Comprehensive Chemical Profiling and Quality Assessment of Renshen Zaizao Wan by HS-GC-IMS Combined With Chemometrics

Renshen Zaizao Wan (RSZZW), a traditional Chinese patent drug originated in Qing dynasty, has been used clinically in China to treat stroke. It consists of 65 different types of plant-, animal-, and mineral-derived Chinese medicinal herbs. However, current quality control of RSZZW mainly relies on a thin-layer chromatography (TLC) method. It is difficult to perform quality assessment for this complicated Chinese patent drug. Therefore, the goal of this study is to simplify the identification process and provide a more comprehensive quality assessment method for RSZZW by developing an integrated strategy based on headspace-gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry (HS-GC-IMS) and multivariate statistical analysis. Forty-six batches of commercial RSZZW from six different manufacturers were qualitatively analyzed. A total of 129 volatile signals were detected, of which 85 volatile organic compounds were identified, including 19 esters, 15 ketones, 11 terpenes, 11 alcohols, six aldehydes, and several others. By assessment of the ion mobility global profile, the samples from different manufacturers can be well distinguished by principal component analysis.