Project Number: 1235-52000-048-00
Project Type: Appropriated

Start Date: Feb 22, 2004
End Date: Feb 21, 2009

Objective:
To develop analytical methods for the determination of phenolic acids and glycosylated flavonoids and to develop fingerprinting methods, based on phenolic compounds, for the identification of plant and botanical cultivars, growing sites, and growing conditions.

Approach:
Due to the existence of thousands of phenolic compounds in plant and botanical materials, sophisticated extraction, separation, detection, and data processing methods will be used for this project. Reversed phase-high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC), with acid and base hydrolysis pre-treatment, will be used to analyze phenolic acids. A screening method based on a standardized extraction and RP-HPLC separation method with tandem ultraviolet (UV) and mass spectrometry (MS) detection will be developed for the identification and quantification of glycosylated flavonoids and phenolic compounds in plant and botanical materials. Fingerprinting methods will be developed based on infrared, near infrared, UV, and MS detection of un-separated extracts (no chromatography) of the materials. Information will be elucidated from the highly overlapping spectra using pattern recognition software. These methods will be supported by the development of sample preparation methods for quantitative removal of all the phenolic compounds from the plant matrices.