Chemical Comparison of Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis L.) Root Powder from Three Commercial Suppliers

Abstract

The characterization of herbal materials is a significant challenge to analytical chemists. Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis L.), which has been chosen for toxicity evaluation by NIEHS, is among the top 15 herbal supplements currently on the market and contains a complex mixture of indigenous components ranging from carbohydrates and amino acids to isoquinoline alkaloids. One key component of herbal supplement production is botanical authentication, which is also recommended prior to initiation of efficacy or toxicological studies. To evaluate material available to consumers, goldenseal root powder was obtained from three commercial suppliers and a strategy was developed for characterization and comparison that included Soxhlet extraction, HPLC, GC-MS, and LC-MS analyses. HPLC was used to determine the weight percentages of the goldenseal alkaloids berberine, hydrastine, and canadine in the various extract residues. Palmatine, an isoquinoline alkaloid native to Coptis spp. and other common goldenseal adulterants, was also quantitated using HPLC. GC-MS was used to identify non-alkaloid constituents in goldenseal root powder, whereas LC-MS was used to identify alkaloid components. After review of the characterization data, it was determined that alkaloid content was the best biomarker for goldenseal. A 20-min ambient extraction method for the determination of alkaloid content was also developed and used to analyze the commercial material. All three lots of purchased material contained goldenseal alkaloids hydrastinine, berberastine, tetrahydroberberastine, canadaline, berberine, hydrastine, and canadine. Material from a single supplier also contained palmatine, coptisine, and jatrorrhizine, thus indicating that the material was not pure goldenseal. Comparative data for three commercial sources of goldenseal root powder are presented.

The medicinal plant goldenseal is a natural LDL-lowering agent with multiple bioactive components and new action mechanisms

“…Goldenseal contains three major isoquinoline alkaloids, BBR, CND, and HDT, as well as some minor alkaloid components such as HDTN (20,21,25,26) (Fig. 1A).…”

“…1A). Although PMT exists in Coptis, Oregon grape root, and several other BBR-containing plants (20), CND and HDT are the only native components of goldenseal (26)(27)(28). Goldenseal root extract typically contains 2.5-6% total alkaloids (27).…”

Hydrastine Pharmacokinetics and Metabolism after a Single Oral Dose of Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis) to Humans

“…The primary alkaloids with known biologic activity are the phthalide isoquinoline alkaloid (1-R, 9-S)-b-hydrastine and the quaternary protoberberine-type alkaloid berberine (Weber et al, 2003). Goldenseal is unique from other hydrastine-containing plants in that (2)-b-hydrastine is the only hydrastine isomer present, while the (+)-enantiomer is found in other hydrastine-containing plants (Blaskó et al, 1982).…”

Analysis of goldenseal, Hydrastis canadensis L., and related alkaloids in urine using HPLC with UV detection

“…In this article, we describe an isocratic HPLC method with UV detection adapted from Weber et al [7] and Chen and Chang [8] to determine the weight percent of the two major isoquinoline alkaloids found in goldenseal, berberine and hydrastine, and to identify and quantify these alkaloids in human urine samples.…”