I am in the process of doing my senior research project. I have been referring to various papers to try and find methods to extract and analyze my samples. Most papers say "Mycosporine-like amino acids were removed by three serial 60-min extractions in 80%. High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) grade aqueous methanol at 4 °C in the dark." I am confused on what serial 60 min extractions are, and think I am overthinking the concept.
Serial extractions are a technique in which a sample is subjected to multiple extractions with the same or different solvents in order to isolate a particular compound or group of compounds. In the case of your research project, the Mycosporine-like amino acids were removed from the samples by performing three 60-minute extractions using 80% aqueous methanol. The purpose of the extractions is to remove the Mycosporine-like amino acids from the sample, and the aqueous methanol is used as the extraction solvent because it is capable of dissolving and removing the amino acids from the sample. The extractions were performed in the dark and at 4°C to minimize any potential degradation or breakdown of the Mycosporine-like amino acids.
In essence, serial extractions are a means of purifying a particular compound from a sample by removing any impurities or contaminants that may interfere with subsequent analysis. By performing multiple extractions, the desired compound can be isolated with greater precision and accuracy.
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