SIMULTANEOUS QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS OF CERTAIN FLAVONOID GLYCOSIDES AND TERPENE LACTONES IN PHARMACEUTICAL PRODUCTS CONTAINING GINKGO BILOBA L. LEAF EXTRACT BY LC-TOF/MS

Abstract

In this study, three drugs and three dietary supplements containing G. biloba leaf extract were obtained from pharmacies and two dietary supplements were obtained from herbalists. Certain flavonoid glycosides and ginkgolide A, B, C, and J amounts of these products were determined simultaneously using LC-TOF/MS. The total phenol and flavonoid content of these products were also determined with spectrophotometric technique. Objective: We aimed to emphasize that adulteration is still a critical problem in herbal products frequently used during the Covid-19 pandemic and propose a fast, validated analytical method for detecting adulteration. Conclusions: The qualitative and quantitative results of all drugs and dietary supplements obtained from the pharmacy were compatible with the information declared by the manufacturer. However, neither qualitative nor quantitative flavonoid glycosides or ginkgolides A, B, and C were detected, although the total phenolic and flavonoid values were very high in one of the dietary supplements taken by the herbalist. The study's data is considered significant, mainly due to the considerable increase in interest in herbal products during the Covid-19 pandemic