ISOLATION OF NICOTINE

Nicotine is a type of chemical compound belonging to the class of alkaloids because they have properties and characteristics of alkaloids.

Isolation of Alkaloids

Alkaloid extracted from the leaves of plants, flowers, fruit, bark, and roots are dried and then crushed. Extraction of alkaloids in general are as follows:

a.       Alkaloid extracted with solvents, eg ethanol, and then evaporated.

b.      Extracts were obtained inorganic acids to produce a quaternary ammonium salt and then extracted again.

c.       Quaternary ammonium salt obtained was treated with sodium carbonate to produce these alkaloids were then extracted with a solvent-free such as ether and chloroform.

d.      Mixture - a mixture of alkaloids obtained finally separated in various ways, such as chromatographic methods (Tobing, 1989).

There are other ways to get the alkaloids from the acid solution by absorption using Lloyd reagent, and then eluted with dilute alkali alkaloids. Alkaloid that is hydrophobic absorbed by XAD-2 resin and then eluted with an acid or a mixture of ethanol-water. Many alkaloids which can be precipitated by Mayer's reagent (potassium mercury (II) iodide) or salt Reineccke.

This study used a general way that the isolation of alkaloids extracted with an organic solvent, acidification, formation of quaternary ammonium salts with bases, extraction with organic solvents, and purification using column chromatography, thin layer chromatography, or electronic instruments (IR, GC-MS , UV-Vis).

Nicotine
Nicotine is an alkaloid with the chemical name 3 - (1-methyl-2-pirolidil) pyridine. When extracted from the leaves of tobacco, nicotine is colorless, but soon becomes brown when in contact with air. Nicotine can evaporate and be purified by steam distillation from the basified solution.

Nicotine is a substance that is toxic alkaloid tertiary amine compound, is a weak base with a pH of 8.0. At pH, as many as 31% of the nicotine in the form of ions and can not pass through the cell membrane. At this pH the nicotine is in the form of ions and can not pass through the membrane rapidly resulting in only a slight cheek mucosa absorption of nicotine from cigarette smoke.

Nicotine is an alkaloid that is naturally in tobacco plants. Nicotine is also found in other plants of the family Solanaceae biological such as tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant and green pepper at very small compared to tobacco. Alkaloid substances are known to have pharmacological properties, such as the stimulant effects of caffeine increases blood pressure and heart rate.

Alkaloid nicotine undergo metabolic processes, which is a process by which nicotine undergo structural changes due to the chemical compounds in the vicinity. The metabolism of nicotine in tobacco is presented in figure 4.

Most of the in vivo metabolites of nicotine are konitin lactams. The transformation of these metabolites represent all 4-electron oxidation. In vitro studies showed a loss of nicotine from the incubation mixture was not inhibited, although the formation of nicotine completely blocked.

Oxidative metabolism of nicotine by making mirkosomal rabbit liver in the presence of cyanide ion is shown by the second isomer of nicotine cyano compounds. Formation of structures of N-(sianometil) nornikotin obtained from nucleophilic attack by cyanide ion on methyl iminium intermediate types. These compounds are formed by ionization type N hydroxymethyl nornikotin. The same compound karbinolamin seen in N-demetilasi of nicotine into nornikotin (Wolff, 1994).

Nicotine can be synthesized from the amino acid ornithine. Biosynthesis nicotine from ornithine amino acids can be made schemes like Figure 5.

In the biosynthesis of nicotine, pyrrolidine ring comes from the amino acid ornithine and pyridine rings derived from nicotinic acid that is found in tobacco plants. Amino groups attached to the ornithine used to form the pyrrolidine ring of nicotine