title: High performance liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization mass spectrometry for simultaneous analysis of alkamides and caffeic acid derivatives from Echinacea purpurea extracts.
abstract: Extracts of the plant Echinacea purpurea are widely used for medicinal purposes. Effective quality control of these extracts requires rapid methods to determine their chemical composition. A new method for analysis of caffeic acid derivatives and alkamides from Echinacea extracts has been developed. With this method, isomeric isobutylamides and 2-methylbutylamides can be distinguished, a capability that previously published methods have lacked. Quantitative analyses carried out with this method on E. purpurea extracts that have been stored for 18 months indicate that they contain caftaric acid, cichoric acid, and undeca-2Z,4E-diene-8,10-diynoic acid isobutylamide at concentrations of 0.7, 0.71 and 2.0mg/mL, respectively.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of North Carolina Greensboro, 435 New Science Bldg., Greensboro, NC 27402, USA. nadja_cech@uncg.edu
authors.forename: Nadja B
authors.initials: NB
authors.lastname: Cech
authors.forename: Maqueita S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Eleazer
authors.forename: Lawresa T
authors.initials: LT
authors.lastname: Shoffner
authors.forename: Mark R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Crosswhite
authors.forename: Amanda C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Davis
authors.forename: Ashley M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Mortenson
mesh_terms: D000577:Amides / Q000032:analysis*; D002109:Caffeic Acids / Q000032:analysis*; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid / Q000379:methods*; D020900:Echinacea / Q000737:chemistry*; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000737:chemistry; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000737:chemistry; D021241:Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D000577:Amides; D002109:Caffeic Acids; D010936:Plant Extracts; C062308:2-methylbutyramide