Materials and methods for the extraction and analysis of banana plant
pseudo-stem juice have been discussed. The pseudo-stem consists of nearly 95% juice
and less than 5% fibers. The juice is quite rich in potassium and oxalate, moderately
rich in sodium and chloride. In addition, nitrate, phosphate and a couple of heavy
metals in trace concentrations have been detected. Two important bioactive organic
molecules, namely (E)-4- (4-methoxyphenyl) but-3-en-2-one and (1E,4E)-1, 5-bis-
4-methoxyphenyl)penta-1,4-dien-3-one, have been isolated from the juice, and
characterized.
Keywords: (1E, 4E)-1, 5-Bis (4-methoxyphenyl) penta-1, 4-dien-3-one, (E) -4-(4-
Methoxyphenyl)but-3-en-2-one, Banana plant juice, Banana plant pseudo-stem.
