Constituent analysis and quality control of anthocyanin constituents of dried Lycium ruthenicum Murray fruits by HPLC–MS and HPLC–DAD

In recent years, many investigations on the anthocyanins of the fresh Lycium ruthenicum Murray fruits have been reported; while few studies about dried fruits have been published. In this study, chemical profile of dried fruits was illustrated by a high-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry method, which provided evidence for the certain identification of the main anthocyanins. Among these compounds, nine of them were selected as marker compounds for the semiquantitative evaluation, using a simple and reliable method by high-performance liquid chromatography–photodiode array detection (HPLC–DAD), with the combination of chromatographic fingerprint analysis. Separation was achieved on a C18 ODS 80TS QA analytical column with linear gradient elution of acetonitrile and 10% formic acid and 0.1% trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) aqueous solution. Our results showed that the contents of anthocyanins of dried L. ruthenicum Murray from different origins were different. We also inferred the anthocyanin compositions of dried L. ruthenicum Murray through analyzing the UV spectrum, retention time, elution order, and MS data. Finally, eight kinds of anthocyanin compositions were identified and different from the anthocyanins in fresh L. ruthenicum Murray. In a word, this study may provide experimental data in further development and utilization of L. ruthenicum Murray.