Full component analysis of Tianma-Gouteng-Yin

Background: Tianma-Gouteng-Yin (TGY), which is common Chinese medicine formulation consisting of 11 different herbs and being used in China for the treatment of Parkinson's disease, inflammatory conditions and cardiovascular diseases, was selected for full component analysis. The aim of this study was to quantitatively analyze the chemical profiles of ten commercial TGY samples and one sample produced in our laboratory. Methods: Ultra-high performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) coupled with quadrupole-tandem time-of-flight mass spectrometry (Q-TOF-MS) was used to analyze the non-saccharide small molecule components of the different TGY samples. The established method was validated in terms of its linearity, sensitivity, precision, accuracy and stability. High performance liquid chromatography coupled with evaporative light scattering detection (HPLC-ELSD) was also used to quantify three major saccharides (fructose, glucose and sucrose). Results: The relative standard deviations for the precision, repeatability and stability of these compounds were less than 5 %, while the accuracy of the method was 95-105 %. Twenty-eight of the compounds found in TGY were successfully identified, with 20 being quantified. The macromolecules present in these samples were also identified using an ethanol precipitation method, representing 294.68-696.64 mg/g of the total material depending on the batch. Notably, the components identified using this method represented up to 78 % of the total weight of the TGY samples. Conclusions: The developed UHPLC/Q-TOF-MS and HPLC-ELSD methods successfully identified 28 of the complex compounds found in TGY.