Determination and tissue distribution comparisons of five xanthones after orally administering crude and processed gamboge

Abstract Caged polyprenylated xanthones are the main active ingredients isolated from the resin of Garcinia hanburyi , which has been reported to exhibit potential anticancer and anti‐inflammatory activities. This study aimed to develop sensitive and specific ultra‐performance liquid chromatography coupled with the triple quadrupole mass spectrometry method for investigating the tissue distribution of five xanthones in rats: β ‐morellic acid, isogambogenic acid, gambogenic acid, R ‐gambogic acid and S ‐gambogic acid. All tissue samples were prepared using the liquid–liquid extraction method and separated on a C 8 column with a gradient system. Detection was performed on a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer in multiple‐reaction monitoring using positive ionization. The method established in this assay was successfully applied to the tissue distribution study of the five selected xanthones after orally administering crude and processed gamboge in rat tissues. The results indicated that these five xanthones were distributed to rat tissues rapidly and could be detected in all of the selected tissues after oral administration. After processing, the contents of R ‐gambogic acid and S ‐gambogic acid in the gastrointestinal tract were significantly reduced. The findings of this study might be helpful in further understanding the processing mechanism of gamboge and providing references for its reasonable clinical application.