Development of an analytical procedure for the quantification of artemisinin in encapsulated formulations

Šijanec, Ana (author), Grčman, Matjaž (author), Pompe, Matevž (author), Kočar, Drago (author)

Encapsulated formulations have emerged as a promising tool for increasing nutrient absorption in the food supplement and cosmetic industries. Although the theoretical amplification factors for improving the bioavailability of encapsulated formulations are very high for poorly soluble active compounds, it has long been known that encapsulation can also enhance the absorption of water-soluble ingredients. These findings have led to the development of new technologies for encapsulating nutrients for use in the food industry. However, accurate quantification of nutrients in encapsulated formulations in the food supplement industry remains a challenge. This study presents the development and validation of novel analytical procedures for determining artemisinin in various food supplement formulations. Three formulations were prepared using different emulsifying procedures for artemisinin encapsulation. High-performance liquid chromatography with UV/Vis detection (HPLC-UV/Vis) was used for analysis. Separation was performed using a Waters ACQUITY Premier BEH C18 column. Specialized sample preparation procedures were designed to efficiently disrupt encapsulation and extract artemisinin for precise quantification. Three different sample preparation procedures were required to accurately determine the artemisinin content in the tested formulations. All methods were validated. The precision, linearity expressed as R$^2$, LOD, and LOQ of the chromatographic method were 0.39%, 0.9995, 18 µg/mL, and 26 µg/mL, respectively. Recoveries of the sample preparation methods were above 94%. The developed procedures enable accurate determination of artemisinin in encapsulated formulations, ensuring product quality and safety. These findings suggest that, for quality control of encapsulated food products, specialized analytical procedures for individual formulations may need to be developed and validated.

• Language: English
• Keywords: artemisinin, encapsulation, food supplements, stability, HPLC-UV/Vis, quality control, sample preparation
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: FKKT - Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2025
• Number of pages: 14 str.
• Numbering: Vol. 14, iss. 24, art. 4349
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-181645
• UDC: 543.544.5HPLC
• ISSN on article: 2304-8158
• DOI: 10.3390/foods14244349
• COBISS.SI-ID: 262533379
• Publication date in RUL: 10.04.2026

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Foods
• Shortened title: Foods
• Publisher: MDPI
• ISSN: 2304-8158
• COBISS.SI-ID: 512252472

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: artemizinin, enkapsulacija, prehranska dopolnila, stabilnost, HPLC-UV/Vis, kontrola kakovosti, priprava vzorca

Projects

• Funder: ARIS - Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency
• Project number: P1-0153
• Name: Raziskave in razvoj analiznih metod in postopkov