Characterization of Matricaria recutita L. flower extracts by HPLC/MS and HPLC/DAD analysis

Matricaria recutita L. is a spontaneous herbaceous perennial plant and its drug is largely used, as an infusion, for its anti-inflammatory properties, especially for respiratory and gastroenteric tracts. Granular soluble extracts of this drug are also used in children's diets. The purpose of this work was to investigate the polyphenolic content of different parts of chamomile flowers. Methanolic extracts were compared and directly analysed by HPLC-DAD and IBLC-MS. The comparison between UV-Vis and MS spectra, carried out in positive and negative ionisation mode, allows identification of all the main polyphenolic compounds present in different parts of the flowers. The findings reported herein both confirm the presence of several flavonoids, described previously, and evidence large amounts of caffeic and ferulic acid derivatives. No other evidence of the presence of these compounds in chamomile flowers has been previously reported. Quantitative comparison of the flavonoid and phenolic acid derivatives present in receptacles, ligulate, tubular and total flowers was also performed.