Investigation of Euphrasia rostkoviana Hayne Using GC–MS and LC–MS

Gas and liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry was applied to solve difficulties and reinvestigate the serious matrix problems affecting analysis of the active compounds in Euphrasia rostkoviana Hayne. The main groups of compounds were obtained by extracting the herb stepwise with n-hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate and methanol. Polyamide column chromatography facilitated further separation. Phenolic/flavonoid- and terpenoid-type molecules were studied by GC–MS, HPLC and LC–MS–MS. The β-sitosterol content of the herb was determined by gas chromatography with flame ionisation detection (GC-FID). Caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid, coumaric acid and flavonoid glycosides of apigenin, luteolin, rhamnetine (hexoside), kaempferol (both hexoside and rutinoside) and quercetin (rutinoside) were identified in the fractions of the methanolic extract.     

Quantitative and qualitative investigation of the main flavonoids in heartsease (Viola tricolor L.)

Liquid chromatography coupled to electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (MS(n)) is used for the analysis of flavonoids in heartsease (Viola tricolor L.). Our data suggested that the two main flavonoid components were violanthin (6-C-glucosyl-8-C-rhamnosyl apigenin) and rutin (3-O-rutinosyl quercetin). The identification of rutin was confirmed by comparing its retention time, UV spectrum, molecular mass, and fragmentation pattern with the reference standard. In this paper, we also report on the quantitative analysis of rutin by high-performance liquid chromatography. According to our results, heartsease herb contained 420 +/- 1.17 microg/g rutin.