Preparation of biologically transformed raw material from woolly foxglove Digitalis lanata Ehrh and isolation of digoxin from it

A biotechnological approach is proposed for conservation of a terraneous part of woolly foxglove under anaerobic conditions with a subsequent air-sun drying of the biologically transformed raw material. During the conservation primary foxglove glycosides completely convert to secondary ones which do not transform further. A simple method is described for preparation from the transformed raw material of an enriched glycoside fraction with the yield of 3.6% and for isolation from this fraction of highly purified digoxin with the yield of 0.06% of the starting raw material, and the other secondary glycosides can be also isolated.
aricle by
V S Fonin, A Ia Khorlin

digitalis lanata - classification

Classification:
Digitalis lanata Ehrh.

 Kingdom     Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom     Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision     Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division     Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class     Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass     Asteridae
Order     Scrophulariales
Family     Scrophulariaceae – Figwort family
Genus     Digitalis L. – foxglove
Species     Digitalis lanata Ehrh. – Grecian foxglove