Analysis of the Analogues of Aristolochic Acid and Aristolactam in the Plant of Aristolochia Genus by HPLC
JENQ-HUEI JOU1, CHIA-YING LI2, EDWARD P. SCHELONKA3, CHUN-HUA LIN2 AND TIAN-SHUNG WU2*
1. Department of Food Health, Chia Nan University of Pharmacy & Science, 60, Sec. 1, Erh-Jen Rd., Jen-Te Township, Tainan County 717, Taiwan (R.O.C.)
2. Department of Chemistry, National Cheng Kung University, 1 Ta-Hsueh Rd., East District, Tainan City 701, Taiwan (R.O.C.)
3. Good News Medical Clinic #14 Bally Garden, 4miles Northern Hy, Belize City, Belize Central America
(Received: June 11, 2003; Accepted: September 26, 2003)
ABSTRACT
A facile reversed-phase HPLC method for the analysis of aristolochic acid (AA) and aristolactam (AL) analogues was developed and used for the quantitative determination and quality control of the traditional Chinese medicine. Homonymic Chinese crude drugs such as
Stephania tetrandra (粉防己) and
Aristolochia fanchi (廣防己),
Clematis armandii (川木通) and
A. manshuriensis (關木通) can be easily identified by this method. The quantitative determination of AAs and ALs in 12 species of
Aristolochia (
A. elegans, A. zollingeriana, A. cucurbitifolia, A. mollis, A. kaempferi, A. shimadii, A. heterophylla, A. debilis, A. foveolata, A. contorta, A. trilobata and A. odoratissima) has been investigated. The chromatograms obtained in this study can serve as fingerprints to identify plant species in the
Aristolochia genus, thus avoiding incorrect identification of herbal ingredients in manufacturing traditional Chinese medicine.
Key words: HPLC, aristolochic acid, aristolactam,
Stephania tetrandra, Aristolochia fanchi, Clematis armandii, A. manshuriensis.