• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.220-228
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• 2016

Background: Among the various ginseng strains, Shizhu ginseng is endemic to China, mainly distributed in Kuandian Manchu Autonomous County (Liaoning Province, China); however, not much is known about the compounds (especially saponins) in Shizhu ginseng. Methods: A rapid, sensitive, and reliable ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with MS/MS (UHPLC-MS/MS) method was developed to separate and identify saponins in Shizhu ginseng. Results: The separation was carried out on a Waters ACQUITY UPLC BEH $C_{18}$ column ($100mm{\times}2.1mm$, $1.7{\mu}m$) with acetonitrile and 0.1% formic acid aqueous solution as the mobile phase under a gradient elution at $40^{\circ}C$. The detection was performed on a Micromass Quattro Micro API mass spectrometer equipped with electrospray ionization source in both positive and negative modes. Under the optimized conditions, a total of 31 saponins were identified or tentatively characterized by comparing retention time and MS data with related literatures and reference substances. Conclusion: The developed UHPLC-MS/MS method was suitable for identifying and characterizing the chemical constituents in Shizhu ginseng, which provided a helpful chemical basis for further research on Shizhu ginseng.