A UPLC-MS/MS Method for Qualification of Quercetin-3-O-β-D-glucopyranoside-(4→1)-α-L-rhamnoside in Rat Plasma and Application to Pharmacokinetic Studies

A sensitive and accurate ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with triple quadrupole mass (UPLC-MS/MS) method was developed for the determination of quercetin-3-O-β-D-glucopyranoside-(4→1)-α-L-rhamnoside (QGR) in rat plasma using rutin as internal standard. Chromatographic separation was achieved on a Acquity BEH C(18) column (100 mm × 2.1 mm, 1.7 μm) with a gradient elution of acetonitrile and 0.10% formic acid (v/v) at a flow rate of 0.4 mL/min. QGR and rutin were detected using electrospray negative ionization mass spectrometry in the multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode. The method demonstrated good linearity and did not show any endogenous interference with the QGR and rutin peaks. This method was successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic study of QGR in rats after intravenous (20 mg/kg) and oral (40 mg/kg) administration, and the results showed that the compound was poorly absorbed, with an absolute bioavailability of approximately 3.41%.