ABSTRACT
Natural products chemistry is becoming increasingly interdisciplinary in practice. In the study of natural products chemistry, isolation and purication are mandatory rst steps; success and failure are often determined by these steps. Unlike specic protocols followed in synthetic chemistry, which can be remembered and repeated, details of specic isolation steps are usually forgotten, and in most cases isolation is regarded as trial and error. This chapter covers conventional techniques in the separation, purication, and structural elucidation of metabolites from medicinal plants. The theory and practice of natural products isolation techniques that comprehensively serve the natural product scientist in the investigations of plants are outlined. The backdrop of this discussion is the use and knowledge of traditional medicines. It is therefore important to discuss applications of natural products chemistry in the eld of herbal medicines and its impact on ethnoveterinary and ethnopharmacological sciences.
