ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: Trichosanthis Pericarpium injection (TPI) is a traditional Chinese medicine preparation obtained from Trichosanthis Pericarpium by extraction, purification and sterilisation. It contains amino acids, alkaloids, nucleotides and other components. Existing quantitative methods only analyse a few components in injections, so this study intends to develop a method for comprehensive analysis of TPI components. OBJECTIVE: To develop a method for quantification of components in TPI by multivariate curve resolution-alternating least squares (MCR-ALS) assisted proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1 H-NMR). METHODS: A 1 H-NMR method was developed for the quantification of components in TPI. For components with independent signals, 3-(trimethylsilyl) propionic-2,2,3,3-d4 acid sodium salt (TSP) was used as an internal standard to calculate the component contents. For components with overlapping signals, the method of MCR-ALS was used. RESULTS: A total of 36 components were identified in TPI, of which 33 were quantified. Methodological validation results showed that the developed 1 H-NMR method has good linearity, accuracy, precision, robustness and specificity. CONCLUSION: The use of 1 H-NMR provides a reliable and universal method for the TPI components identification and quantification. Also, it can be used as a powerful tool for analysing the contents in a complex mixture as a quality control measure.