Development of a simple chromatographic method for distinguishing between two easily confused species, Hedyotis diffusa and Hedyotis corymbosa.

Hedyotis diffusa Willd. and Hedyotis corymbosa (L.) Lam. are closely related species of Rubiaceae family and they can be easily confused. Although previous reports have been found in which ultraviolet spectrum, convolution spectrometry or X-ray diffraction are reported to be used for distinguishing between the two species, these methods require specialised equipment. Hence, this study aims to develop a simple chromatographic method for the purpose. Our results illustrate the use of a thin-layer chromatographic (TLC) profile to differentiate between the two species, with a blue zone appearing at around an R(f) of 0.36 in H. corymbosa but not in H. diffusa. The compound corresponding to this blue zone was later found to be hedyotiscone A. LC-MS with multiple reaction monitoring was used as a tool to identify and quantify hedyotiscone A in the test samples. In conclusion, a quick and simple TLC assay was conducted to distinguish between the two species H. diffusa and H. corymbosa.

Development of a high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass method for determination of bis(7)-tacrine, a promising anti-Alzheimer's dimer, in rat blood.

An analytical method using on-line high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry with electrospray ionization was developed and applied for the quantification of bis(7)-tacrine (B7T) in rat blood. B7T and pimozide (internal standard, IS) were extracted in a single step from 100 microl of alkalized blood with ethyl acetate. Analytes were separated using an Extend C-18 column at 25 degrees C. The elution was achieved isocratically with a mobile phase composed of 0.05% aqueous formic acid and acetonitrile (60:40, v/v) at a flow rate of 0.35 ml/min. Quantification was achieved by monitoring the selected ions at m/z 247 for B7T and m/z 462-->m/z 328 for pimozide. Retention times were 1.45 and 2.23 min for B7T and IS, respectively. Calibration curves were linear in the range from 86.4 to 2160.0 ng/ml. The established method is rapid, selective and sensitive for the identification and quantification of B7T in biological samples. The assay is accurate (bias <10%) and reproducible (intra- and inter-day variation <10%), with detection and quantification limit of 3.6 and 42.3 ng/ml, respectively. Furthermore, it was successfully applied for the pharmacokinetic measurement of B7T in rat with a single intravenous administration at 0.3mg/kg.