Journal of Analytical & Bioanalytical Techniques
Open Access

Abstract

We developed and validated an accurate and sensitive LC-MS/MS method for the simultaneous quantitation of ginsenoside Rg3 and Rh2 epimers (R-Rg3, S-Rg3, R-Rh2, and S-Rh2) in plasma. Analytes were extracted from 0.1 mL aliquots of plasma by liquid-liquid extraction, using 2 mL of ethyl acetate. In this assay, dioscin was used as an IS. Chromatographic separation was conducted using an Acclaim RSLC C 18 column with a gradient mobile phase consisting of 0.1% formic acid in distilled water and in acetonitrile, a flow rate of 0.35 mL/min, and a total run time of 20 min. Detection and quantification were performed using a mass spectrometer in SRM mode with negative electrospray ionization at m/z 783.4→161.1 for R-Rg3 and S-Rg3, m/z 621.3→161.1 for R-Rh2 and S-Rh2, and m/z 867.2→761.5 for the IS. For R-Rg3 and S-Rg3, the LLoQ was 5 ng/mL, with a linear range up to 500 ng/mL; for R-Rh2 and S-Rh2, the LLoQ was 150 ng/mL, with a linear range up to 6000 ng/mL. The coefficient of variation for assay precision was less than 10.5%, with an accuracy of 86.4?112%. The method was successfully applied to pharmacokinetic studies after oral administration of BST204, a fermented ginseng extract, to rats, dog, and humans. In rats and humans, only S epimers were detected in plasmas, while in dog both S and R epimers were exhibited in plasmas. This is the first report on the simultaneous quantification of R-Rg3, S-Rg3, R-Rh2, and S-Rh2 in plasmas by LC-MS/MS.

Biography

Soo Hyeon Bae has completed her M.S. from Seoul National University, majored in pharmacokinetics. Now, she is a Ph.D. candidate in the Catholic University of Korea and her research interest is development of LC-MS/MS assay of drugs and their metabolites in biological samples and drug interactions with focus on pharmacokinetics. To date, she has published more than 10 papers in SCI journals.