Comparative HPLC/ESI-MS and HPLC/DAD study of different populations of cultivated, wild and commercial Gentiana lutea L.

The root of Gentiana lutea L., famous for its bitter properties, is often used in alcoholic bitter beverages, food products and traditional medicine to stimulate the appetite and improve digestion. This study presents a new, fast, and accurate HPLC method using HPLC/ESI-MS and HPLC/DAD for simultaneous analysis of iridoids (loganic acid), secoiridoids (gentiopicroside, sweroside, swertiamarin, amarogentin) and xanthones (isogentisin) in different populations of G. lutea L., cultivated in the Monti Sibillini National Park, obtained wild there, or purchased commercially. Comparison of HPLC/ESI-MS and HPLC/DAD indicated that HPLC/ESI-MS is more sensitive, reliable and selective. Analysis of twenty samples showed that gentiopicroside is the most dominant compound (1.85–3.97%), followed by loganic acid (0.11–1.30%), isogentisin (0.03–0.48%), sweroside (0.05–0.35%), swertiamarin (0.08–0.30%), and amarogentin (0.01–0.07%). The results confirmed the high quality of the G. lutea cultivated in the Monti Sibillini National Park.