Determination of Inorganic Element Concentrations in Nardostachys jatamansi DC

Background: Nardostachys jatamansi DC. is indigenous to the Himalayan regions of India and Tibetan plateau of China, and widely used as drugs for treating various neurological disorders, insomnia, hysteria and depressive illness. However, beyond the huge efforts to the organic components in N. jatamansi, the elemental contents have not been investigated, which are important for the quality control and biosafety evaluation of N. jatamansi. Objective: In this study, we quantified the element concentrations in N. jatamansi. Methods: Twenty-five N. jatamansi samples were collected in Sichuan, Tibet, Qinghai and Gansu provinces. The samples were digested and subjected to inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometer (ICP-OES) measurements. Results: The results indicated that Al, B, Ba, Ca, Cd, Co, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Ni, P, Pd, Si, Sr, Ti and Zn were detected in N. jatamansi samples. The chemometrics approaches indicated that N. jatamansi samples from Sichuan and Tibet shared similar elemental patterns. The altitude did not statistically influence the elemental patterns of N. jatamansi samples, while the K, P, Ba and Cd showed meaningful decreases. The high Ba contents in all samples suggested the potential toxicity of heavy metal to patients. Conclusion: The inorganic element quantification of N. jatamansi is useful in the genuine regional drug identification, quality control and biosafety evaluations.