Identification of volatile organic compounds in leaves, roots and gum of Astragalus compactus Lam. using solid phase microextraction followed by GC-MS analysis.

A solid phase microextraction sampling method using pencil-lead fibre coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry was used to monitor the organic volatile compounds of the roots, leaves and gum of Astragalus compactus. Under optimised conditions, a range of volatile compounds were recognised in different parts of A. compactus. Based on the results obtained, the nature and level of the volatiles vary in distinct parts of the plant. In comparison with other Astragalus species investigated, only one volatile organochlorine compound, tetradecane,1-chloro, was identified in roots. Intriguingly, the toxic chlorinated component was not detectable in the gum samples. These findings highlight the higher quality of the gum of A. compactus compared to the gums of some other Astragalus species, which are reported to be contaminated with chlorinated components.