Free fatty acids profile analysis of alcohol extract of Aconitum taipeicum Hand.-Mazz. with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

Aconitum taipeicum Hand.-Mazz., widely used in traditional Chinese pharmaceuticals, has a dual effect on human health. Its alcohol extract is clinically controversial partly because its chemical components remain to be elucidated. In this paper, we report on an elaborately developed GC-MS method for the determination of free fatty acids (FFAs) in the alcohol extract of Aconitum taipeicum Hand.-Mazz., based on alcohol extraction and esterification with boron trifluoride-methanol. Six types of long chain FFAs were identified in the profile analysis, including two essential fatty acids to the human body. All the major six FFAs identified in the alcohol extract were quantified with nonadecanoic acid as an internal standard. The results showed that the alcohol extract was abundant in three types of FFAs, with unsaturated FFAs amounting to 67.42% of the total FFA content. Linoleic acid (46.24%, 13.89 ± 0.36 mg g−1) was the predominant fatty acid, followed by palmitic acid and oleic acid. These results indicate that the FFAs in the extract of Aconitum taipeicum Hand.-Mazz. contribute little to its adverse health effect.