Simultaneous determination of calycosin, prim-O-glucosylcimifugin, and paeoniflorin in rat plasma by HPLC-MS/MS: application in the pharmacokinetic analysis of HQCF

Abstract

Objective This study aimed to develop and validate a high-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry method to simultaneously determine three bioactive components of the Huangqi Chifeng decoction (HQCF) in rat plasma. Methods Taxol was used as an internal standard in the developed method. Chromatographic separation was performed on a C18 column using a gradient elution with 0.1% formic acid in acetonitrile (v/v) and 0.1% formic acid in water (v/v) as the mobile phases at a flow rate of 0.4 mL·minute−1. All compounds were monitored via selected reaction monitoring with an electrospray ionization source. Results The lower limits of quantification of paeoniflorin, calycosin, and prim- O-glucosylcimifugin were 15.0, 0.75, and 0.75 ng·mL−1, respectively. The calibration curves indicated optimal linearity ( r > 0.99) across the concentration ranges. The specificity, precision, accuracy, recovery, matrix effect, and stability of the method were validated. This method was successfully applied in a pharmacokinetics study of the three compounds in rat plasma. Conclusion The pharmacokinetics results provide insights into the mechanisms of HQCF in vivo and its future clinical application.