Bees, Apis mellifera, are precious natural resources that produce a variety of health-promoting bioactive compounds. Since it is a bee-derived product, the composition and contents of Royal Jelly (RJ) vary. The discrepancies found are most likely attributable to the variable number of samples collected from various locations and at different stages of the manufacturing process, therefore it becomes a possible source of adulteration. To ensure the quality of the product it is necessary to define

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... and set quality control levels before its commercialization. 10-Hydroxy Decenoic acid (10-HDA) is a unique component specifically found in RJ and it is a major constituent that assures the quality of a product. Although the uniqueness of this compound is well known no attempt has been made to estimate its content in Indian Royal Jelly. The present study aimed to the development of a rapid, precise, stable, and robust method for 10-HDA determination, using High-performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC), High-performance Thin Layer Chromatography (HPTLC), and Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectroscopy/ Mass Spectroscopy (LC-MS/MS), and to compare the performance of each with others. The applicability of these methods was tested on Indian Royal Jelly (IRJ) samples procured from three different regions of India to determine the quality of the product and it was found that IRJ-II showed highest 10-HDA content.