A Simultaneous Determination of 14 Chemical Compounds From Rubi Fructus in Rat Plasma by UHPLC‐QTRAP‐MS/MS and Application in Pharmacokinetics Study

Rubi Fructus (RF) is a traditional Chinese medicine that is both edible and medicinal. It is commonly used for daily health preservation by soaking in water and is also widely used in clinical treatment for kidney deficiency and frequent urination. Despite its extensive application, comprehensive pharmacokinetic studies on its multiple components are still relatively scarce. In order to systematically elucidate the in vivo dynamic processes of multiple components in RF, a simple and sensitive method was established and validated for the simultaneous determination of 14 compounds (ellagic acid, kaempferol-3-O-rutinoside, tiliroside, rutin, gallic acid, isoquercitrin, astragalin, kaempferol, p-coumaric acid, catechin, 3,4-dihydroxybenzaldehyde, protocatechuic acid, quercetin, and 4-hydroxybenzoic acid) in the plasma of rats by ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography coupled with triple-quadrupole linear ion-trap tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QTRAP-MS/MS). The method validation confirmed excellent linearity, acceptable precision and accuracy, as well as satisfactory extraction recovery and matrix effect for 14 compounds. The pharmacokinetic parameters of nine bioactive components in RF were successfully determined in rat plasma. A high C_max (1307.33 ng/mL) and a relatively long T_1/2 (10.62 h) were exhibited by ellagic acid. The findings provide a theoretical basis for elucidating its pharmacological mechanisms and clinical applications.