Facile calixarene-based sensor array strategy for quality evaluation of Yinxing Mihuan oral solution

To facilitate efficient and rapid quality evaluation of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) preparations, we introduced an innovative macrocycle-based fluorescence sensing strategy. Herein, an array of calixarene-based sensors was designed to assess the batch-to-batch consistency and precise feeding of raw materials of Yinxing Mihuan oral solution (YMOS), which is used to treat cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases in the clinic, highlighting the feasibility of the established supramolecular fluorescence sensing method. Using indicator displacement assay (IDA), the molecular recognition between calixarenes and the tested compounds from YMOS was converted into multi-fluorescence signals by extruding the indicators from their respective hosts, whose mechanisms were unveiled by theoretical calculations. By employing the constructed three-element sensor array, a standard fluorescent fingerprint was displayed by "spider-web" mode to evaluate the quality consistency of the YMOS samples. Moreover, the optimized QAC5A·EY reporter pair was successfully applied to guarantee precise feeding of raw materials during the manufacturing process of YMOS. The calixarene-based sensor array method offers a comprehensive evaluation for YMOS in a facile and high-throughput style, conducive to improving quality evaluation of TCM.