Objective: To develop an UPLC-MS method for simultaneous determination of alkaloids from Coptidis Rhizoma in rat tissues, and to study the tissue distribution of alkaloids from Coptidis Rhizoma in rats.
Methods: The samples were extracted with ethyl acetate, and analyzed by UPLC-MS with acetonitrile-0. 2% formic acid solution in a gradient elution mobile phase, the flow rate was 0. 2m L/min. Tetrahydropalmatine was used as an internal standard. The mass spectrometer was operated in selected reaction monitoring( SIM) mode with positive electrospray ionization, the transition were m/z 191. 904 /118. 973( noroxyhydrastinine), m/z 335. 877 /308. 072( 8-ocoptisine),m/z 351. 94 /294. 554( palmatine chloride),m/z 335. 94 /262. 112( epiberberine), m/z 337. 94 /322. 422( columbamine), m/z 319. 904 /292. 037( coptisine), m/z 355. 977 /192. 036( tetrahydropalmatine),m/z 335. 94 /320. 036( berberine hydrochloride),m/z 351. 94 /321. 995( oxyberberin), m/z 337. 94 /322. 949( jatrorrhizine respectively).
Results: Excellent linearity was observed in all alkaloids in their linear range( r & 0. 9901). The RSD of precision of the developed method was less than 15%,and the accuracy and stability were less than ± 15%,the extraction recovery was 72. 1% ~ 82. 9% with RSD less than 15%. Coptisine,epiberberine,berberine,jatrorrhizine,columbamine,palmatine were widely distributed in rat tissues. Noroxyhydrastinine,8-ocoptisine,oxyberberin could only be determined in liver and heart or kidney.
Conclusion: The established method is simple and accurate. Satisfactory results are obtained with applying this method to the tissue distribution study of alkaloids from Coptidis Rhizoma.