A rapid ultra performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometric method for the qualitative and quantitative...

A rapid method for qualitative and quantitative analysis of constituents in Eucommia ulmoides Oliv. was developed by ultra performance liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-ESI-MS). Ten compounds including iridoids, phenylpropanoids, and flavonoids were identified and further quantified as marker substances by UPLC-UV using switching UV wavelength within 16min. The separation was carried out on an Acquity UPLC BEH C(18) column with 0.1% formic acid aqueous solution and acetonitrile as the mobile phase under gradient conditions. The developed method was applied to the quality assessment of various E. ulmoides samples, including different medicinal parts, differently processed bark and bark from different habitats. The results showed that the branches of E. ulmoides were not suitable for medicinal use. The process of carbonizing led to significant loss of major components, whereas the process of stir-frying with salt-water enhanced the extraction of chlorogenic acid with negligible loss of the other components. The contents of the investigated compounds varied very remarkably for the bark of E. ulmoides collected from different habitats. This study might provide a comprehensive method for the quality assessment of E. ulmoides.