Simultaneous determination three phytosterol compounds, campesterol, stigmasterol and daucosterol in Artemisia apiacea by high performance liquid chromatography-diode array ultraviolet/visible detector

Background: Artemisia apiacea is a traditional herbal medicine using treatment of eczema and jaundice in Eastern Asia, including China, Korea, and Japan. Objective: An accurate and sensitive analysis method using high performance liquid chromatography-diode array ultraviolet/visible detector and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry for the simultaneous determination of three phytosterol compounds, campesterol, stigmasterol and daucosterol in A. apiacea was established. Materials and Methods: The analytes were separated on a Shiseido C ₁₈ column (5 μm, 4.6 mm I.D. ×250 mm) with gradient elution of 0.1% trifluoroacetic acid and acetonitrile. The flow rate was 1 mL/min and detection wavelengths were set at 205 and 254 nm. Results: Validation of the method was performed to demonstrate its linearity, precision and accuracy. The calibration curves showed good linearity (R² > 0.9994). The limits of detection and limits of quantification were within the ranges 0.55-7.07 μg/mL and 1.67-21.44 μg/mL, respectively. And, the relative standard deviations of intra- and inter-day precision were <2.93%. The recoveries were found to be in the range of 90.03-104.91%. Conclusion: The developed method has been successfully applied to the analysis for quality control of campesterol, stigmasterol and daucosterol in A. apiacea.