Simultaneous LC Determination of Quercetin, Kaempferol and Isorhamnetin in Rabbits after Intragastric Administration of an Ethanol Extract from Pollen Typhae

A simple and rapid reversed-phase LC method was developed and validated for simultaneous determination of three flavonoids, quercetin (QU), kaempferol (KA) and isorhamnetin (IS), in rabbit blood plasma. The plasma was deproteinized using 10% trichloroacetic acid and extracted by n-butanol–acetoacetate solvent prior to LC analysis. The analyte was separated on a reversed-phase column with acetonitrile and 0.1% phosphoric acid in water (27:73, v/v) as mobile phase at a flow-rate of 0.8 mL min^?1, and UV detection wavelength at 369 nm. By this developed method, the concentrations of QU, KA and IS were linearly related to their responses in the range of 0.05–2.5 μg mL^?1. The precision and accuracy for QU, KA and IS in plasma were within ±15% except for the limit of quantitation (LOQ), where they were within ±20%. The validated method has been successfully applied in the pharmacokinetic study of QU, KA and IS in rabbits after intragastric administration of an ethanol extract from traditional Chinese medicine Pollen Typhae.