Food ingredients
hold a higher nutritional value as a botanical
supplement playing a vital role in modifying and maintaining the physiological
conditions that improve human health benefits. The Kashmir saffron
(
Crocus sativus
L; KCS) obtained from
dried stigmas is known for its aroma precursors and apocarotenoid
derivatives, imparting a wide range of medicinal values and therapeutic
benefits. In the present study, a simultaneous determination of apocarotenoids
and flavonoids in stigma-based botanical supplements was carried out
using analytical investigations. The high-performance thin-layer chromatography-based
qualitative analysis of the raw material (stigmas, stamens, and tepals)
and stigma extract has been carried out to identify apocarotenoids
and flavonoids. The rapid HPLC-PDA method for the simultaneous quantification
of KCS apocarotenoids was robust, precise (<5.0%), linear (
R
2
> 0.99), and accurate (80–110%)
as
per the single-laboratory validation data. Furthermore, the combined-expanded
uncertainty (95%;
K
= 2) was calculated and found
as 0.0035–0.007% (<5.0%) as per the EURACHEM guide for this
HPLC analysis. Additionally, an untargeted identification of 36 compounds
in the botanical supplement was based on the elution order, UV–vis
spectra, mass fragmentation pattern, and standards by ESI-MS/MS analysis
with comprehensive chromatographic fingerprinting. Thus, these analytical
approaches enable a composite profile of the stigma-based extract
as a potential supplement for human health benefits.