A novel and rapid HPGPC-based strategy for quality control of saccharide-dominant herbal materials: Dendrobium officinale, a case study

摘要

Qualitative and quantitative characterization of natural saccharides, especially polysaccharides, in herb materials remains a challenge due to their complicated structures and high macromolecular masses. Currently available methods involve time-consuming and complicated operations, and present poor specificity. Here, a novel and rapid highperformance gel permeation chromatography (HPGPC)-based approach is described for quality assessment of saccharidedominant herbal materials by simultaneous qualitative and quantitative analysis of saccharide components. Dendrobium officinale, one of the rarest tonic herbs worldwide, was employed as the model herb in this study. First, a HPGPC fingerprint based on the molecular weight distribution of its carbohydrate componentswas established for qualitative identification of D. officinale. Then, HPGPC-guided dominant holistic polysaccharide marker was separated using ultrafiltration followed by HPGPC determination for quantitative evaluation of D. officinale. The experimental results suggest that this method is more efficient, stable, and convenient compared with the currently available methods for authentication and quality evaluation of D. officinale, and we expect themethodwill have similar advantages when used for quality control of other saccharide-dominant herbal materials and products.