Determination of the Active Components in Chinese Herb Cortex Moutan by MEKC and LC

Origins, Phytochemistry, Pharmacology, Analytical Methods and Safety of Cortex Moutan (Paeonia suffruticosa Andrew): A Systematic Review

Cortex Moutan (CM), a well-known traditional Chinese medicine, is commonly used for treating various diseases in China and other eastern Asian countries. Recorded in Pharmacopeias of several countries, CM is now drawing increasing attention and under extensive studies in various fields. Phytochemical studies indicate that CM contains many valuable secondary metabolites, such as monoterpene glycosides and phenols. Ample evidence from pharmacological researches suggest that CM has a wide spectrum of activities, such as anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, anti-tumor, anti-diabetic, cardiovascular protective, neuroprotective, hepatoprotective effects. Moreover, various analytical methods were established for the quality evaluation and safety control of CM. This review synopsizes updated information concerning the origins, phytochemistry, pharmacology, analytical method and safety of CM, aiming to provide favorable references for modern CM research and application. In conclusion, continuing pharmacological investigations concerning CM should be conducted to unravel its pharmacological mechanisms. Further researches are necessary to obtain comprehensive and applicable analytical approach for quality evaluation and establish harmonized criteria of CM.

Preparation and characterisation of chitosan microcapsules loaded with Cortex Moutan

The process of preparation and characterisation of chitosan microcapsules loaded with Cortex Moutan was studied and the optimum condition for microcapsule preparation was investigated by orthogonal array analysis. Based on the yield percentage of microcapsule, the optimum condition for microcapsule preparation was (i) core-shell ratio=1:2; (ii) chitosan concentration=6% (w/v); (iii) agitation speed=1100 rpm; and (iv) cross-linking time=90 min. Meanwhile, relative importance of the preparation parameters was in the order: core-shell ratio, agitation speed, chitosan concentration and cross-linking time. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analysis revealed that Cortex Moutan has been completely encapsulated into chitosan microcapsule. The release rate of Cortex Moutan from microcapsules in pH 5.4 phosphate buffered saline (PBS) was slightly better than that in pH 5.0 PBS after the initial 48 h and the release rate became steady after that.

MEKC as a powerful growing analytical technique

This review summarizes the principle and the developments in MEKC in terms of separation power, sensitivity, and detection approaches more than 25 years after its appearance. Newly used surfactants are mentioned. Classical and new sample concentration techniques in MEKC are described. The different detection approaches in MEKC with advantages, limitations, and future prospects are also discussed. This review highlights the wider application of MEKC in different analytical fields. Various recent selected applications of this technique in different analytical fields are reported.

Determination of active components in Chinese medicinal preparations by capillary electrophoresis

The determination of paeoniforin, paeonol, and censenoside Rg1 in traditional Chinese medicinal preparations, Tze Po San Pien pills and Liuwen Dihuang pills has been investigated by micellar electrokinetic capillary electrophoresis with borate buffer (20 mM), sodium dodecylsulfate (30 mM) and acetonitrile (20%) as background electrolytes (pH 9.30), 20 kV applied voltage and 203 nm UV detection. The effects of SDS concentration, borate, buffer pH, and organic modifier on electrophoretic behavior and separation are discussed. Regression equations revealed linear relationships between the peak-area of each component and the content with the correlation coefficients from 0.9982 to 0.9999. In addition, the levels of the active compounds in two kinds of traditional Chinese medicinal preparations were easily determined with the recoveries from 93.1% to 108.2%.

Fast determination of paeonol in plasma by headspace solid-phase microextraction followed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry

Paeonol is the active component in the traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs), such as Cynanchum paniculatum, which has been used to treat many diseases, such as eczema. In this work, a simple, rapid and sensitive method was developed for the determination of paeonol in rabbit plasma, which was based on headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) followed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The extraction parameters of fiber coating, sample temperature, extraction time, stirring rate and ion strength were systemically optimized; the method linearity, detection limit and precision were also investigated. It was shown that the proposed method provided a good linearity (0.02-20 microg mL(-1), R(2)>0.990), low detection limit (2.0 ng mL(-1)) and good precision (R.S.D. value less than 8%). Finally, GC/MS following HS-SPME was applied to fast determination of paeonol in rabbit plasma at different time point after oral demonstration of Cynanchum paniculatum essential oil. The experimental results suggest that the proposed method provided an alternative and novel approach to the pharmacokinetics study of paeonol in the TCMs.