Fingerprint analysis of Gelsemium elegans by HPLC followed by the targeted identification of chemical constituents using HPLC coupled with quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

Gelsemium elegans, which is a genus of the family Loganiaease, is commonly used as a traditional medicine for promoting animal growth and treating rheumatoid arthritis pain and neuropathic pain, among others. In this study, we first established a valid high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method for the fingerprint analysis of Gelsemium elegans samples. Then, the comprehensive detection of chemical constituents from the samples was performed using HPLC coupled with quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry. The similarity evaluation results showed that location and area differences influenced the quality of the samples. An efficient strategy for the rapid targeted identification of chemical components was matching with a developed Gelsemium database. As a result, the accurate elemental compositions and known structures of compounds are found as hits. This process facilitated the structural identification of compounds combined with the accurate mass measurement of product ions and fragmentation behaviors. Consequently, 41 components including six alkaloids and non-alkaloids were systematically identified from Gelsemium elegans. The results showed that at least seven relatively major components existing in Gelsemium elegans may be useful for its quality control. The present analytical method combined with the developed Gelsemium database was shown to be a useful tool for investigating the chemical components of Gelsemium products.