Silymarin compounds: Chemistry, innovative extraction techniques and synthesis

Abstract Silymarin complex consisting of four flavonolignans (silychristin, silydianin, silibinin and taxifolin) has been used from ancient times in both traditional European and Asian medicine for liver disorders treatment. Moreover, over the last years, the anticancer activity of these compounds against various types of cancer cells (e.g., breast, skin, colon, cervix, ovary, prostate, lung and hepatocellular cancers, among others) has been demonstrated. Therefore, at this stage of development, food and pharmaceutical interest have shown an increased interested in the recovery of these molecules. Conventional solvent extraction has been traditionally used to recover silymarin complex from …