Rapid, Selective, and Sensitive Analysis of Triterpenic Acids in Hippophae rhamnoides L. Using HPLC with Pre-Column Fluorescent Derivatization and Identification with Post-Column APCI-MS

Chemical derivatization strategies for enhancing the HPLC analytical performance of natural active triterpenoids

Triterpenoids widely exist in nature, displaying a variety of pharmacological activities. Determining triterpenoids in different matrices, especially in biological samples holds great significance. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) has become the predominant method for triterpenoids analysis due to its exceptional analytical performance. However, due to the structural similarities among botanical samples, achieving effective separation of each triterpenoid proves challenging, necessitating significant improvements in analytical methods. Additionally, triterpenoids are characterized by a lack of ultraviolet (UV) absorption groups and chromophores, along with low ionization efficiency in mass spectrometry. Consequently, routine HPLC analysis suffers from poor sensitivity. Chemical derivatization emerges as an indispensable technique in HPLC analysis to enhance its performance. Considering the structural characteristics of triterpenoids, various derivatization reagents such as acid chlorides, rhodamines, isocyanates, sulfonic esters, and amines have been employed for the derivatization analysis of triterpenoids. This review comprehensively summarized the research progress made in derivatization strategies for HPLC detection of triterpenoids. Moreover, the limitations and challenges encountered in previous studies are discussed, and future research directions are proposed to develop more effective derivatization methods.

Sea Buckthorn Leaf Powders: The Impact of Cultivar and Drying Mode on Antioxidant, Phytochemical, and Chromatic Profile of Valuable Resource

Sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L. (HR)) leaf powders are the underutilized, promising resource of valuable compounds. Genotype and processing methods are key factors in the preparation of homogenous, stable, and quantified ingredients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the phenolic, triterpenic, antioxidant profiles, carotenoid and chlorophyll content, and chromatic characteristics of convection-dried and freeze-dried HR leaf powders obtained from ten different female cultivars, namely 'Avgustinka', 'Botaniceskaja Liubitelskaja', 'Botaniceskaja', 'Hibrid Percika', 'Julia', 'Nivelena', 'Otradnaja', 'Podarok Sadu', 'Trofimovskaja', and 'Vorobjovskaja'. The chromatic characteristics were determined using the CIELAB scale. The phytochemical profiles were determined using HPLC-PDA (high performance liquid chromatography with photodiode array detector) analysis; spectrophotometric assays and antioxidant activities were investigated using ABTS (2,2'-Azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)) and FRAP (ferric ion reducing antioxidant power) assays. The sea buckthorn leaf powders had a yellowish-green appearance. The drying mode had a significant impact on the total antioxidant activity, chlorophyll content, and chromatic characteristics of the samples; the freeze-dried samples were superior in antioxidant activity, chlorophyll, carotenoid content, and chromatic profile, compared to convection-dried leaf powder samples. The determined triterpenic and phenolic profiles strongly depend on the cultivar, and the drying technique had no impact on qualitative and quantitative composition. Catechin, epigallocatechin, procyanidin B3, ursolic acid, α-amyrin, and β-sitosterol could be used as quantitative markers in the phenolic and triterpenic profiles. The cultivars 'Avgustinka', 'Nivelena', and 'Botaniceskaja' were superior to other tested cultivars, with the phytochemical composition and antioxidant activity.

Simultaneous Quantification of Ursolic and Oleanolic Acids in Glechoma hederacea and Glechoma hirsuta by UPLC/MS/MS

The content of ursolic acid and oleanolic acid was determined in different plant parts of two Glechoma species, G. hederacea and G. hirsuta. To achieve optimal extraction conditions of ursolic acid and oleanolic acid from plant material, several methods including maceration, heat reflux, Soxhlet, and ultrasonic extraction, as well as various solvents (methanol, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate), were investigated and compared.For the simultaneous quantification of pentacyclic triterpenes in extracts from Glechoma sp., an UPLC-MS/MS was developed and validated. The method exhibited good linearity, precision, and recovery, and it also was simple, specific, and fast. We developed the method for future application in the quality control of plant materials and botanical extracts containing ursolic acid and oleanolic acid. With regard to the triterpene constituents, both G. hederacea and G. hirsuta can be used equally, and the aboveground parts of both species, but the leaves especially, are abundant sources of ursolic acid (7.1 - 7.5 mg/g dry weight [DW]). Dichloromethane as an extractant provided the best extraction efficiency as well as selectivity to obtain Glechoma extracts rich in triterpenes as compared to methanol and ethyl acetate, regardless of the particular extraction technique. Dry dichloromethane extracts from aerial parts of Glechoma sp. obtained by the heat reflux method resulted in products with a high content of UA (17 - 25% w/w) are considered to be convenient and rich sources of this compound.

Bioactive compounds, health benefits and functional food products of sea buckthorn: a review

Sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L.), which has been categorized as a "medicine food homology" fruit by China's National Health Commission for both nutritional and medicinal purposes, has nearly 200 kinds of nutritive and bioactive compounds such as polyunsaturated fatty acids, carotenoids, sugar alcohols, superoxide dismutase and phytosterols. Significant bioactivity, including cardiovascular improvement, antidiabetic and anti-obesity activity, have highlighted the application of sea buckthorn. This review compiled a database of the phytochemical compounds in sea buckthorn, which contains the contents of 106 nutrients and 74 bioactive compounds. The health benefits of sea buckthorn and its extracts were summarized and the mechanism of anti-oxidation and anti-inflammation were introduced in detail. Seventeen common marketed products of sea buckthorn from 8 countries were collected. A future scope is really needed to explore the mechanism of sea buckthorn bioactive compounds along with the incorporation cost-effective functional food products.

Advanced development in phytochemicals analysis of medicine and food dual purposes plants used in China (2011-2014)

In 2011, we wrote a review for summarizing the phytochemical analysis (2006-2010) of medicine and food dual purposes plants used in China (Zhao et al., J. Chromatogr. A 1218 (2011) 7453-7475). Since then, more than 750 articles related to their phytochemical analysis have been published. Therefore, an updated review for the advanced development (2011-2014) in this topic is necessary for well understanding the quality control and health beneficial phytochemicals in these materials, as well as their research trends.