A Rapid Method for Total [Beta]-Escin Analysis in Dry, Hydroalcoholic and Hydroglycolic Extracts of Aesculus hippocastanum L. by Capillary Zone Electrophoresis

Introduction Seeds of Aesculus hippocastanum L. are used in European phytotherapy to treat inflammatory and vascular problems, and also to help in the regulation of the microcirculation. Thus, the quality control of herbal medicines using this species is important. Objective To develop and to optimise a capillary zone electrophoresis method to determine total [beta]-escin in different extracts of A. hippocastanum L. Methods The optimal condition found through chemometric approach was: 25mmol/L of bicarbonate-carbonate buffer, pH10.3; +20kV of voltage; 20°C of cartridge temperature; direct ultraviolet detection at 226nm; 13mbar injection for 5s and analysis time within 6min. Results Repeatability, coefficient of variation (CV; %) = 3.19, 3.07 and 1.89 (n = 12), and intermediate precision, CV (%) = 3.05, 3.53 and 2.99 (n = 24) for dry, hydroalcoholic and hydroglycolic extracts, respectively were achieved. The accuracy was evaluated through recovery tests in concentration levels of 100, 150 and 200 g/L, ranging from 98.17 to 104.68%. The proposed method exhibited linearity (r=0.9983) in the concentration range from 101.4 to 907.2g/L and limits of detection and quantification equal to 11.63 and 38.76g/L respectively. Conclusion A fast and reliable methodology for determination of total [beta]-escin was successfully validated and applied on extracts of A. hippocastanum L. demonstrating its usefulness to quality control of medicines containing this plant species. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. A capillary zone electrophoresis method capable to determine, in 6 minutes, total [beta]-escin in different extracts of horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum L.) was developed, optimized and validated through chemometric approaches. An electrolyte, composed of bicarbonate-carbonate buffer (pH 10.3), was used with the conditions: +20 kV of voltage; 20 °C of temperature; direct ultraviolet detection at 226 nm; 13 mbar injection for 5 s. This method was applied on these samples demonstrating its usefulness to analysis of this plant species. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]