Chemical Influence of Scutellaria baicalensis—Coptis chinensis Pair on the Extraction Efficiencies of Flavonoids and Alkaloids at Different Extraction Times and Temperatures

Abstract

The Scutellaria baicalensis—Coptis chinensis pair is an herbal combination used for the treatment of various heat-related diseases. During the extraction process, two herbs can mutually influence the extraction efficiency of the chemical constituents contained in each herb. The concentrations of five flavonoids from S. baicalensis and seven alkaloids from C. chinensis were compared in paired or single hot-water extracts at different temperatures (80, 90, and 100 °C) and extraction times (60, 90, and 120 min). Temperature- and time-dependent increases in marker compound concentrations were observed in both paired and single extracts, with the exception of baicalin, berberine, and coptisine in the paired extracts at 100 °C. However, the extractions of the compounds in the paired and single extracts were affected differently by the extraction conditions. Furthermore, the concentrations of most marker compounds in single extracts were 1.09–44.13 times those in paired extracts. The contents of baicalin, wogonoside, coptisine, and berberine, known to be easily aggregated by the flavonoid–alkaloid complex, were changed by 0.024–0.764-fold in the paired extract. The effect of extraction temperature and time on the formation of the flavonoid–alkaloid complex was not significant. The extraction efficiency of the flavonoids and alkaloids can be affected by the pair of S. baicalensis—C. chinensis, which is a primary factor in the chemical modification of two herb-containing herbal extracts.