title: Selective ion monitoring of quinochalcone C-glycoside markers for the simultaneous identification of Carthamus tinctorius L. in eleven Chinese patent medicines by UHPLC/QTOF MS.
abstract: Current China Pharmacopoeia standards for the Chinese patent medicines (CPMs) that contain one or several the same drug(s) employ case-dependent TLC or HPLC approaches to achieve qualitative identification. A qualitative "monomethod-heterotrait matrix" (MHM) strategy is thus proposed, by selective monitoring of multi-biomarkers, to achieve the identification of different CPMs. Carthamus tinctorius L. (safflower) is a reputable gynecological herbal medicine containing characteristic quinochalcone C-glycosides (QCGs) as the major bioactive components. Qualitative identification of safflower in diverse CPMs by selective monitoring of QCG markers was performed by use of the MHM strategy. Initially, 27 QCG analogs (involving 16 potentially new ones) were selectively characterized by product ion filtering (m/z 119.05) and integrated analysis of the negative mode MS(E) and Fast DDA data obtained on a UHPLC/QTOF mass spectrometer. Subsequently, by fingerprint analysis of 20 batches of safflower samples followed by a thermostable test, six QCGs (hydroxysafflor yellow A and its two isomers, anhydrosafflor yellow B, safflomin C, and isosafflomin C) were selected as the biomarkers for safflower. Then, a highly specific selective ion monitoring (SIM) method by recording centroided data was developed and applied to selectively profile six QCG biomarkers from 28 batches of CPM samples collected from versatile vendors. By reference to a standard SIM spectrum established using a home-made safflower reference extract, simultaneous identification of safflower in eleven different CPMs was accomplished with the unified sample preparation and a single UHPLC/QTOF-SIM method. The qualitative MHM strategy represents the novel methodology that facilitates the quality control of CPMs more efficiently.
authors.affiliation: Shanghai Research Center for Modernization of Traditional Chinese Medicine, National Engineering Laboratory for TCM Standardization Technology, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Haike Road 501, Shanghai 201203, China; Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Cailun Road 1200, Shanghai 201203, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Si
authors.affiliation: Shanghai Research Center for Modernization of Traditional Chinese Medicine, National Engineering Laboratory for TCM Standardization Technology, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Haike Road 501, Shanghai 201203, China.
authors.forename: Wenzhi
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Shanghai Research Center for Modernization of Traditional Chinese Medicine, National Engineering Laboratory for TCM Standardization Technology, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Haike Road 501, Shanghai 201203, China.
authors.forename: Dean
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Shanghai Research Center for Modernization of Traditional Chinese Medicine, National Engineering Laboratory for TCM Standardization Technology, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Haike Road 501, Shanghai 201203, China.
authors.forename: Jia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Shanghai Research Center for Modernization of Traditional Chinese Medicine, National Engineering Laboratory for TCM Standardization Technology, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Haike Road 501, Shanghai 201203, China.
authors.forename: Jingxian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Shanghai Research Center for Modernization of Traditional Chinese Medicine, National Engineering Laboratory for TCM Standardization Technology, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Haike Road 501, Shanghai 201203, China.
authors.forename: Shi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Qiu
authors.affiliation: Shanghai Research Center for Modernization of Traditional Chinese Medicine, National Engineering Laboratory for TCM Standardization Technology, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Haike Road 501, Shanghai 201203, China.
authors.forename: Changliang
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Yao
authors.affiliation: Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Cailun Road 1200, Shanghai 201203, China. Electronic address: janney808@sina.com.
authors.forename: Yajun
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cui
authors.affiliation: Shanghai Research Center for Modernization of Traditional Chinese Medicine, National Engineering Laboratory for TCM Standardization Technology, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Haike Road 501, Shanghai 201203, China. Electronic address: wanyingwu@simm.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Wanying
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wu
mesh_terms: D031187:Carthamus tinctorius; D047188:Chalcones / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid / Q000379:methods; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry; D006027:Glycosides; D009005:Monosaccharides / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry; D053719:Tandem Mass Spectrometry / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: C438934:C-glycoside; D047188:Chalcones; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal; D006027:Glycosides; D009005:Monosaccharides
keywords: Carthamus tinctorius L.; Chinese patent medicine; Quinochalcone C-glycoside; Selective ion monitoring; UHPLC/QTOF MS