Simultaneous determination of six phenolic constituents of danshen injection in rat plasma by liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization–mass spectrometry and its application to a pharmacokinetic study

Danshen, the root of Salvia miltiorrhiza, is one of the most commonly used traditional chinese herbs. owing to its remarkable and reliable biological activities, especially in the treatment of cardiovascular disorders, it is widely used either alone or in combination with other herbal ingredients for patients with coronary artery disease in china and other countries.1 Phenolic acids and lipophilic diterpenoids are two major types of constituent in Danshen. Pharmacological and clinical investigations reveal that phenolic acids are the major active components rather than the lipophilic diterpenoids.2 Danshen injection is made from the aqueous extracts of Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge containing several phenolic acids. It has good clinical efficacy on coronary heart disease, heart stroke, cerebrovascular diseases2 and hepatitis.3 therefore, the pharmacokinetic studies of phenolic constituents, such as salvianolic acid A (SAA), salvianolic acid B (SAB), danshensu (DSS), protocatechuic aldehyde (PcA), rosmarinic acid (rMA), and lithospermic acid (LSA) (chemical structures shown in figure 1), could be helpful for the reasonable use of Danshen injection. Simultaneous determination of six phenolic constituents of danshen injection in rat plasma by liquid chromatography– electrospray ionization–mass spectrometry and its application to a pharmacokinetic study