Simultaneous HPLC quantitative analysis of mangostin derivatives in Tetragonula pagdeni propolis extracts

Propolis has been used as indigenous medicine for curing numerous maladies. The one that is of ethnopharmacological use is stingless bee propolis from Tetragonula pagdeni. A simultaneous high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) investigation was developed and validated to determine the contents of bioactive compounds: 3-isomangostin, gamma-mangostin, beta-mangostin, and alpha-mangostin. HPLC analysis was effectively performed using a Hypersil BDS C18 column, with the gradient elution of methanol–0.2% formic acid and a flow rate of 1 ml/min, at 25 °C and detected at 245 nm. Parameters for the validation included accuracy, precision, linearity, and limits of quantitation and detection. The developed HPLC technique was precise, with lower than 2% relative standard deviation. The recovery values of 3-isomangostin, gamma-mangostin, beta-mangostin, and alpha-mangostin in the extracts were 99.98%, 99.97%, 98.98% and 99.19%, respectively. The average contents of these mixtures in the propolis extracts collected from different seasons were 0.127%, 1.008%, 0.323% and 2.703% (w/w), respectively. The developed HPLC technique was suitable and practical for the simultaneous analysis of these mangostin derivatives in T. pagdeni propolis and would be a valuable guidance for the standardization of its pharmaceutical products.