quantitative determination of punicalagin and related substances in different parts of pomegranate

Three simple and efficient high-performance liquid chromatography (hplc) methods for punicalagin and related substances in different parts of pomegranate were established. the mobile phases for α-punicalagin, β-punicalagin, gallic acid, and ellagic acid consisted of acetonitrile and 2% glacial acetic acid solutions, and that for pentagalloylglucose consisted of acetonitrile and 0.5% phosphoric acid. the mobile phase of shikimic and 3-dehydroshikimic acids consisted of methanol and 1% phosphoric acid. the limit of detection values of seven substances ranged from 0.15 to 0.24 mg/g. the hplc method of these substances showed high precision, good stability, and repeatability. their recovery rates were in the range of 98.9–102.5%, and their relative standard deviation values were less than 2.2%. punicalagin and related substances were determined in the pericarp, juice, seed, and leaf of “taishanhong” and “taishansanbaitian” cultivars. the highest punicalagin content was 138.232 mg/g in “taishanhong” pericarp. pentagalloylglucose mainly existed in leaf, and the six other substances were mainly present in pericarp. hplc method can be used to further research on punicalagin metabolism in the pericarp, seeds, juices, and leaves of pomegranate.