UPLC-QTOF-MS Characterization of Polyphenolic Constituents from Flowers of Chamomile Samples: Comparative and PCA Analysis Between Matricaria recutita L. and Anthemis nobilis L. Samples

Chamomile has been used for centuries as a medicinal plant mostly for its anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antimicrobial, antispasmodic and sedative properties [1]. Chamomile is listed in major pharmacopeias, such as United States Pharmacopeia and British Pharmacopeia. As a member of Asteraceae family, it is widely represented by two known varieties, viz., German chamomile (Matricaria recutita) and Roman chamomile (Anthemis nobilis) [1]. German chamomile is the most common variety used for medicinal purposes. It has been shown that apigenin glucosides are the major constituents present in chamomile [1].

The present study was designed to identify and characterize various flavonoids and their derivatives present in chamomile flowers and also to evaluate commercially available dietary products for the confirmation of chamomile varieties. A UPLC-QTOF-MS method was applied to identify simultaneously more than 40 polyphenolic components from M. recutita sample. It has been demonstrated that the methanolic M. recutita extract have high concentration of apigenin-7-O-glucoside along with several polyphenolic constituents which include patuletin-7-O-glucoside, ferulic acid derivatives, apigenin derivatives, quercetin derivatives, luteolin derivatives and caffeoyl quinic acid derivatives. Flowers of A. nobilis showed higher concentrations of chamaemeloside. Because of the complexity of M. recutita active constituents, the quality control of extracts has been analyzed using chromatographic fingerprinting. The method was applied for the analysis 18 commercial products. An innovative chemometrics analytical tool for visualizing the dietary supplements quality has been developed and will be of value in discriminating between the Chamomile varieties as regards to the relative content of individual flavonoids.

Fig.1: LC-UV-MS method was developed for the identification of flavonoids, phenolic compounds and coumarins from chamomile samples

Acknowledgements : This research is supported in part by Science Based Authentication of Dietary Supplements funded by the Food and Drug Administration grant No. 1U01FD004246–01; the United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Specific Cooperative Agreement No. 58–6408–2-0009, and the Global Research Network for Medicinal Plants (GRNMP), King Saud University The authors would like to thank Annette Ford for extraction of the plant samples.

References: [1] Srivastava, et al. (2010) Recent Progress in Med Plants 27: 33–53.