College of Pharmacy, Henan University of Chinese Medicine, Zhengzhou, Henan Province 450046, P. R. China.
Co-Construction Collaborative Innovation Center for Chinese Medicine and Respiratory Diseases by Henan & Education Ministry of P.R. Zhengzhou, Henan Province 450001, P. R. China.
Am J Chin Med. 2023;51(6):1547-1576. doi: 10.1142/S0192415X23500702. Epub 2023 Aug 2.
(CR) is traditionally used for treating gastrointestinal diseases. Wine-processed CR (wCR), zingiber-processed CR (zCR), and evodia-processed CR (eCR) are its major processed products. However, the related study of their specific mechanisms is very limited, and they need to be further clarified. The aim of this study is to compare the intervening mechanism of wCR/zCR/eCR on rats via faecal metabolomics and 16S rDNA gene sequencing analysis. First, faecal samples were collected from the control and CR/wCR/zCR/eCR groups. Then, a metabolomics analysis was performed using UHPLC-Q/TOF-MS to obtain the metabolic profile and significantly altered metabolites. The 16S rDNA gene sequencing analysis was carried out to analyze the composition of gut microbiota and screen out the significantly altered microbiota at the genus level. Finally, a pathway enrichment analysis of the significantly altered metabolites via the KEGG database and a functional prediction of relevant gut microbes based on PICRUSt2 software were performed in combination. Together with the correlation analysis between metabolites and gut microbiota, the potential intervening mechanism of wCR/zCR/eCR was explored. The results suggested that wCR played a good role in maintaining immune homeostasis, promoting glycolysis, and reducing cholesterol; zCR had a better effect on protecting the integrity of the intestinal mucus barrier, preventing gastric ulcers, and reducing body cholesterol; eCR was good at protecting the integrity of the intestinal mucus barrier and promoting glycolysis. This study scientifically elucidated the intervening mechanism of wCR/zCR/eCR from the perspective of faecal metabolites and gut microbiota, providing a new insight into the processing mechanism research of Chinese herbs.
（CR）传统上用于治疗胃肠道疾病。酒制 CR（wCR）、姜制 CR（zCR）和吴茱萸制 CR（eCR）是其主要的炮制品种。然而，它们相关的具体作用机制研究非常有限，需要进一步阐明。本研究旨在通过粪便代谢组学和 16S rDNA 基因测序分析比较 wCR/zCR/eCR 对大鼠的干预机制。首先，从对照组和 CR/wCR/zCR/eCR 组中收集粪便样本。然后，采用 UHPLC-Q/TOF-MS 进行代谢组学分析，获得代谢谱和显著改变的代谢物。进行 16S rDNA 基因测序分析，分析肠道微生物群落的组成，并筛选出属水平上显著改变的微生物。最后，通过 KEGG 数据库对显著改变的代谢物进行途径富集分析，并结合 PICRUSt2 软件对相关肠道微生物进行功能预测。通过相关性分析代谢物与肠道微生物之间的关系，探讨 wCR/zCR/eCR 的潜在干预机制。结果表明，wCR 在维持免疫平衡、促进糖酵解和降低胆固醇方面发挥了良好的作用；zCR 在保护肠道黏液屏障完整性、预防胃溃疡和降低体胆固醇方面效果更好；eCR 善于保护肠道黏液屏障的完整性和促进糖酵解。本研究从粪便代谢物和肠道微生物的角度科学阐明了 wCR/zCR/eCR 的干预机制，为中药炮制机制研究提供了新的视角。
