Simple and Rapid Determination of Cordycepin in Cordyceps militaris Fruiting Bodies by Quantitative Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy

Abstract

The major compound in Cordyceps militaris (C. militaris), cordycepin, has been known to have a variety of pharmacological properties. The cordycepin concentration in artificially cultivated fruiting bodies of C. militaris was determined using quantitative 1H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR). The results were compared with a high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method. There were no statistically significant differences in the cordycepin concentration by the two methods. Validation of each method was performed in terms of linearity, limit of detection, limit of quantification, intra- and inter-day precision, repeatability, stability, and accuracy. Better inter-day precision, repeatability, stability, and accuracy were obtained by NMR than by HPLC. These results show that NMR is an alternative to HPLC for the determination of cordycepin in C. militaris fruiting bodies.