Planta Med 2000; 66(7): 678-681 DOI: 10.1055/s-2000-8635
Letter
Georg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart · New York
On the Stability of Sesquiterpene Lactones in the Officinal Arnica Tincture of the German Pharmacopoeia1
Thomas J. Schmidt2,*, Uwe Matthiesen3
, Günter Willuhn2
1 The authors dedicate this work to Professor Dr. B. C. Lippold, Institut für Pharmazeutische Technologie der Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf, on the occasion of his 60th birthday
2 Institut für Pharmazeutische Biologie, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
3 Institut für Klinische Chemie und Laboratoriumsdiagnostik, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
An investigation of sesquiterpene lactone content in Arnica tincture (German Pharmacopoeia) after storage for three years at different temperatures (+ 4, + 25 and + 30 °C) was carried out by GC and GC-MS analysis. A decrease (13, 32 and 37 %, respectively) in the content of the main active compounds in this preparation, 11α,13-dihydrohelenalin esters, correlating with storage temperature was found. This change was shown to be caused by addition of ethanol to the cyclopentenone structure of these molecules leading to 2-ethoxy-2,3,11,13-tetrahydrohelenalin derivatives.
References
1 Willuhn G.. Arnicae flos. Wichtl M Teedrogen und Phytopharmaka. 3rd edition. Stuttgart:; Wissenschaftliche Verlagsgesellschaft 1997: 78-82
2
Willuhn G,, Leven W..
Qualität von Arnikazubereitungen - Sesquiterpenlactongehalt von Tinkturen und wässrigem Aufguss.
Deutsche Apotheker Zeitung.
1995;;
135
1939-42
3
Schmidt T J..
Helenanolide type sesquiterpene lactones. III. Rates and stereochemistry in the reaction of helenalin and related helenanolides with sulfhydryl containing biomolecules.
Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry.
1997;;
5
645-53
5
Willuhn G,, Skibinski A,, Schmidt T J..
Structure revision of xanthalongin and further sesquiterpene lactones from flowers of Arnica longifolia.
Planta Medica.
1998;;
64
635-9
7
Leven W,, Willuhn G..
Sesquiterpene lactones from Arnica chamissonis Less. VI. Identification and quantitative determination by high-performance-liquid and gas chromatography.
Journal of Chromatography.
1987;;
410
329-42
8
Willuhn G,, Leven W..
Zur qualitativen und quantitativen Analyse der Sesquiterpenlactone von Arnikablüten DAB 9.
Pharmazeutische Zeitung Wissenschaft.
1991;;
4/136
32-9
9
Willuhn G,, Leven W,, Luley C..
Arnikablüten DAB 10 - Untersuchungen zur qualitativen und quantitativen Variabilität des Sesquiterpenlactongehaltes der offiziellen Arnikablüten.
Deutsche Apotheker Zeitung.
1994;;
134
49-59
