Chapter 303: Chapter 258 Qinghao
Li Ang suddenly stood up and asked Qiu Feng, "Is there any Grass Wormwood in the sick house?"
"Yes."
Qiu Feng nodded. "It’s in the warehouse."
Li Ang and Qiu Feng headed to the warehouse, where they found Grass Wormwood inside a medicine cabinet.
This medicinal herb, as prescribed in the Medical Books, is used to clear heat, relieve summer heat, cool the blood, and also as a topical medication.
In botanical classification, Grass Wormwood is actually a general term for two types of wormwood plants—yellow wormwood and Qinghao.
Both are annual herbaceous plants of the class dicotyledons, family Asteraceae, genus Artemisia, with similar flavors and identical flower colors.
The difference is that the capitula of yellow wormwood are nearly spherical and smaller. Its leaves are mostly thrice to four times pinnately divided deeply, and it bears elliptical to ovoid, slightly compressed fruits. It flowers and fruits at the end of summer.
The capitula of Qinghao are hemispherical and larger. Its leaves range from twice to thrice dentate pinnately divided deeply, and it bears elongated fruits. Its flowering and fruiting period is in midsummer.
In memories from the Otherworld, artemisinin extracted from these two types of wormwood was used to kill malignant Malaria Parasites and treat malaria. The synthetic production of artemisinin also won the highest scientific research awards due to its great significance for all humankind.
Artemisinin’s mechanism for killing Malaria Parasites is multifaceted. It can induce mitochondrial swelling in the parasites, produce a large amount of reactive oxygen free radicals, and destroy the parasite’s biomembrane system. It can also directly attach to the parasite’s proteins through carbon atoms, exploiting the fact that alkylated proteins cannot function normally, thereby killing the Malaria Parasites...
Countless pieces of data flashed through Li Ang’s mind. He had never considered synthesizing artemisinin. Firstly, the synthetic process was too complicated and difficult; at this stage, direct extraction was still preferable. Secondly, artemisinin was not a specific drug against Blood-sucking Worms.
Its derivative, Artesunate, is.
First, the extraction of artemisinin.
Take mature yellow wormwood leaves, pulverize them to obtain crude yellow wormwood powder.
Soak in 60% ethanol and percolate for six hours.
The percolate is decolorized with activated carbon and suction filtered, yielding a green filtrate.
This is then passed through a macroporous adsorbent resin for adsorption, followed by elution with high-concentration ethanol.
The eluent is obtained. It is then concentrated under reduced pressure below sixty degrees Celsius to precipitate the crude product, which is recrystallized with ethanol to obtain relatively pure artemisinin.
The most challenging part of this process involves resin adsorption.
Macroporous adsorbent resins are a class of high molecular weight adsorbent resins. They do not contain exchange groups and possess a macroporous structure. These resins feature a good macroporous network structure and a large specific surface area, enabling them to adsorb organic substances from aqueous solutions.
Li Ang chose to use styrene as the raw material to produce the macroporous adsorbent resin.
First, benzene was separated from the oily product of coal pyrolysis by distillation.
Then, ethanol and concentrated sulfuric acid were mixed at a ratio of one to three and rapidly heated to 170 degrees Celsius to produce ethylene.
Finally, using primitive techniques, benzene and ethylene were passed through a catalyst bed layer at 400 degrees Celsius and 2 MPa to produce styrene.
Obtaining artemisinin was just the beginning.
Firstly, he needed to obtain the ether solvent tetrahydrofuran.
In a reactor, ethanol and catalysts such as Magnesium Oxide and Silica were added. This mixture underwent catalytic dehydrogenation and dehydration at temperatures between 360 and 370 degrees Celsius, producing butadiene.
Then, using butadiene as the raw material, it was oxidized to produce furan, which was thereafter hydrogenated to produce tetrahydrofuran.
In the tetrahydrofuran solvent system, borane was used as a reducing agent to obtain dihydroartemisinin. Phosphoric acid was added to adjust the pH to neutral, followed by Butanedioic Anhydride to carry out an acylation reaction, preparing Artesunate.
Through extraction, crystallization, and recrystallization, relatively pure medical-grade Artesunate was obtained.
(Paraffin was oxidized under the catalysis of Calcium and Manganese to obtain a mixed dicarboxylic acid—oxidized paraffin. This was then subjected to hot water steam distillation, yielding butanedioic acid.)
(Butanedioic acid was dehydrated upon heating to form Butanedioic Anhydride.)
The entire process was even more complex and cumbersome than that of Penicillin.
Even with knowledge of all the processes, sufficient materials and manpower, and the ability to command Cultivators at will, the entire planning, experimentation, and testing still took Li Ang a month.
But in the end, looking at the white crystalline Artesunate, it was all worth it.
Artesunate, like artemisinin, possessed a highly effective function in killing Malaria Parasites and could also specifically eradicate the larva of Blood-sucking Worms.
In regions heavily afflicted by Water Poison, taking Artesunate allowed for a 99% reduction in parasites for patients who had brief contact with contaminated water.
For those who were in prolonged contact with contaminated water, the reduction in parasites could reach over 80%.
Moreover, the side effects of Artesunate were extremely low. Medication was needed only once every fifteen days, which was enough to hold out until the Mind Silk Removal Method could completely eradicate the disease caused by Blood-sucking Worms.
"Distribute the medicine with the instruction manual," Li Ang told the head of the sick house.
Treatment with Qinghao was already documented in the Medical Books, so it was not strange.
And as for those overly complex production processes that ordinary people couldn’t understand...
Previously, there were processes like alchemy—extraction, distillation, evaporation, calcination, sublimation, crystallization, and water baths—all of which had precedents.
"After confirming the effectiveness of the Artesunate, our mission in Suzhou will be complete."
Li Ang turned to Qiu Feng. She had also been drawn in to help with the production of Artesunate due to their prior experience in producing Penicillin.
"Yes, nearly three months. Now that I think about it, it feels like three years."
Qiu Feng sighed and glanced at the sick house’s sign.
Over these three months, the sick house had been continuously expanding, drawing all the sweat and tears of the medical staff, and witnessing countless separations by death.
The two stood side by side, looking at the sign, neither speaking.
After a long while, Li Ang looked away from the sign and smiled. "When we return to Chang’an, we might still catch the tail end of the academic exchange. I’ll ask the Mountain Master if we can use this achievement to offset some of the homework we missed due to our leave."
"It would be better to return a few days later and maybe even miss the midterm exam."
Qiu Feng joked with a smile but felt a trace of melancholy in her heart.
Li Ang noticed the expression on her face and reassured her, "Don’t worry, the court sees the benefits of the sick house system. Jiangnan East Road is wealthy and industrious, and the common people there have higher incomes. Financial support and medical fees can sustain the sick houses even without the Water Poison epidemic. They won’t shut down."
"Yes."
Qiu Feng nodded firmly. If it weren’t for this experience as a Doctor at the sick house, she could never have imagined that in the wealthiest part of Yu Country, so many common people still lacked sufficient medical resources.
"The sick house system not only provides maximum assistance to the common people but also quickly trains young Doctors, raising their medical standards. Once we return to Chang’an, I will petition the court to establish a Physician College to support the sick houses everywhere."
Li Ang said slowly while looking at the common people queuing outside the sick house.
An individual’s power is limited. No matter how talented one is, it’s impossible to solve all problems.
Rather than acting as an individual Doctor, personally treating and saving people, it would be better to spread the knowledge and cultivate more Doctors.
Li Ang turned back to meet Qiu Feng’s astonished gaze and smiled. "You’ve worked hard this time. Go back to your room and rest."
"What about you?" Qiu Feng asked.
"I’m going to the Suzhou Library to deliberate on the wording for the petition."
Li Ang smiled slightly. Indeed, he planned to establish a Medical College system.
Additionally, with the Water Poison issue resolved, it was also time to investigate the ship named "Wu County Changmen Sea Hawk No. 39," which was related to the origin of Mo Si.