Quantitative determination of valeric acid in ferula sumbul roots using high performance liquid chromatography

The roots of Ferula sumbul (Umbelliferae) have a characteristic musky odor and are traditionally used to relieve anxiety, as a sedative for hysteria and other nervous disorders. The present study aims to develop and validate a simple, reliable, accurate and fast high performance liquid chromatography analytical method for the evaluation of valeric acid in Ferula sumbul roots. Ferula sumbul root extract was prepared by boiling powdered roots with methanol for 30 minutes. A simple method for evaluating valeric acid using high performance liquid chromatography with a photodiode array detector was developed and validated. Evaluation was performed using a BEH Shield RP, C-18 (2.1×50 mm, 1.7 µm) column eluting isocratically with methanol and 0.5% phosphoric acid (75:25) at a flow rate of 0.25 ml/min and detection at 218 nm. The method was developed for the first time and is accurate with good linearity (r2>0.998). It has been established that the roots of Ferula sumbul contain 12.62±0.074 µg/g of valeric acid. The developed method can be selectively used to evaluate valeric acid in Ferula sumbul roots. All validation parameters were found to be within the acceptable limits set by the ICH guidelines.