Progress in the Pretreatment and Analysis of Flavonoids: An Update since 2013

ABSTRACT Flavonoids, among the major bioactive ingredients in many traditional Chinese medicines, have been widely considered due to their pharmacological and biochemical effects: antioxidant, anti-vascular disease and anti-inflammatory effects. To get a better understanding of the role of flavonoids in medicine, food safety and public health, valid and sensitive methods for their pretreatment and determination in different matrices are necessary. This review provides a comprehensive summary of flavonoid pretreatment and analytical methods in different samples since 2013. Pretreatment technologies include simple methods: precipitation protein and acid hydrolysis, and more elaborated ones: solid-liquid extraction, liquid-liquid extraction, solid-phase extraction, matrix solid phase dispersion, and different micro-extraction methods. Determination methods include liquid chromatography, gas chromatography, supercritical fluid chromatography, and electrochemical methods. Moreover, we discuss and compare the strengths and weaknesses of the different pretreatment and analytical methods and suggest a prospect.