Abstract: | Pedicularis longiflora var. tubiformis (Orobanchaceae) is an abundantparasitic herb mainly found in the Xiaopohu wetland of the Qinghai Lake Basin inNorthwestern China. The species has an important local medicinal value, and inthis study, we evaluated the chemical profile of its stems, leaves and seeds usingmass spectrometry. Dried samples of stems, leaves and seeds were grinded,weighted, and used for a series of extractions with an ultrasonic device at roomtemperature. The chemical profiles for each tissue were determined using GasChromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) and Liquid ChromatographyMass Spectrometry (LC-MS). Twenty-seven amino acids and organic acids wereidentified and quantified from stems, leaves and seeds. The content of amino acidsdetected in leaves and seeds was higher than the amount found in stems. Six flavonoids were also detected, including isoorientin, orientin, luteolin-7-O-glucoside, luteolin, apigenin and tricin. The concentrations of luteolin-7-O-glucoside,luteolin and tricin were the highest and more concentrated in leaves, while thatof orientin was the lowest and mainly found in stems. Soluble monosaccharidesand oligosaccharides below tetramer were also examined, and our analysesdetected the presence of arabitol, fructose, galacturonic acid, glucose, glucuronicacid, inositol, sucrose, and trehalose. This is the first study to identify and quantifythe main components of amino acids, organic acids, flavonoids and soluble sugarsfrom stems, leaves and seeds of P. longiflora var. tubiformis. Eight of the aminoacids detected are essential for humans, highlighting the medicinal importance ofthis species. Results shown here can be used as a reference case to develop futurestudies on the chemical constituents of Pedicularis herbs and other medicinalplants from the Tibetan region. |