Beijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing 100850, China; Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100193, China.
Beijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing 100850, China.
J Pharm Biomed Anal. 2021 May 10;198:113984. doi: 10.1016/j.jpba.2021.113984. Epub 2021 Feb 17.
Epimedium herb is a well-known traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) that is used for treating kidney-yang deficiency, impotence and rheumatism, and flavonoids are the main active ingredients. The leaves and rhizomes of Epimedium herb are two separate kinds of medicinal materials with different functional indications and clinical applications. This study aimed to comprehensively analyze the chemical components of different parts of the herb from three Epimedium species (Epimedium sagittatum, E. pubescens and E. myrianthum) by using ultra high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with photo-diode array and quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-PDA-Q-TOF/MS) and multivariate statistical analysis to clarify the differences. Firstly, the workflow of UHPLC-Q-TOF/MS combined with UNIFI informatics was developed for characterizing the chemical compounds in different parts of Epimedium herb. Based on the exact mass information, the fragmentation characteristics and the retention times of compounds, all chromatographic peaks (74 chemical components) were identified. Secondly, 21 potential chemical markers for differentiating different parts of Epimedium herb were selected through PCA and PLS-DA analysis. The characteristic components in the leaves included flavonoids with Anhydroicaritin (type A, C-4' linked methoxy) as the backbone, and the characteristic components in the stems and rhizomes were Magnoline and flavonoids with Demethylanhydroicaritin (type B, C-4' linked hydroxyl) as the backbone. Thirdly, the UHPLC-PDA combined with heatmap visualization was employed to clarify the distribution of chemical components with high content in different parts of Epimedium herb. The results showed clear differences in the contents of chemical components in leaves, stems and rhizomes. The levels of flavonoids with Anhydroicaritin backbone were high in the leaves, and levels of flavonoids with Demethylanhydroicaritin backbone were high in the rhizomes. The levels of Magnoline in stems and rhizomes were higher than that in leaves. The contents of most of the compounds in stems remained low. The leaves and the other two parts (stems and rhizomes) can be distinguished by qualitative and semi-quantitative analysis of Magnoline and Epimedoside A (type B backbone). These results indicated that the different plant parts of Epimedium herb can be quickly and accurately distinguished by this method, establishing a foundation for the application of Epimedium herb.
淫羊藿是一种著名的中药，用于治疗肾阳虚、阳痿和风湿，其主要活性成分为黄酮类化合物。淫羊藿的叶子和根茎是两种不同的药用材料，具有不同的功能和临床应用。本研究旨在通过超高效液相色谱-光电二极管阵列-四级杆飞行时间质谱联用（UHPLC-PDA-Q-TOF/MS）和多变量统计分析，全面分析三种淫羊藿（箭叶淫羊藿、柔毛淫羊藿和朝鲜淫羊藿）不同部位的化学成分，阐明其差异。首先，建立了 UHPLC-Q-TOF/MS 与 UNIFI 信息学相结合的工作流程，用于表征淫羊藿不同部位的化学成分。基于精确质量信息、化合物的裂解特征和保留时间，鉴定了所有色谱峰（74 个化学成分）。其次，通过 PCA 和 PLS-DA 分析，选择了 21 个潜在的区分淫羊藿不同部位的化学标志物。叶片中的特征成分包括以安石榴苷（A 型，C-4' 位甲氧基连接）为骨架的黄酮类化合物，茎和根茎中的特征成分包括木兰碱和以去甲基安石榴苷（B 型，C-4' 位羟基连接）为骨架的黄酮类化合物。第三，采用 UHPLC-PDA 结合热图可视化的方法，阐明淫羊藿不同部位高含量化学成分的分布。结果表明，叶片、茎和根茎中化学成分的含量存在明显差异。以安石榴苷为骨架的黄酮类化合物在叶片中的含量较高，以去甲基安石榴苷为骨架的黄酮类化合物在根茎中的含量较高。茎和根茎中木兰碱的含量较高。大多数化合物在茎中的含量较低。通过对木兰碱和朝藿定 A（B 型骨架）的定性和半定量分析，可以区分叶片和其他两部分（茎和根茎）。这些结果表明，该方法可以快速准确地区分淫羊藿的不同植物部位，为淫羊藿的应用奠定了基础。
