Flavonoids rather than alkaloids as the diagnostic constituents to distinguish Sophorae Flavescentis Radix from Sophorae Tonkinensis Radix et Rhizoma: an HPLC fingerprint study
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Abstract
Sophorae Flavescentis Radix (Sophora flavescens Ait., SFR) and Sophorae Tonkinensis
Radix et Rhizoma ( S. tonkinensis Gapnep., STR) are two commonly used traditional
Chinese medicines from Sophora (Leguminosae) plants, which are believed to possess
similar bioactive components with entirely different clinical applications. In order
to find out the characteristic chemical constituents potentially leading to the unique
medicinal properties claimed for each of the two closely related TCMs, an HPLC fingerprint
method was developed for analyses of the alkaloid and flavonoid constituents of SFR
and STR, respectively, which were further evaluated and compared through similarity
calculation and hierarchical clustering analysis (HCA). The results from the present
study showed that the alkaloid fingerprints of the two herbs were similar, with many
components co-existing in both drugs and various batches of samples from different
species being mixed together in the HCA dendrogram. However, their flavonoid constituents
were totally different with specific fingerprints being yielded for each herb, and
further HCA analysis showed that the tested samples could almost be clearly divided
into two groups based on their origins of species. The results from the present study
indicated that the flavonoid constituents could serve as the differentially diagnostic
constituents of SFR and STR and might potentially attributed to their distinct therapeutic
effects.
Author and article information
Journal
Title:
Chinese Journal of Natural Medicines
Abbreviated Title:
Chinese Journal of Natural Medicines