Paper Spray Mass Spectrometry on the Analysis of Phenolic Compounds in <i>Rhynchelytrum repens</i>: A Tropical Grass with Hypoglycemic Activity
Cezar D. do Nascimento,
Ana C. C. F. F. de Paula,
Afonso H. de Oliveira Júnior,
Henrique de O. P. Mendonça,
Luisa del C. B. Reina,
Rodinei Augusti,
Rita de C. L. Figueiredo-Ribeiro,
Júlio O. F. Melo
Affiliations
Cezar D. do Nascimento
Department of Agrarian Sciences (DCA), Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Minas Gerais (IFMG), Campus Bambuí, Rodovia Bambuí/Medeiros, km 05, Bambuí 38900-000, Brazil
Ana C. C. F. F. de Paula
Department of Agrarian Sciences (DCA), Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Minas Gerais (IFMG), Campus Bambuí, Rodovia Bambuí/Medeiros, km 05, Bambuí 38900-000, Brazil
Afonso H. de Oliveira Júnior
Department of Exact and Biological Sciences (DECEB), Federal University of São João del-Rei (UFSJ), MG 424, km 47, Sete Lagoas 35701-970, Brazil
Henrique de O. P. Mendonça
Department of Exact and Biological Sciences (DECEB), Federal University of São João del-Rei (UFSJ), MG 424, km 47, Sete Lagoas 35701-970, Brazil
Luisa del C. B. Reina
Campus Sinop, Federal University of Mato Grosso, Av. Alexandre Ferronato, 1200—Res. Cidade Jardim, Sinop 78550-728, Brazil
Rodinei Augusti
Department of Chemistry, Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), Av. Pres. Antônio Carlos, 6627—Pampulha, Belo Horizonte 31270-901, Brazil
Rita de C. L. Figueiredo-Ribeiro
Physiology and Biochemistry Section of Plants, Botanic Institute of São Paulo, Av. Miguel Stéfano, 3687—Agua Funda, São Paulo CEP 04301-902, Brazil
Júlio O. F. Melo
Department of Exact and Biological Sciences (DECEB), Federal University of São João del-Rei (UFSJ), MG 424, km 47, Sete Lagoas 35701-970, Brazil
The characterization of plant compounds with pharmacological activity is a field of great relevance in research and development. As such, identification techniques with the goal of developing new drugs or even validating the bioactive properties of extracts must be explored in order to further expand the knowledge of plant extract composition. Most works in this field employ HPLC, when exploring non-structural and cell wall carbohydrates from Rhynchelytrum repens. Phenolic compounds were studied by classical chromatography techniques and UV-vis spectrophotometry, with C-glycosylated flavonoids being detected but with no further details regarding the chemical structure of these compounds. In this work we employ paper spray ionization mass spectrometry (PS-MS) for the evaluation of the chemical profile of R. repens methanol extract. Positive ionization mode identified 15 compounds, belonging to flavonoids, fatty acids, and other classes of compounds; negative mode ionization was able to identify 20 compounds comprising the classes of quinic acids, stilbenes and flavonoids. PS-MS proved effective for the evaluation of R. repens extracts, making it possible to identify a total of thirty-five compounds. The bioactive properties attributed to R. repens were confirmed by the identification and characterization of compounds identified by PS-MS.
