Qualitative analysis and simultaneous quantification of phenolic compounds in the aerial parts of Salvia miltiorrhiza by HPLC-DAD and ESI/MS(n).

INTRODUCTION: The increasing demands of roots and rhizomes of Salvia miltiorrhiza almost exhausted the wild Salvia sources in China. However, the content and composition of phenolic acids in the aerial parts of the plant and their potential to be used as a substitute has not been explored.
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the potential of the aerial parts of Salvia miltiorrhiza as new natural sources of phenolic acids.
METHODOLOGY: HPLC coupled with diode array detection (DAD) and electrospray ionization multistage mass spectrometry (ESI/MS(n) ) has been used for qualitative and quantitative analysis of phenolic compounds.
RESULTS: A total of 38 phenolic compounds were identified or tentatively characterized. A quantitative HPLC-DAD method allowing the simultaneously quantification of six phenolic acids was optimized and validated for linearity, precision, accuracy, and limits of detection and quantification. Calibration curves showed good linear regression (r² > 0.9991) within test ranges; the recoveries ranged between 95.64 and 101.67% and the RSDs were less than 3.01%.
CONCLUSION: The developed methods have been proved to be effective for the identification and quantification of phenolic acids in S. miltiorrhiza. The results obtained suggest that the aerial parts of the plant could be used as an alternative source of sage phenolics.