| Summary: | An integrative strategy of UHPLC/IM-QTOF-MS analysis, MS/MS molecular networking (MN), in-house library search, and a collision cross-section (CCS) simulation and comparison was developed for the rapid characterization of the chemical constituents in Chebulae Fructus (CF). A total of 122 Constituents were identified, and most were phenolcarboxylic and tannic compounds. Subsequently, 1,3,6-tri-<i>O</i>-galloyl-<i>β</i>-<span style="font-variant: small-caps;">d</span>-glucose, terflavin A, 1,2,6-tri-<i>O</i>-galloyl-<i>β</i>-<span style="font-variant: small-caps;">d</span>-glucose, punicalagin B, chebulinic acid, chebulagic acid, 1,2,3,4,6-penta-<i>O</i>-galloyl-<i>β</i>-<span style="font-variant: small-caps;">d</span>-glucose, and chebulic acid, among the 23 common constituents of CF, were screened out by UPLC-PDA fingerprinting and multivariate statistical analyses (HCA, PCA, and OPLS-DA). Then, Pearson’s correlation analysis and a grey relational analysis were performed for the spectrum-effect correlation between the UPLC fingerprints and the antioxidant capacity of CF, which was finally validated by an UPLC-DPPH<sup>•</sup> analysis for the main antioxidant constituents. Our study provides a global identification of CF constituents and contributes to the quality control and development of functional foods and preparations dedicated to CF.
|
|---|