Abstract

An high-performance liquid chromatographic- photodiode array detector method (HPLC-PAD) method was established to simultaneously determine three bioactive homoisoflavanones in the rhizomes of Polygonatum odoratum (Mill) Druce. The optimal conditions of extraction were achieved using reflux extraction with methanol-water (80:20, v/v) for 2 h. The analysis was performed on a Diamonsil ODS column with a gradient elution of methanol and 1% acetic acid aqueous solution at a flow rate of 1.0 ml/min. The detection wavelength was 297 nm and the column temperature was 30°C. Linear relationships within the range of investigated concentrations were observed for three bioactive homoisoflavanones with their correlation coefficients greater than 0.9999. The method was validated for intra- and inter-day precision (RSD < 2.05%), stability (RSD < 2.40%), and repeatability (RSD < 2.38%) with recovery between 98.67 and 100.52% and the RSD less than 2.28 %. The method was successfully applied to simultaneously determine three homoisoflavanones in the twelve samples of Rhizoma Polygonati Odorati collected from different regions. The results indicated that the developed assay could be considered as a suitable quality control method for the rhizomes of P. odoratum.

Key words: Polygonatum odoratum, homoisoflavanone, high-performance liquid chromatographic-photodiode array detector method (HPLC-PAD).