PREPARATIVE SEPARATION OF HYDROXYL SAFFLOWER YELLOW A AND ANHYDROSAFFLOR YELLOW B IN PLANT EXTRACT OF CARTHAMUS TINCTORIUS L. BY REVERSE-PHASE MEDIUM-PRESSURE LIQUID CHROMATOGRAPHY

Abstract

Two known flavonoids—hydroxyl safflower yellow A (HSYA) and anhydrosafflor yellow B (anhydro-SYB)—were isolated and purified from plant extract of Carthamus tinctorius L. for the first time by reverse-phase medium-pressure liquid chromatography (RP-MPLC) using a mobile phase system consisting of acetonitrile and water containing 0.5% acetic acid with a Biotage® SNAP Cartridge KP- C₁₈-HS column. A total of 2.92 g of HSYA and 1.07 g of anhydro-SYB from 9.2 g plant extract of C. tinctorius L., each at 100% and 93% as determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), respectively. The identification of the two purified compounds was achieved by congruent retention times, the data of the liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MSⁿ) with those of the authentic standards and literature reports. The fragmentation pathway was proposed according the LC-ESI-MSⁿ data.

Keywords:

• anhydrosafflor yellow B
• C. tinctorius L.
• hydroxyl safflower yellow A
• LC –MS
• RP-MPLC

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 30970299) and the Natural Science Foundation of Jilin Province of China (No. 200905109, 20090936, 2011-187, 20102203, 2010D036).

Notes

^a A: acetonitrile; B: water containing 0.5% acetic acid.