Molecules (Dec 2018)

Rapid Characterization and Identification of Chemical Constituents in <i>Gentiana radix</i> before and after Wine-Processed by UHPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap MS<sup>n</sup>

  • Xin Lv,
  • Jian-Zhi Sun,
  • Shi-Zhao Xu,
  • Qian Cai,
  • Yu-Qiang Liu

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules23123222
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 23, no. 12
p. 3222

Abstract

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Gentiana radix is used in traditional Chinese medicine and has functions of clearing heat and drying dampness, as well as purging liver and gallbladder fire. A highly sensitive and effective strategy for rapid screening and identification of target constituents has been developed by using ultra high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with linear ion trap-Orbitrap mass spectrometry (UHPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap) in crude and wine-processed Gentiana radix. Based on the accurate mass measurement (<5 ppm), retention times, and MS fragmentation ions, 52 constituents were unambiguously or tentatively characterized from Gentiana radix, including 21 iridoids, 11 flavonoids, 19 xanthones, and a triterpenoid. This study demonstrated that the established method could be a rapid, effective analytical tool for screening and characterization of compounds in the complex systems of Gentiana radix. By comparing the structure and peak areas of chemical constituents in crude and wine-processed Gentiana radix, we found that some compounds in crude and wine-processed Gentiana radix were significantly different.

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