Determination of Bioactive Components of Cistanche deserticola (Roucongrong) by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography with Diode Array and Mass Spectrometry Detectors

Cistanche deserticola (Orobanchaceae) has been widely used in China for food and medicinal purposes. Chemical differentiation between the raw and steamed C. deserticola was performed by high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with diode array detection and mass spectrometry. Eight chemicals (echinacoside, cistanoside A, acteoside, cistanoside C, 2′-acetylacteoside, isoacteoside, isocistanoside C, and tubuloside B) were obtained from raw and steamed C. deserticola, and the kinetics in the steaming process were investigated in detail. When the steaming time increased, the concentrations of echinacoside, cistanoside A, acteoside, cistanoside C, and 2′-acetylacteoside decreased, while the levels of isoacteoside, isocistanoside C, and tubuloside B increased. Furthermore, two compounds, 5-hydroxymaltol and 5-hydroxymethylfurfural, were found only in the steamed form. In addition, hierarchical clustering analysis and principal component analysis were performed to evaluate the classify the chemical concentrations among steamed C. deserticola. The results showed that steaming had a significant influence on the chemical constitution. The study provide chemical analysis of raw and steamed C. deserticola, including possible transformation pathways, and should allow better understanding of the steaming process of this herb.