A simple and simultaneous identification method for aloe, catechu and gambir by high performance liquid chromatography.

An effective and rapid method was developed for the simultaneous identification of aloe, catechu and gambir by high performance liquid chromatography-diode array detector (HPLC-DAD). Identification of three maker compounds presented in three medicinal materials was performed on high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS). Under the optimal HPLC chromatographic conditions, sixty-two samples were processed on an Optimapak C18 column using a solvent system of acetonitrile (from 10% to 35%) and 0.1% phosphoric acid solution (from 90% to 65%) at a total flow rate of 1.0 mL/min and detected at 270 nm. All calibration curves exhibited good linear relationship (r(2)>0.9992). The relative standard deviation values of intra-day and inter-day precision were less than 1% and 2%, respectively. The recoveries of three analytes ranged from 99.48 to 100.97% with low RSDs (<2%). For the first time, this study demonstrates that the processed aloe, catechu and gambir are sold in local material markets in China and Korea without their correct identification. It indicates the existent of high potential medicinal risk by misuse of three medicinal materials. The developed HPLC method can be applied to prevent unexpected biological activity due to misapplication of medicinal materials.