Identification of O-diglycosyl flavanones in Fructus aurantii by liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization and collision-induced dissociation mass spectrometry

This study reported the application of LC–ESI/MS method to characterize O-diglycosyl flavanones of traditional Chinese medicine Fructus aurantii(Zhiqiao) and UPLC retention parameters method to expatiate the structure-retention relationship of these O-diglycosyl flavanones. The extract of F. aurantii was found containing neoeriocitrin, isonaringin, naringin, hesperidin, neohesperidin and neoponcirin. Tandem mass spectrometric method has been utilized to elucidate structure and differentiate the interglycosidic linkage of isomeric O-diglycosyl flavanones. Based on the relative abundance of fragments formed by fragmentation at glycosidic bonds in positive ion mode and CID MS spectra of deprotonated molecule [M−H]− in negative ion mode, the interglycosidic linkage of O-diglycosyl flavanones (flavonoid O-neohesperidosides and O-rutinosides, 1,2- and 1,6-) can be unambiguously differentiated. UPLC and a CSASS software were performed to obtain the retention parameters a, c and k values of these compounds. The Δa, Δc and α values within compound pair naringin to neoriocitrin, neoponcirin to neohesperidin, naringin to isonaringin, neohesperidin to hesperidin, hesperidin to isonaringin, neohesperidin to naringin were calculated. We found there were some relationship between structure and retention parameters.