Abstract: The HPLC characteristic fingerprint and cluster analysis method of Yinju antipruritic lotion were established. The HPLC method was used with CAPCELL PAK C₁₈ MGⅡ（4.6 mm×250 mm, 5 μm） as the chromatographic column, the mobile phase was methanol-0.2 % phosphoric acid solution with gradient elution, the flow rate was 1.0 mL/min, the detection wavelength was 330 nm, the column temperature was 25 ℃, and the injection volume was 5 μL. The fingerprint of different batches of Yinju antipruritic lotion was collected, the common peak, control fingerprint and similarity evaluation were determined, and the clustering and principal component analysis were carried out. The results showed that there were 15 common peaks in the fingerprint of Yinju antipruritic lotion and 4 components were identified. The HPLC fingerprint similarity of different batches of Yinju antipruritic lotion was greater than 0.9, indicating that the chemical constituents were basically the same. Cluster analysis can be divided into three categories. Principal component analysis showed that chlorogenic acid and linarin could be used as the main indicators of quality evaluation. The results of cluster analysis and principal component analysis were basically consistent. The method is accurate, stable, reproducible and specific, which can provide a scientific basis for the control and improvement of the quality standard of Yinju antipruritic lotion.

Key words: Yinju antipruritic lotion, characteristic fingerprint, cluster analysis, quality evaluation, HPLC