Rapid HPLC Analysis for Quantitative Determination of the Two Isomeric Triterpenic Acids, Oleanolic acid and Ursolic acid, in Plantago Major

Plantago major has been used in traditional medicine for the treatment of various diseases. In order to evaluate the quality of P. major, a simple, rapid and accurate high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method was developed for the assessment of the two bioactive triterpenic acids: oleanolic acid (OA) and ursolic acid (UA). A LiChrosorb octadecylsilyl silica (ODS) column with methanol, tetrahydrofuran and aqueous acetic acid as mobile phase and detection at 220 nm were employed for HPLC analysis. The method is precise with relative standard deviations for these two constituents that ranged between 0.5–1.1% (intraday) and 0.8–1.8% (interday). The contents of these two phytochemicals in the leaves of P. major growing in Friuli Venezia Giulia Region were determined in order to establish an effective and reproducible method.