{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,3]],"date-time":"2026-08-03T23:13:42Z","timestamp":1785798822356,"version":"3.56.0"},"reference-count":39,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"20","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,10,21]],"date-time":"2024-10-21T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1729468800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"MINISTERO DELL\u2019ISTRUZIONE, DELL\u2019UNIVERSITA\u2019 E DELLA RICERCA","award":["PONa3_00395\/1"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["PONa3_00395\/1"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Molecules"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The chemical characterization of natural products is often a complex task that demands powerful analytical techniques. Liquid chromatography with high-resolution tandem mass spectrometry (HRMS\/MS) is often employed, yet it can face hard challenges when isomeric species are present, and reference standards are lacking. In such cases, the confidence level in compound identification can be significantly improved by the collection of orthogonal information on target analytes. In this work, 23 key compounds in Boswellia serrata extract (BSE), 12 of which correspond to boswellic acids (BAs) and 11 to triterpenoidic acid isomers, were identified by combining RPLC followed by serial UV and ESI(-)-FTMS and FTMS\/MS detections with the evaluation of the reactivity towards C=C bond epoxidation with meta-chloroperoxybenzoic acid (m-CPBA), proposed as a fast chemical tool to gather information about C=C bond steric hindrance, a key structural feature of BAs and related compounds. The interpretation of UV spectra acquired after chromatographic separation corroborated the identification of the substitution patterns of enonic and dienic residues in ketoboswellic and dehydroboswellic acids. Moreover, MS\/MS based on higher-energy collision-induced dissociation (HCD) unveiled new fragmentation pathways, providing important structural details on target analytes. The integrated approach developed during this study might pave the way for a deeper understanding of the BSE bioactive properties. Moreover, it can be considered an example of a more general strategy for the analysis of complex mixtures of natural compounds including also isomeric species.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/molecules29204967","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,10,21]],"date-time":"2024-10-21T09:58:24Z","timestamp":1729504704000},"page":"4967","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Integrating Epoxidation, High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry and Ultraviolet Spectroscopy to Unravel the Complex Profile of Boswellic Acids and Related Compounds in the Boswellia serrata Gum Resin Extract"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"29","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5249-7168","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Andrea","family":"Castellaneta","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento di Chimica, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Bari \u201cAldo Moro\u201d, Via Orabona 4, 70126 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0025-3350","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ilario","family":"Losito","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento di Chimica, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Bari \u201cAldo Moro\u201d, Via Orabona 4, 70126 Bari, Italy"},{"name":"Centro Interdipartimentale SMART, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Bari \u201cAldo Moro\u201d, Via Orabona 4, 70126 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3858-6214","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Stefania","family":"Cometa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Jaber Innovation s.r.l., Via Calcutta 8, 00144 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1388-301X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Francesco","family":"Busto","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento di Chimica, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Bari \u201cAldo Moro\u201d, Via Orabona 4, 70126 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9387-6201","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Elvira","family":"De Giglio","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento di Chimica, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Bari \u201cAldo Moro\u201d, Via Orabona 4, 70126 Bari, Italy"},{"name":"Centro Interdipartimentale SMART, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Bari \u201cAldo Moro\u201d, Via Orabona 4, 70126 Bari, Italy"},{"name":"Consorzio Interuniversitario Nazionale per la Scienza e Tecnologia dei Materiali, Via Giuseppe Giusti, 9, 50121 Florence, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4811-8959","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Tommaso R. I.","family":"Cataldi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento di Chimica, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Bari \u201cAldo Moro\u201d, Via Orabona 4, 70126 Bari, Italy"},{"name":"Centro Interdipartimentale SMART, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Bari \u201cAldo Moro\u201d, Via Orabona 4, 70126 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,10,21]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Ahmad Khan, M.S., Ahmad, I., and Chattopadhyay, D. (2019). Herbal Medicine: Current Trends and Future Perspectives. New Look to Phytomedicine, Academic Press.","DOI":"10.1016\/B978-0-12-814619-4.00001-X"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Almeida-da-Silva, C.L.C., Sivakumar, N., Asadi, H., Chang-Chien, A., Qoronfleh, M.W., Ojcius, D.M., and Essa, M.M. (2022). Effects of Frankincense Compounds on Infection, Inflammation, and Oral Health. 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