Determination of Flavonoids and Anthocyanins in Nitraria tangutorum by High Performance Liquid Chromatography Coupled with Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Using high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with diode array detection and electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-DAD-MSn) method, qualitative and quantitative analysis of flavonoids of stems, leaves, fruits and seeds, and anthocyanidin of fresh fruits in Nitraria tangutorum were performed. A total of 14 flavonoid components were identified from the seeds of N. tangutorum including three quercetin derivatives, three kaempferol derivatives, and eight isorhamnetin derivatives. A total of 12, 10, and 7 flavonoid components were identified from leaves, stems, and fruits of N. tangutorum, respectively; all were present in seeds also. The total content of flavonoids in leaves was the highest, up to 42.43 mg/g˙dry weight. A total of 12 anthocyanidin components were identified from the fresh fruits of N. tangutorum, belonging to five anthocyanidin. The total content of anthocyanidin in fresh fruits was up to 45.83 mg/100 gfresh weight, of which the acylated anthocyanidin accounted for 65.7%. The HPLC-DAD-MSn method can be operated easily, rapidly, and accurately, and is feasible for qualitative and quantitative analysis of flavone glycosides in N. tangutorum.