Research on UHPLC fingerprint and quantitative analysis of four components of ginger produced in Yunnan
Ginger is the fresh root and rhizome of Zingiber officinale Rosc., a plant in the ginger family. It is one of the important medicinal and edible Chinese medicinal materials with a long history of consumption in China. Its medicinal use was first recorded in the “Shennong Bencao Jing” and has the effects of “relieving surface coldness, warming the middle and stopping vomiting, resolving phlegm and cough, and relieving fish and crab toxins”. Modern pharmacological research has shown that ginger has various effects such as anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antibacterial, anti-tumor, neuroprotective, etc.
Ginger contains various components such as gingerol, volatile oil, etc. Among them, gingerol is an important functional component and flavoring substance in ginger, including 6-gingerol, 8-gingerol, 10 gingerol, 6-gingerol and other components. At present, quantitative research on ginger components is also focused on gingerol and volatile oil, among which 6-gingerol, 8-gingerol, and 10 gingerol are the indicator components of ginger in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia (2020 edition); At the same time, some scholars have used HPLC and UPLC fingerprint spectra to study the quality of ginger, but further research is needed to simultaneously analyze the fingerprint spectra of ginger and determine the content of gingerol components based on UHPLC method.
China has a long history of ginger cultivation and abundant germplasm resources. There are certain regional advantageous varieties in various regions. Due to differences in planting varieties and planting environments, there are also significant differences in the composition of ginger. Small yellow ginger from Yunnan and other places is a source and variety for medicinal selection. This study focuses on 20 batches of ginger from Honghe, Wenshan, and Qujing in Yunnan Province. UHPLC fingerprint spectra were established and chemometric analysis was conducted to compare the differences in composition between different origins and batches. Four gingerol components were selected for quantitative determination and analysis, in order to provide reference for subsequent quality evaluation of ginger raw materials and origin selection.

This study established a ginger UHPLC fingerprint by optimizing chromatographic conditions and investigating the preparation method of test samples, and determined a quantitative analysis method for components under the same chromatographic conditions as the fingerprint. At the same time, in order to better analyze the distribution patterns and interaction relationships of complex components in fingerprint spectra, chemometric methods were used to study the fingerprint spectra. Using the common peak area of 18 ginger fingerprint spectra as a variable, Origin Pro 2023 software was used for cluster analysis and principal component analysis. The results showed that although there were some differences among the samples in each batch, both cluster analysis and principal component analysis could divide the samples into two major categories (southeastern Yunnan and eastern Yunnan). Honghe and Wenshan are geographically adjacent to each other in the east and west, and the differences between the two samples are relatively small; The Qujing sample, which is adjacent to the north and south, has relatively large differences from the two places (and the collection location is relatively far away). Therefore, based on the distribution of three production areas and regions, OPLS-DA analysis was conducted using SIMCA14.1 software, which can effectively distinguish ginger from southeastern and eastern Yunnan. The selected differential chromatographic peaks with high contribution values are similar to the classification groups in cluster analysis and principal component analysis (4-gingerol, peak 1, 6-gingerol, peak 6, peak 5, peak 13, peak 15, and peak 11). There is a certain correlation between the results of the three chemometric analyses; The differences in composition may be related to the different planting environments and local climates in the north and south of the two regions.
The selection of variety and place of origin is important for the selection of medicinal ingredients for ginger. Ginger is grown in many parts of China, but there are significant differences in the content of 8-gingerol and 10 gingerol in ginger from different regions. Yunnan Xiaohuang ginger has a higher qualification rate. The quantitative analysis results of 20 batches of Yunnan ginger samples show that although the content determination methods for 6-gingerol, 8-gingerol, and 10 gingerol under the ginger item in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia (2020 edition) are different, the content determination values of ginger samples from the three places of origin in Yunnan are relatively high, making them suitable as medicinal raw materials; At the same time, four content determination results showed that the content of Honghe and Wenshan ginger samples was relatively similar, but there were some differences compared to Qujing ginger samples, mainly in the content of 6-gingerol, 8-gingerol, and 6-gingerol.
This study established a ginger UHPLC fingerprint method and was able to simultaneously determine the content of four gingerol components, which can provide reference for the selection of medicinal ginger production areas, quality research, and industrial application in the later stage.