The present study was performed to quantitatively analyze eleutherosides (B and E) and β-glucan in different plant parts of three cultivars (Chungnam, Gangwon, and Jeju) of Acanthopanax senticosus and Acanthopanax koreanum using HPLC and a commercial enzyme kit. Our results showed high linearity in the calibration curves as the coefficients of correlation (R 2 ) were 0.998 (eleutheroside B) and 0.999 (eleutheroside E), respectively. Eleutheroside B and E were found in stem extracts of A. koreanum cultivated in Jeju (1,122 μg/g, eleutheroside B) and A. senticosus cultivated in Chungnam (2,536 μg/g, eleutheroside E), respectively. However, eleutheroside B was not detected in any part of A. senticosus cultivated in Chungnam. For β-glucan contents, stems of A. senticosus and A. koreanum showed higher than other parts. Furthermore, the β-glucan content in stems of A. koreanum cultivated in Gangwon was significantly higher than in those of other cultivars. These results show that the contents of eleutheroside B, E, and β-glucan were higher in stem extracts of A. senticosus and A. koreanum than other parts. Moreover, our results suggest that the contents of eleutheroside B, E, and β-glucan in A. senticosus and A. koreanum are influenced by cultivation area and the selected part. Key words: Acanthopanax senticosus, Acanthopanax koreanum, eleutheroside B, eleutheroside E, β-glucan

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The aim of this study was to investigate the method validation for the determination of eleutherosides (B and E) and β-glucan in Acanthopanax (A.) koreanum. This medicinal plant reportedly mainly included eleutherosides which exhibit the pharmacological effects, and β-glucan substantially enhances the function of the immune system by activating macrophages. The specificity, linearity, precision, accuracy, limit of detection (LOD, S/N=3), and limit of quantification (LOQ, S/N=10) were measured by HPLC and enzymatic methods. Our results showed that the coefficient of calibration correlation (R 2) for eleutheroside B and E were 0.9997 and 0.9999, respectively. The limits of detection (LOD) for eleutheroside B and E were 0.050 μg/mL and 0.025 μg/mL, respectively. The recovery rate of eleutheroside B and E were revealed in the high range of 100.66～110.04% and 94.26～111.62%, respectively. The inter-day precision of eleutheroside B and E in the root and stem in A. koreanum were 1.4～5.0% and 1.1～2.5%, respectively. The intra-day precision of eleutheroside B and E in the root and stem in A. koreanum were 2.8～2.9% and 0.4～1.1%, respectively. Furthermore, the inter-day and intra-day precision of β-glucan in the stem, leaf, and fruit of A. koreanum were 1.32～5.67% and 8.01～11.76%, respectively. In conclusion, the methods were validated for the detection of eleutherosides and β-glucan in A. koreanum.