Phytochemical analysis of the hepatoprotective fraction of Comastoma pedunculatum using HPLC-DAD-ESI-MS/MS

Comastoma pedunculatum (Rogle ex D. Dou) Holub is a traditional Tibetan herbal medicine used under the name “zangyinchen” for the treatment of liver and gallbladder disease. In the present work, we describe a phytochemical analysis to profile the hepatoprotective fraction (ethyl acetate extract) of the title herb using a high performance liquid chromatography-diode array detector electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-DAD-ESI-MS/MS) analytical method. Seventeen compounds, comprising 6 xanthones, 6 flavonoids, and 5 saponins, were separate and determinate in the hepatoprotective fraction, based on the comparison of their UV and MS data with those of authentic compounds and published data. Carbon tetrachloride-induced acute liver injury model was used for evaluation of antihepatotoxic activity of the ethyl acetate extract of C. pedunculatum. The biochemical marker enzymes in serum and liver homogenate of rat were assayed, including aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and total bilirubin(TB), along with the microscopic pathological examinations for liver tissue.These results may help to gain a better understanding of the therapeutic basis of C. pedunculatum and establish a better quality control method for this Tibetan herbal medicine. Acknowledgements: Thank the supporting grant for NSFC-81274158, 81373765, NCET-12 – 0578, 13 – 0624, SEAC-12ZYZ019, 111Project B08044 and YLDX01013.