| Abstract
| - Commercial grapefruit seed extracts (GSE) were extracted with chloroform. The solvent wasevaporated, and the resulting solid was subsequently analyzed by high-performance liquidchromatography, electrospray ionization mass spectrometry, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)spectroscopy, and elemental analysis (by proton-induced X-ray emission [PIXE] analysis). The mainconstituent was identified as benzethonium chloride, a synthetic antimicrobial agent commonly usedin cosmetics and other topical applications. This compound comprised 8.03% (n = 2) of the liquidGSE sample. Higher amounts of benzethonium chloride were found in powder GSE samples. Keywords: Benzethonium chloride; grapefruit seed extract; electrospray ionization mass spectrometry; PIXE analysis; antimicrobial activity
|
