Purification and identification of 10-hydroxy-2-decenoic acid from pure royal jelly

The chemical nature of the royal jelly (RJ) has received considerable attention over the past 20 years. Genc and Aslan reported the determination of Trans-10-hydroxy-2-decenoic acid (10-HDA) content in pure Royal Jelly and royal jelly products by column liquid chromatography. Antinelli et al. confirmed this method and evaluated 10-Hydroxy-2-decenoic acid presence as a freshness parameter for Royal Jelly by HPLC. The aim of this study was isolation and identification of 10-HDA from mixture of carboxylic acids in royal Jelly. Pure Royal jelly was extracted with ether for 26 hours. The resulting extract was concentrated to 200 ml. Carboxylic acids, as sticky solid, were separated by liquid-liquid extraction with pH variation then 10-HDA was separated by crystallization method. The results of melting point and infrared tests confirm the purification of the compound. M.P=64°C IR: 3390, 1710, 1658 and 976 Cm-1. The pure 10-HDA obtained by this method can be utilized for evaluation of different royal jellies.