Establishment of Quality Control Standard and Efficacy Evaluation of Zhiqingshu Lotion Compound Preparation

OBJECTIVE: To establish the quality standard of Zhiqingshu lotion by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). METHODS: HPLC was used to determine emodin, chrysophanol, caffeic acid, and berberine hydrochloride content, key water-soluble components of rhubarb, dandelion, and Phellodendron amurense in Zhiqingshu lotion. The macrophage inflammation model was used to analyze the anti-inflammatory effects of Zhiqingshu lotion. RESULTS: HPLC results showed that the contents of emodin, chrysophanol, caffeic acid, and berberine hydrochloride in Zhiqingshu lotion were 7.93 ± 2.25, 20.85 ± 4.27, 48.9 ± 6.79, and 58.4 ± 10.3 μg/mL, respectively. Moreover, RT-qPCR results showed that different concentrations of Zhiqingshu lotion significantly reduced the expression of inflammatory factor tumor necrosis factor- (TNF-) α and interleukin- (IL-) 1β in lipopolysaccharide-induced macrophages. CONCLUSION: HPLC could quantitatively and qualitatively analyze and identify the main components of Zhiqingshu lotion as rhodopsin, rhodopsin, caffeic acid, and berberine hydrochloride. And Zhiqingshu lotion has an excellent anti-inflammatory effect. This method was simple and reliable and could be used for the identification of the ingredients and content of Zhiqingshu lotion, thus improving the quality control of the drug.