[Latin Name] Griffonia simplicifolia

[Plant Source] Griffonia Seed

[Specifications] 98%; 99% HPLC

[Appearance] White fine powder

Plant Part Used: Seed

[Particle size] 80 Mesh

[Loss on drying] ≤5.0%

[Heavy Metal] ≤10PPM

[Pesticide residue] EC396-2005, USP 34, EP 8.0, FDA

[Storage] Store in cool & dry area, keep away from the direct light and heat.

[Shelf life] 24 Months

[Package] Packed in paper-drums and two plastic-bags inside.

[Net weight] 25kgs/drum

[What is 5-HTP]

5-HTP (5-Hydroxytryptophan) is a chemical by-product of the protein building block L-tryptophan. It is also produced commercially from the seeds of an African plant known as Griffonia simplicifolia 5-HTP is used for sleep disorders such as insomnia, depression, anxiety, migraine and tension-type headaches, fibromyalgia, obesity, premenstrual syndrome (PMS), premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), seizure disorder, and Parkinson’s disease.

 [How does it work?]

5-HTP works in the brain and central nervous system by increasing the production of the chemical serotonin. Serotonin can affect sleep, appetite, temperature, sexual behavior, and pain sensation. Since 5-HTP increases the synthesis of serotonin, it is used for several diseases where serotonin is believed to play an important role including depression, insomnia, obesity, and many other conditions.

[Function]

Depression. Some clinical research shows that taking 5-HTP by mouth improve symptoms of depression in some people. Some clinical research shows that taking 5-HTP by mouth might be as beneficial as certain prescription antidepressant drugs for improving depression symptoms. In most studies, 150-800 mg daily of 5-HTP was taken. In some cases, higher doses have been used.

Down syndrome. Some research shows that giving 5-HTP to infants with Down syndrome might improve muscle and activity. Other research shows that it does not improve muscle or development when taken from infancy until 3-4 years of age. Research also shows that taking 5-HTP along with conventional prescription drugs does improve development, social skills, or language skills.

Anxiety 5-HTP was found to be protective against carbon dioxide-induced panic attacks. One study compared 5-HTP and the prescription medication clomipramine for anxiety. Clomipramine is a tricyclic antidepressant used for treating obsessive-compulsive disorder. 5-HTP was found to be somewhat effective in reducing anxiety symptoms, but not as effective as clomipramine.

Sleep 5-HTP supplements fared a little better for insomnia.5-HTP decreased the time required to get to sleep and decreased the number of nighttime awakenings. Taking 5-HTP along with GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid), a relaxing neurotransmitter, reduced the time it took to fall asleep and increased the duration and quality of sleep. One study found that children with night terrors benefited from 5-HTP.

Professor Maureen McCann, Director of the Energy Center at Purdue University, addresses “A Roadmap for Selective Deconstruction of Lignocellulosic Biomass to Advanced Biofuels and Useful Co-Products” on February 11, 2013 as part of the Andlinger Center’s 2012-2013 Highlight Seminar Series.

ABSTRACT
Second-generation biofuels will be derived from lignocellulosic biomass using biological catalysis to use the carbon in plant cell wall polysaccharides for ethanol or other biofuels. However, this scenario is both carbon- and energy-inefficient. The major components of biomass are cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin. Biological conversion routes utilize only the polysaccharide moiety of the wall, and the presence of lignin interferes with the access of hydrolytic enzymes to the polysaccharides. Living micro-organisms, required to ferment released sugars to biofuels, utilize some sugars in their own growth and co-produce carbon dioxide. In contrast, chemical catalysis has the potential to transform biomass components directly to alkanes, aromatics, and other useful molecules with improved efficiencies. The Center for Direct Catalytic Conversion of Biomass to Biofuels (C3Bio) is a DOE-funded Energy Frontier Research Center, comprising an interdisciplinary team of plant biologists, chemists and chemical engineers. We are developing catalytic processes to enable the extraction, fractionation, and depolymerization of cellulose and hemicellulose coupled to catalytic transformation of hexoses and pentoses into hydrocarbons. Additional catalysts may cleave the ether bonds of lignin to release useful aromatic co-products or that may oxidize lignols to quinones. In a parallel approach, fast-hydropyrolysis is a relatively simple and scalable thermal conversion process. Our understanding of biomass-catalyst interactions require novel imaging and analysis platforms, such as mass spectrometry to analyze potentially complex mixtures of reaction products and transmission electron tomography to image the effects of applying catalysts to biomass and to provide data for computational modeling. By integrating biology, chemistry and chemical engineering, our data indicate how we might modify cell wall composition, or incorporate Trojan horse catalysts, to tailor biomass for physical and chemical conversion processes. We envision a road forward for directed construction and selective deconstruction of plant biomass feedstock.

BIOGRAPHY
Maureen McCann is the Director of Purdue’s Energy Center, part of the Global Sustainability Initiative in Discovery Park. She obtained her undergraduate degree in Natural Sciences from the University of Cambridge, UK, in 1987, and then a PhD in Botany at the John Innes Centre, Norwich UK, a government-funded research institute for plant and microbial sciences. She stayed at the John Innes Centre for a post-doctoral, partly funded by Unilever, and then as a project leader with her own group from 1995, funded by The Royal Society. In January 2003, she moved to Purdue University as an Associate Professor, and she is currently a Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences.

The goal of her research is to understand how the molecular machinery of the plant cell wall contributes to cell growth and specialization, and thus to the final stature and form of plants. Plant cell walls are the source of lignocellulosic biomass, an untapped and sustainable resource for biofuels production with the potential to reduce oil dependence, improve national security, and boost rural economies. She is also the Director of the Center for Direct Catalytic Conversion of Biomass to Biofuels (C3Bio), an interdisciplinary team of biologists, chemists and chemical engineers in an Energy Frontier Research Center funded by the US Department of Energy’s Office of Science.

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