A pre-column derivatization HPLC method for the determination of peimine(P)and peiminine(PE)in Bulbus Fritillariae has been developed. Under the derivatization conditions optimized,the calibration curve is Y1=-3.83×103+1.33 ×105X1,r=0.998 for P and Y2=-7.86 × 102+6.33 × 104X2,r=0995 for PE,where Y is the peak area and X is the weight of the alkaloid; the average recovery is 98.0%(n=5, RSD=2.1%) for P and 101.0%(n=5,RSD=4.1%)for PE,the linear range is from 0.504 μg to 3.126μg for P and from 0.520μgto 3.328μgfor PE,respectively. Results of the determination of the two alkaloids in several samples of different Fritillaria species from various parts ofthe country are presented.The results suggest that P and PE are two major chemical constituents in bulbs of different Fritillaria species,and that the method developed is generally appli-cable to the determination of the hydroxy group on aliphatic fused ring systems without steric hin-drance.
