Method Validation of Identification Hederagenin in Soapnut Cosmetic by High Performance Liquid Chromatography Technique

Abstract

The present study aimed to develop an HPLC method to identify hederagenin, the soapnut substance, in herbal cosmetics. The validation data revealed a maximum wavelength of 210 nm suitable for hederagenin at an average retention time of 5.10 min. Moreover, the repeatability study showed the percentage relative standard deviation (RSD) was 0.11% for the limit of detection (LOD) of 0.01% w/w. These parameters tested to meet the method verification criteria. Then, the verified method was also carried out in 15 samples of herbal cosmetics with soapnut. The result showed that only 1 sample (6.70%) exhibited hegeragenin content similar to the positive control samples. The current study demonstrated that this HPLC method was suitable for the identification of hederagenin and hederagenin of soupnut was not found in most samples due to many reasons including the susceptibility to high temperature, strong acid-base condition, as well as inappropriate storage and preparation procedure. The developed method was validated and proved to be selective and suitable for use as a standard method for the determination of hederagenin in herbal cosmetics product to further meet the quality requirement of manufacture.