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PlantchemProfile date: 2025-01-23 Company Writeup: PlantChem AS
PlantChem AS is a specialist phytochemistry laboratory based in Eiken, Norway, operating within the biotechnology and life sciences sector. The company's core mission revolves around the chemical analysis, isolation, and production of bioactive natural compounds derived from plants, with a particular focus on plant phenolics. The entity was established in 2002, initially concentrating its efforts on the chemistry and occurrence of flavonoids, a major class of plant phenolics.
PlantChem AS is structured as a dedicated Research and Development (R&D) and analytical service provider, serving both the scientific community and commercial enterprises. The company's expertise lies in its comprehensive knowledge of natural product chemistry, combined with advanced analytical techniques for compound identification and quantification.
Continue…What the Company Does
The primary activities of PlantChem AS can be divided into three core areas: laboratory services, specialized product production, and research and development collaboration.
1. Advanced Analytical Laboratory Services
PlantChem AS operates a natural compound laboratory equipped with state-of-the-art chromatographic and mass spectrometry instrumentation. The company offers highly specialized analytical services to screen, characterize, and quantify a wide range of phytochemicals. This laboratory capability is a cornerstone of its business, catering to clients in the food, pharmaceutical, and nutraceutical industries, as well as academic research institutions.
The specific analytical services include:
- Screening or Metabolomics: Offering screening of complex plant extracts utilizing Ultra-High Performance Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry (UHPLC-MS). Metabolites are further characterized using ultraviolet/visible (UV/Vis) spectra or detected via fluorescence detection (FLD).
- Analysis of Specific Compounds: Performing qualitative and quantitative analysis of various plant constituents using chromatographic hyphenated techniques, including UHPLC, High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC), and Gas Chromatography (GC), combined with detectors such as Mass Spectrometry (MS), Diode-Array Detection (DAD), FLD, Electrochemical Detection (ECD), and Flame Ionization Detector (FID).
The key classes of natural compounds the laboratory is highly skilled in analyzing are:
- Phenolics: This is the company???s main specialization, including Flavonoids (such as chalcones, dihydroflavones, dihydroflavonols, flavones, flavonols, anthocyanins, and condensed tannins), as well as phenolic acids, ketones, and aldehydes.
- Carbohydrates: Analysis of mono- and disaccharides and oligosaccharides.
- Terpenoids: Analysis of carotenoids and other terpenoid compounds.
- Other Classes: Including steroids and fatty acids.
All analyses are conducted with reference to in-house standards to ensure high accuracy and reliability.
2. Production of Specialized Products
PlantChem AS leverages its expertise in extraction and isolation to act as a producer of pure natural compounds for research and application.
- Key Products: The primary products offered by PlantChem AS are pure flavonoids and other phenolics. These high-purity, often low-volume compounds are vital for use as analytical and pharmacological standards in biomedical, analytical, and quality control applications.
- Core Capability: The laboratory is highly skilled in the extraction and isolation of plant compounds from various botanical sources, which underpins its ability to produce these high-value, pure substances.
3. Research, Development, and Consulting Services
The company is heavily involved in R&D, often as a partner in large, collaborative research projects, particularly those related to Norwegian agriculture and health sciences.
- R&D Partnerships: PlantChem AS actively partners with a network of distinguished institutions, including the Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy (NIBIO), Norwegian Food Research Institute (Nofima), Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), various other universities, and enterprises.
- Research Focus Areas:
- Growth and Quality Enhancement: A major area of research involves projects focused on the growth and quality enhancement of Norwegian berries, fruits, and vegetables. Since 2003, this has included significant attention to greenhouse cultures, particularly tomatoes, but also cucumber, lettuce, sweet pepper, and herbs.
- Health Impacts/Clinical Trials: The company participates in clinical trials to investigate and reveal the health impacts of specific plants or plant products, focusing on the biological effects of plant-derived compounds. A particular area of investigation is colonic phenolic catabolites, which are metabolites from the colonic microflora that are believed to have a more significant biological impact on the circulation system than the original dietary flavonoids.
- Extraction of Bioactive Herb Compounds: The laboratory conducts extractions of herbs cultivated in Norway, such as Hops (Humulus lupulus), Maral root (Leuzea carthamoides), Oregano (Origanum vulgare), Peppermint (Mentha pipperita), Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis), Roseroot (Rhodiola rosea), and Sweet wormwood (Artemisia annua), as part of a research project to identify new sources of bioactive compounds.
- Consulting: PlantChem AS provides consultancy services for small enterprises involved in the production of berries, fruits, vegetables, or refined products such as extracts or isolates. This support often involves helping clients utilize research results or test their own product ideas.
In summary, PlantChem AS acts as a vital technological partner within the Norwegian life sciences community, bridging fundamental phytochemistry research with commercial application through its specialized analytical services, production of high-purity natural compounds, and dedicated R&D activities.
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