[HPLC fingerprint study on Chaenomelis fructus and comparative study on different processed products]

Area of Science:

• Pharmacognosy
• Analytical Chemistry
• Traditional Chinese Medicine

Background:

• Chaenomelis Fructus is a traditional Chinese medicine with various applications.
• Standardized quality control methods are essential for ensuring the efficacy and safety of herbal medicines.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) fingerprinting method for Chaenomelis Fructus.
• To compare the HPLC fingerprints of different processed Chaenomelis Fructus products to assess the impact of processing.

Main Methods:

• HPLC analysis was performed using a mobile phase of acetonitrile-methanol and phosphoric acid.
• Chromatograms were acquired at a wavelength of 300 nm with a column temperature of 30°C.
• Fingerprint similarity was calculated using specialized software, and hierarchical cluster analysis was applied.

Main Results:

• The developed HPLC method met all technical requirements for fingerprint analysis.
• Hierarchical cluster analysis grouped ten batches of samples into three distinct clusters with similarity values exceeding 0.90.
• Differences in the area of common peaks were observed among processed products, while the number of common peaks remained relatively consistent.

Conclusions:

• The HPLC fingerprinting method is a stable, accurate, and reliable tool for the scientific quality control of Chaenomelis Fructus.
• Processing conditions, including temperature and materials, significantly influence the dissolution and profile of chemical constituents in Chaenomelis Fructus.