Simultaneous determination of eight components in Angelica sinensis based on UHPLC-ESI-MS/MS method for quality evaluation

A method employing ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) for determination of eight components including ferulic acid, senkyunolide A, butylphthalide, ligustilide, butylidenephalide, senkyunolide I, senkyunolide H and levistolide A in Angelica sinensis was established. The separation was carried out using a Waters ACQUITY UHPLC BEH C-18 column with gradient elution with 0.1% formic acid aqueous and acetonitrile at a flow rate of 0.4 mL/min. Good linearity was attained with R-2 of 0.9983-0.9998 in wide concentration ranges. The method had limit of detection (LOD) and quantitation (LOQ) in the range of 0.42-6.98 ng/mL and 1.39-23.28 ng/mL, respectively. Intra- and inter-day precisions varied with relative standard deviations (RSDs) from 0.33% to 0.88% and 0.37% to 1.04%, respectively. Moreover, the average recoveries were in a satisfactory range of 92.7%-102.1% with RSDs of less than 3.60%. Finally, the method was successfully applied to analyze 19 batches of A. sinensis samples grown in Min County, Gansu province, China, as well as that collected in other regions. The findings indicated that the established method is reliable and may thus be applied as a powerful tool for qualitative and quantitative analysis of components in A. sinensis, which has its implications in quality control of A. sinensis.