Study on Geoherbalism of Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma Based on UPLC-Q-TOF-MS and Multivariate Statistical Analysis

OBJECTIVE To systematically analyze the chemical constituents of Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma from different origins for providing a basis for its geoherbalism research. METHODS Ultra performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry(UPLC-Q-TOF-MS) combined with mass spectrometry molecular networking was used to rapidly identify the main chemical components of Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma. Orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis(OPLS-DA) was applied to multivariate statistical analysis of 25 batches of Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma from Anhui, Hebei and Zhejiang, and the VIP value and t test were used to screen out the index components that differed significantly between groups. RESULTS The chemical differences of Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma from different origins were obviously. A total of 10 differential compounds had been identified. Among them, the composition of curcumene, Atractylmacrol D, atractylenolide Ⅲ, 3β-hydroxy-atractylon, atractylenolide Ⅱ, atractylenolide Ⅰ, β-Vatirenene and atractylon in Zhejiang Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma was significantly higher than that in Anhui or Hebei, which could be used as potential geoherbalism markers. CONCLUSION This study provides a basis for a comprehensive evaluation of the quality and geoherbalism of Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma and finds that the chemical composition of Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma varies considerably among different origins, which may be related to the environment, variety and cultivation methods, etc.