In this study, an ionic liquid-based microwave-assisted extraction (ILMAE) followed by high-performance liquid chromatography-diode array detector with a pentafluorophenyl column for the extraction and quantification of eight flavonoid glycosides in pigeon pea leaves is described. Compared with conventional extraction methods, ILMAE is a more effective and environment friendly method for the extraction of nature compounds from herbal plants. Nine different types of ionic liquids with different cations and anions were investigated. The results suggested that varying the anion and cation had significant effects on the extraction of flavonoid glycosides, and 1.0 M 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bromide ([C4MIM]Br) solution was selected as solvent. In addition, the extraction procedures were also optimized using a series of single-factor experiments. The optimum parameters were obtained as follows: extraction temperature 60°C, liquid-solid ratio 20:1 mL/g and extraction time 13 min. Moreover, an HPLC method using pentafluorophenyl column was established and validated. Good linearity was observed with the regression coefficients (r(2)) more than 0.999. The limit of detection (LODs) (S/N = 3) and limit of quantification (LOQs) (S/N = 10) for the components were less than 0.41 and 1.47 μg/mL, respectively. The inter- and intraday precisions that were used to evaluate the reproducibility and relative standard deviation (RSD) values were less than 4.57%. The recoveries were between 97.26 and 102.69%. The method was successfully used for the analysis of samples of pigeon pea leaves. In conclusion, the developed ILMAE-HPLC-diode array detector using pentafluorophenyl column method can be applied for quality control of pigeon pea leaves and related medicinal products.
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