Simultaneous quantification of two active compounds in raw and honey-processed Radix Astragali by high-performance thin-layer chromatography

Abstract

Radix Astragali is a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), which strengthens the efficacy in tonifying Qi after honey-processing. However, a comparative study on the marker compounds in raw and honey-processed Radix Astragali has not been reported. A rapid and sensitive high-performance thin-layer chromatographic (HPTLC) method has been established for the analysis of astragaloside IV and calycosin-7-O-β-glucoside from raw and honey-processed Radix Astragali. The method employed silica gel G F254 thin-layer plates as the stationary phase, with chloroform–methanol–water (13:7:2 v/v) as the mobile phase. Following development, the plates were observed under ultraviolet (UV) light at 365 nm. The method was validated for linearity, precision, recovery, limit of detection (LOD), and limit of quantification (LOQ). Recovery of the two compounds was between 99.10% and 99.74%. LOD and LOQ were in the range of 15–42 ng and 45–126 ng for the two compounds, respectively. The method was successfully utilized to analyze the two marker components in raw and honey-processed Radix Astragali. The quantitative results demonstrated that astragaloside IV and calycosin-7-glucoside could be converted into their aglycones in the honey-processing procedure. This established HPTLC method would be sensitive enough and reliable for the comprehensive quality control of raw and processed Radix Astragali.