Abstract

To analyze the component correlation of 1-deoxynojirimycin (DNJ) between medicinal parasitic loranthus from loranthaceae and its mulberry host trees as well as the effects of the host trees on the quality of parasitic loranthus. DNJ content of medicinal parasitic loranthus plants and their mulberry or non-mulberry host trees was determined byReversed-phase High performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC). DNJ in samples were extracted with 0.05 mol·L^-1 Hydrochloric acid (HCl) solution, derivatized with 9-fluorenylmethyl chloroformat, analyzed by HPLC equipped with fluorescence detector, and separated in an Agilent C₁₈ column (250 × 4.6 mm, 5 μm) at 30°C. The mobile phase consisted of acetonitrile: 0.1% aqueous acetic acid (51:49, V/V) with a flow rate of 1.0 mL·min^-1. The fluorescence detector was operated at λ_EX=254 nm and λ_EM=322 nm. The calibration curve was linear over the concentration range of 0.0372 to 37.2 µg·mL^-1, r=0.9999. The average recovery was 96.42%. DNJ contents were 0.76 to 3.58 mg·g^-1 in the mulberry tree and 0.40 to 1.72 mg·g^-1 in parasitic loranthus parasitized mulberry host trees, respectively. The relative DNJ content of parasitic loranthus plants parasitized on mulberry tree reached as high as 33.1 to 106.2% of that in their host trees. DNJ could not be determined in parasitic loranthus parasitized non-mulberry host trees. Characteristic components in host trees could be delivered to the phytoparasitic species. Host trees affect the quality of medicinal parasitic loranthus to a certain extent.

Key words: Parasitic loranthus, mulberry, 1-deoxynojirimycin, reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC), fluorescence detection.