Avesthagen Launches MetaGrid

CHATSWORTH, Calif.—Avesthagen unveiled its new MetaGrid™ proprietary technology protocol, which is designed to achieve greater consistency in standardization of multi-constituent plant-based extracts. The basis for the new protocol is the development and optimization of novel algorithms that search for all retention times within a tolerance range and accommodates possible variations in retention time of similar or identical constituents across multiple runs of the same extract, or multiple runs of different extracts that contain the same constituents.

Alex Moffett, CEO, Avesthagen, explained: “Extraction and resolution of components present in complex phyto-extracts is an area that has been plagued by a lack of standard operating procedures that permit adequate and uniform standardization and quantitative estimation of metabolites at a comprehensive level.” He added most metabolite fingerprint methods focus on less than 10 metabolites within a given extract; however, he said, “A metabolite profile approach that is solely focused on major constituents alone will not be able to address the batch-to-batch variations observed in bioactivity, especially in those where the minor constituents are also contributing to the observed bioactivity.”

According to the company, MetaGrid allows simultaneous profiling of more than 90 percent of resolvable constituents of a phytoextract across 50 different wavelength windows; generates linear representation of all validated data points using instrument specific software; and permits the analyst to focus on developing metabolite resolution methodologies that capture the diversity of complex phytoextracts even without information on the identities of individual metabolite components.