1135-24-6 Usage
Uses
Widely distributed in small amounts in plants. Used as an antioxidant and food preservative
Plant sources
Ferulic acid is a kind of phenolic acid extracted from the resin of ferula asafetida. Ferula asafetida is a kind of Umbelliferae perennial herb with a strong garlic smell and living in sandy areas. It is mainly produced in Xinjiang. During the nascent stage, there are only root leaves. At 5 years, scape emerges. The scape is very strong with its height being up to two meters. At end spring and early summer (flowering stage to early fruit stage), apply slanting cut from the upper position down to the bottom separately, collect oozing milky resin, dry it. Ferula asafetida contains volatile oils, gums and resins with oil containing various kinds of organic acids such as (R)-sec-butyl-1-propenyl disulfide, 1(1-methylthio-propyl) 1-propenyl disulfide, sec-butyl 3-methylthio-allyl-disulfide. Resin containing ferulic acid and its related esters.

Figure 1 is Resina Ferulae
Lipid-Lowering effect
Ferulic acid can competitively inhibit the liver mevalonate-5-pyrophosphate dehydrogenase activity, inhibiting the synthesis of cholesterol in the liver, so as to achieve the purpose of lowering blood pressure.
Purification Methods
Crystallise ferulic acid from H2O. [Beilstein 10 H 436, 10 IV 1776.]
Antimicrobial effect
Ferulic acid exhibits a broader anti-bacterial spectrum. It has been found that ferulic acid is able to inhibit pathogenic bacteria such as Shigella sonnei, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Enterobacter, Escherichia coli, Citrobacter, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and 11 kinds of microorganisms which causing food corruption.
Uses
antineoplastic, choleretic, food preservative
Food Industry Applications
In addition to its wide application in medicine, ferulic acid has been approved by some countries to be as a food additive. Japan has approved it to be used in food antioxidants while the United States and some European countries have allowed for adopting some kinds of herbs, coffee, beans with relative high amount of ferulic acid for being antioxidant. Ferulic acid, in the food industry, is mainly used for the preparation of natural vanillin, antioxidants, preservatives, cross-linkers and functional promoting agent. The information is edited by Xiaonan from Chemicalbook.
Synthetic method
Ferulic acid can be obtained through chemical synthesis and extraction. Laboratory dissolves the vanillin, malonic acid and piperidine in pyridine for reaction of three weeks after which with hydrochloric acid precipitation, you can obtain ferulic acid.

Figure 2 laboratory synthesis roadmap of ferulic acid
Physical and Chemical Properties
Ferulic acid is an aromatic acid widely being presented in plant kingdom and is the components of suberin. It amount is very small presented in plants in its free state but with its main form in forming bound state with oligosaccharides, polyamines, lipids and polysaccharides. It has many health functions, such as free radical scavenging, anti-thrombotic, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, prevention and treatment of hypertension, heart disease, and enhanced sperm activity and so on. Ferulic acid has a low toxicity and is easy for being metabolized by human. It can be used as a food preservative and has a wide range of applications in the field of food and medication.
The above information is edited by the chemicalbook of Yan Yanyong.
Pharmacological effects
Ferulic acid has various effects of inhibiting platelet aggregation, expectorant, and inhibition of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and so on. Clinically ferulic acid is mainly applied to the adjuvant treatment of various kinds of vascular diseases such as atherosclerosis, coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular, renal disease, pulmonary hypertension, diabetic vascular disease, and vasculitis as well as neutropenia and thrombocytopenia. It can be used for treating migraine and vascular headache. As a leukocyte-enhancement drug, this drug also has enhanced hematopoietic function. Therefore, ferulic acid may also be for the treatment of leukopenia and thrombocytopenia.
Reference: Xu Jingfeng, Yang Ming (editor) Handbook of clinical prescription drugs. Nanjing: Jiangsu Science and Technology Press .2009 on page 561.
Uses
anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, sunscreen enhancer
Uses
It can be used as a food preservative and a kind of organic chemicals.
It can be used as the intermediates of cinametic acid. It can also be used as food preservative.
It can also be applied to biochemical studies
Chemical Properties
Pale Yellow Solid
InChI:InChI=1/C10H10O4/c1-14-9-6-7(2-4-8(9)11)3-5-10(12)13/h2-6,11H,1H3,(H,12,13)/p-1/b5-3+