ABSTRACT
To determine relative molecular weight of astragalus polysaccharides (APs), we used Shodex GS620 gel permeation chromatographic column and differential refraction detector (GPC-RI) with dextran as a reference. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS) and GPC combined with multi-angle laser light scattering detection (GPC-MALLS) were also used．GPC-RI measure showed four peaks of APs, with the Mw of 1 380 000, 231 000, 18 000, and 480, respectively. Three main peaks were found by GPC-RI-MALLS with the Mw as 1 148 000, 180 000, and 43 000, respectively. Strong signals in 155 000 and 18 000 were detected by MALDI-TOF-MS, which also indicated the sugar moieties of the APs as hexoses. From our study, we found that the GPC-RI method with universal correction is most suitable for Mw determination of the APs. Nevertheless, the three methods should be combined and contrasted with each other to obtain accurate information in research of polysaccharides from Chinese medicine.