Simultaneous determination of inorganic elements in stems and leaves of Scutellaria baicalensis from different regions by ICP-MS / 中草药

ABSTRACT

Objective An inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) method was established for the determination of inorganic elements in stems and leaves of Scutellaria baicalensis. The inorganic elements in the extracts were analyzed and evaluated. Methods ICP-MS was applied to determine 23 kinds of inorganic elements in samples digested by microwave in stems and leaves of S. baicalensis from eight regions, and the results were analyzed by principal component analysis (PCA) and correlation analysis. Results There were no differences in the types of inorganic elements in stems and leaves of S. baicalensis from different regions, but the content of them varied greatly. Among them, Fe, Zn, Cu, Mn, Cr, Co, Ni, Sr, B, and Ni were essential elements of the human body. The content of Al and Fe was the highest, and the content of B, Ti, Mn, Sr, and Ba was higher than others. The total content of heavy metals and harmful elements of samples were up to the mustard, except S10. The contents of Cd in S2, S10 and S22-S30 exceeded standards. Thirty-five batches stems and leaves of S. baicalensis were divided into eight groups, which were analyzed by thePCA with the contents of 23 elements as variates. These regions which have different geographies and climates might lead to the differences in the contents of inorganic elements in the samples. Four factors (F1-F4) were selected to make a comprehensive evaluation. The evaluation function was F = 0.444 2 F1 + 0.166 6 F2 + 0.129 1 F3 + 0.056 4 F4. The results showed that the scores of samples from Shanxi and Shaanxi were higher, which indicated that the qualities of above samples were better than those of other samples. Conclusion In this study, an accurate and efficient method for the analysis and determination of inorganic elements in stems and leaves of S. baicalensis from different regions was established, which provided a scientific reference for the quality control, safety evaluation, and comprehensive utilization of S. baicalensis resource.