ABSTRACT
Objective To establish a qualitative and quanti ta tive method with RP-HPLC for controlling the quality of Cortex Moutan. Methods The experimental conditions of the RP-HPLC method wer e as follows: planetsil C 18 column (150 mm?4.6 mm, 5 ?m), mobile phase of methanol-water-acetic acid ( 44∶56∶0.1), flow rate at 1.0 mL?min -1, detection wavelength at 240 nm and room temperature. The qualitative fingerprint of Cortex Moutan and the quantitative measurement of paeonol wer e carried out under the chromatographic conditions mentioned above. Res ults Eleven comparatively stable peaks were detected among 13 differ ent samples, from which 10 common peaks used as index peaks for qualitative iden tification were conformed by correlating the peak areas. At the same time, the c ontents of paeonol in samples range from 1.32% to 2.78%. Conclusion The analytical method with qualitative fingerprint of Cortex Moutan and quantitative measurement of paeonol can effectively be used to control the quality of Cortex Moutan.