Chemical Fingerprinting and Multivariate Analysis of Different Grades of Farfarae Flos Using HPLC and UPLC-ESI-Q/TOF-MS/MS.

Introduction: Farfarae Flos is widely used as a traditional herbal medicine. Currently, its size has been the primary grading criterion used in market circulation. Whether this empirical criterion can accurately reflect the quality of the medicinal material has not been systematically studied.

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the quality of Farfarae Flos from different regions based on their grades.

Methods: Ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-ESI-Q/TOF-MS/MS) were applied to study the chemical constituents of Farfarae Flos; high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to quantify the content of Farfarae Flos samples. Meanwhile, fingerprint analysis and chemometric methods, including principal component analysis (PCA) and analysis of variance (ANOVA), were used to evaluate the quality differences among 33 batches of Farfarae Flos samples of different grades.

Results: A total of 95 individual components were identified in Farfarae Flos. Fingerprint analysis revealed 23 common peaks, with fingerprint similarity among the 33 batches ranging from 0.838 to 0.995. PCA divided the 33 batches of Farfarae Flos into three categories based on their grades. ANOVA indicated significant differences in five of the 14 main active components across different grades of Farfarae Flos, with two components showing extremely significant differences. HPLC content determination showed that the content of 11 main active components was positively correlated with the grades of Farfarae Flos.

Conclusion: This method is straightforward, efficient, and reliable, offering a valuable reference for establishing quality grading standards and ensuring the quality control of Farfarae Flos.