Discrimination of producing areas of Astragalus membranaceus using electronic nose and UHPLC-PDA combined with chemometrics

Abstract

Electronic nose (E-nose) and ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) were simultaneously developed for quality evaluation and diversity research of a. mongholicus. Instrumental data were subjected to principal component analysis (PCA) and discriminant factor analysis (DFA) to rapidly distinguish a. mongholicus derived from different main producing regions in China. E-nose results showed that a. mongholicus that originated from main producing areas (Gansu, Shanxi, and Inner Mongolia in China) could be accurately classified into three groups through PCA and DFA. The response values of samples from Inner Mongolia and Shanxi were similar, and better than those of the samples from Gansu. Identification by the E-nose was verified through UHPLC analysis, and the content of the main ingredient was consistent with the response value of a. mongholicus. In conclusion, E-nose and UHPLC combined with chemometrics can be used as reliable techniques to distinguish the geographic origins of a. mongholicus effectively, and evaluate the quality of traditional Chinese herbs.