Authenticity study of commercial samples of St. John's wort by paper spray ionization mass spectrometry and chemometric tools

AbstractHypericum perforatum L. (St. John's wort) is one of the world's most consumed medicinal plants for treating depression and psychiatric disorders. Counterfeiting can occur in the medicinal plant trade, either due to the lack of active ingredients or the addition of substances not mentioned on the labels, often without therapeutic value or even harmful to health. Hence, 43 samples of St. John's wort commercially acquired in different Brazilian regions and other countries were analyzed by paper spray ionization mass spectrometry (PS-MS) and modeled by principal component analysis. Hence, samples (plants, capsules, and tablets) were extracted with ethanol in a solid –liquid extraction. For the first time, PS-MS analysis allowed the detection of counterfeitH.  perforatum samples containing active principles typical of other plants, such asAgeratum conyzoides andSenna spectabilis. About 52.3% of the samples were considered adulterated for having at least one of these two species in their composition. Furthermore, out of 35 samples produced in Brazil, only 13 were deemed authentic, having onlyH.  perforatum. Therefore, there is a clear need to improve these drugs' quality control in Brazil.
Source: Journal of Mass Spectrometry - Category: Chemistry Authors: Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research