Determination of terpenoid indole alkaloids in hairy roots of Rhazya stricta (Apocynaceae) by GC‐MS

Rhazya stricta Decne . ( Apocynaceae ) is a medicinal plant rich in terpenoid indole alkaloids ( TIAs ), some of which possess important pharmacological properties . The study material including transgenic hairy root cultures have been developed and their potential for alkaloid production are being investigated . Objective In this study , a comprehensive GC‐MS method for qualitative and quantitative analysis of alkaloids from Rhazya hairy roots was developed . Methods The composition of alkaloids was determined by using GC‐MS . In quantification , the ratio between alkaloid and internal standard was based on extracted ion from total ion current ( TIC ) analyses . Results The developed method was validated . An acceptable precision with RSD  ≤  8 % over a linear range of 1 to 100 µg / mL was achieved . The accuracy of the method was within 94–107 %. Analysis of hairy root extracts indicated the occurrence of a total of 20 TIAs . Six of them , pleiocarpamine , fluorocarpamine , vincamine , ajmalicine and two yohimbine isomers are reported here for the first time in Rhazya . Trimethylsilyl ( TMS ) derivatisation of the extracts resulted in the separation of two isomers for yohimbine and also for vallesiachotamine . Clearly improved chromatographic profiles of TMS‐derivatives were observed for vincanine and for minor compounds vincamine and rhazine . Conclusion The results show that the present GC‐MS method is reliable and well applicable for studying the variation of indole alkaloids in Rhazya samples. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.