Metabolic profiling of Hoodia, Chamomile, Terminalia Species and evaluation of commercial preparations using Ultra-High Performance Quadrupole Time of Flight-Mass Spectrometry

Authors: AVULA, BHARATHI - University Of Mississippi; WANG, YAN-HONG - University Of Mississippi; ISAAC, GIORGIS - Waters Corporation; YUK, JIMMY - Waters Corporation; WRONA, MARK - Waters Corporation; YU, KATE - Waters Corporation; KHAN, IKHLAS - University Of Mississippi

Submitted to: Planta Medica
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/10/2017
Publication Date: 5/24/2017
Citation: Avula, B., Wang, Y., Isaac, G., Yuk, J., Wrona, M., Yu, K., Khan, I.A. 2017. Metabolic profiling of Hoodia, Chamomile, Terminalia Species and evaluation of commercial preparations using Ultra-High Performance Quadrupole Time of Flight-Mass Spectrometry. Planta Medica. doi:10.1055/s-0043-109239.

Interpretive Summary: Profiling approach that combines separation by UHPLC with the high resolution, high sensitivity, and high mass accuracy of QToF was developed. Comprehensive fingerprints of three botanicals (Hoodia, Terminalia and chamomile) each having different classes of compounds was generated and statistical tools used to extract relevant chemical information from the data to easily differentiate Terminalia species, chamomile varieties and quality control of Hoodia products. One out of nine products displayed for the presence of all compounds and remaining 8 products did not show any of Hoodia compounds. All five products of Terminalia were found to contain T. chebula, T. bellerica and P. emblica. The tea samples claiming to contain chamomile were found to be German chamomile, based on phenolic type and composition. This metabolomics approach combined with chemometrics data analysis was useful for the quality evaluation and authentication of dietary supplements prepared from three botanicals (Hoodia, Terminalia and Chamomile). Quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry is used in this metabolomics study to obtain more accurate, precise MS data and MS-MS fragmentation to elucidate the elemental composition and structural information for known and unknown compounds.

Technical Abstract: Ultra-High Performance-Quadrupole Time of Flight Mass Spectrometr(UHPLC-QToF-MS)profiling has become an impattant tool for identification of marker compounds and generation of metabolic patterns that could be interrogated using chemometric modeling software. Chemometric approaches can be used to analyze small molecule profiles present in plant materials or extracts and their commercial preparations. In this study, UHPLC-QToF-MS was used to generate comprehensive fingerprints of three botanicals (Hoodia, Terminalia and chamomile) each having different classes of compounds. Detection of a broad range of ions was carried out in full scan mode in both positive and negative mode over mlz 100-1500 range using high resolution mass spectrometry. Multivariate statistical analysis was used as a tool to extract relevant chemical information from the data to easily differentiate between Terminalia species, chamomile varieties, and quality control of Hoodia products. The UHPLC- QToF-MS based chemical fingerprinting with PCA was able to correctly distinguish botanicals and their commercial products. This work can be used as a basis to assure the quality of botanicals and commercial products.