Traditional Chinese Medicine Samples Research Articles

Rapid determination of panaxynol in a traditional Chinese medicine of Saposhnikovia divaricata by pressurized hot water extraction followed by liquid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry

Panaxynol is a bioactive component in traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs), such as Saposhnikovia divaricata and Panax ginseng. In the work, two solvent-free sample techniques of pressurized hot water extraction (PHWE) and headspace liquid-phase microextraction (HS-LPME) were combined and developed for the determination of panaxynol in a TCM of S. divaricata. Panaxynol in the TCM samples from different growing areas was extracted by PHWE in dynamic mode, followed by extraction and concentration with HS-LPME and analysis with gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). The PHWE and HS-LPME parameters were optimized and the method validations were studied. Panaxynol in S. divaricata from four different growing areas was quantitatively analyzed by internal standard method. These results have shown that PHWE-LPME-GC–MS is a simple, rapid, efficient and low-cost method for the determination of panaxynol in TCMs and is a potential tool for TCM quality assessment.

Rapid analysis of essential oil from Fructus Amomi by pressurized hot water extraction followed by solid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry

In this paper, a simple, rapid, solvent-free and low-cost method of pressurized hot water extraction (PHWE) followed by headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) was developed for the analysis of essential oil in a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) of the dried ripe fruit of Fructus Amomi (Sha Ren). The essential oil in the TCM (0.050 g) was extracted by water at 50 bar and 150 °C, followed by extraction and concentration by SPME fibers at 80 °C for15 min and analysis by GC–MS. The PHWE and HS-SPME parameters were optimized. Thirty-five compounds in the TCM were identified by PHWE–HS-SPME. Among them, camphor, an active compound, in the TCM samples was quantitatively analyzed. The proposed method required little time to prepare the sample. Moreover, little sample mass and no organic solvent was needed. The precision of the present method was found to be good (R.S.D. <10.0%). It is shown that PHWE–SPME–GC–MS is an alternative method for the determination of volatile components in TCMs and can be used as a powerful tool for TCM quality assessment.

Rapid determination of essential oil in Acorus tatarinowii Schott. by pressurized hot water extraction followed by solid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry

A simple, rapid, efficient and inexpensive method for the determination of essential oil in a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), Acorus Tatarinowii Schott. was developed by using pressurized hot water extraction (PHWE) combined with solid-phase microextraction (SPME) and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). Acorus Tatarinowii Schott. (0.050g) was subjected to dynamic extraction with water at 50bar, 150°C and 1.0ml/min for 5.0min, and then the essential oil in the aqueous extract were extracted by SPME fibers at 60°C for 10min, finally the compounds on the fiber were desorbed and analyzed by GC–MS. The PHWE and SPME parameters were studied. The key active compound of α-asarone in the TCM samples from three different growing areas was quantitatively analyzed by external standard method. Compared to steam distillation (SD), the proposed method required little time (only 15min) to prepare sample. Moreover, little sample mass and no organic solvent was needed. The present method provided good repeatability (R.S.D. less than 13.0%) and recovery (92% for α-asarone). It has been shown that PHWE–SPME–GC–MS is an alternative method for determination of essential oils in TCMs and a potential tool for TCM quality assessment.

Proteome of Oriental ginseng Panax ginseng C. A. Meyer and the potential to use it as an identification tool.

Oriental ginseng (Panax ginseng C. A. Meyer) and American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) are two widely used valuable traditional Chinese medicines (TCM). Previously, the identification of ginseng was mainly performed by analyzing the ginsengnosides using high performance liquid chromatography and amplification of polymorphic DNA using polymerase chain reaction. However, these methods cannot be used to distinguish TCM samples which are from different parts (main root, lateral roots, rhizome head and skin) of ginseng and ginseng culture cells from wild-grown ginseng. The present study aimed to identify different species of ginseng, different parts of the same ginseng and cultured cells of ginseng using a proteomic approach. Two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE) maps were established from the American ginseng main root, different parts (main root, lateral roots, rhizome head and skins) of Oriental ginseng and Oriental ginseng culture cells. Our results show that the 2-DE maps of different ginseng samples contain sufficient differences to permit easy discrimination. We have also identified common and specific protein spots in the 2-DE maps of different ginseng samples. The use of these "marker proteins" may help to speed up the identification process.

End-column amperometric detection of aesculin and aesculetin by capillary electrophoresis

Determination of aesculin (AL) and aesculetin (AT) by capillary electrophoresis with end-column amperometric detection using a 33 μm microdisk carbon fiber electrode is described. The HDVs, the effect of pH, buffer concentration, injection voltage, injection time and separation voltage on the peak current response ( i p) of the analytes and the number of theoretical plates ( N) were studied. The method has high sensitivity and good reproducibility. Under the optimum condition — 10 mM, pH 9.00 phosphate buffer, 4 s at 9 kV injection, separation at 15 kV and +1.0 V as the detection potential — low detection limits ( S/ N = 3) of 0.06 and 0.3 μM were obtained for AL and AT, respectively. The calibration curve was linear over three orders of magnitude. The relative standard deviations ( n = 15) of peak current and migration time were 3.9% and 4.6%, and 0.96% and 0.75% for 15 consecutive injections of 5 μM AL and AT, respectively. The use of this method for the separation and detection of the two compounds present in the traditional Chinese medicine and human urine samples is also reported.

Determination of Arsenic in Traditional Chinese Medicine by Microwave Digestion with Flow Injection-Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (FI-ICP-MS)

A simple, rapid, and sensitive method with high sample throughput was developed for determining arsenic in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in the form of uncoated tablets, sugar-coated tablets, black pills, capsules, powders, and syrups. The method involves microwave digestion with flow injection-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (FI-ICP-MS). Method precision was 2.7-10.1% (relative standard deviation, n = 6) for different concentrations of arsenic in different TCM samples analyzed by different analysts on different days. Method accuracy was checked with a certified reference material (sea lettuce, Ulva lactuca, BCR CRM 279) for external calibration and by spiking arsenic standard into different TCMs. Recoveries of 89-92% were obtained for the certified reference material and higher than 95% for spiked TCMs. Matrix interference was insignificant for samples analyzed by the method of standard addition. Hence, no correction equation was used in the analysis of arsenic in the samples studied. Sample preparation using microwave digestion gave results that were very similar to those obtained by conventional wet acid digestion using nitric acid.