Magriet Muller and André de Villiers, 2 August 2025, Journal of Chromatography A.
DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2025.466023
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