148 Hasali et al. Int. J. Biosci. 2013 RESEARCH PAPER OPEN ACCESS Biotransformation of ethyl p-methoxycinnamate from Kaempferia galanga L. using Aspergillus niger Nor Hazwani Mohd Hasali, Muhammad Nor Omar * , Ahmad Muzammil Zuberdi, Helmi Yousif AlFarra Department of Biotechnology, Kulliyyah of Science, International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), Jalan Sultan Hj. Ahmad Shah, Bandar Indera Mahkota, 25200 Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia Key words: Biotransformation, Kaempferia galanga L., Ethyl p-methoxycinnamate, Aspergillus niger, NMR spectroscopy. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.12692/ijb/3.7.148-155 Article published on July 22, 2013 Abstract Studies were carried out on the extraction of the rhizome of Kaempferia galanga L. using steam distillation and supercritical fluid extraction (SFE). After purification, the major compound of the K. galanga L. extract, ethyl p- methoxycinnamate (EPMC) was identified by NMR and MS spectrometry. Biotransformation of EPMC using Aspergillus niger afforded ethyl p-hydroxycinnamate in 24% yield. * Corresponding Author: Muhammad Nor Omar  mnoromar@iium.edu.my International Journal of Biosciences | IJB | ISSN: 2220-6655 (Print) 2222-5234 (Online) http://www.innspub.net Vol. 3, No. 7, p. 148-155, 2013