Mao Shan, Du Qing-Yu, He Min, Sun Lei, Shi Jie, Zhou Xin, Zhu Xiu-Zhen, Yu Yong-Jie, Zhang Xia
School of Pharmacy, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan, China.
Qinghai Provincial Drug Inspection and Testing Institute, Xining, China.
J Ethnopharmacol. 2025 Jan 30;337(Pt 2):118883. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2024.118883. Epub 2024 Oct 5.
Flos Trollii (FT) is the dried flower of Trollius Chinensis Bunge of Ranunculaceae with the pharmacological properties of anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antiviral, anti-oxidative. The herb FT is not only a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) but also an extensively utilized ethnic medicine, employed by diverse ethnic groups including Mongolian, Tibetan, and Kazakh.
FT was taken as an example to construct a strategy of quality markers (Q-markers) identification based on effect, property flavor material basis, and rapid quantitative evaluation using near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy and chemometric methods of TCM.
Initially, the anti-inflammatory efficacy of FT from three places of origin was evaluated using the RAW264.7-cell inflammatory model, and the bitter property flavor was characterized using an electronic tongue. The high-performance liquid chromatography(HPLC) fingerprint of FT was generated, and the quality of FT from different origins was evaluated employing chemometrics. Next, potential anti-inflammatory and bitter property flavor compounds were screened utilizing a fingerprinting-effect relationship and fingerprinting-property flavor relationship model using partial least squares regression (PLSR). The Q-markers of the FT were confirmed based on the testability principle. Then, a swift, uncomplicated, and precise Q-marker content of the FT prediction model was developed by adopting NIR.
The main common fingerprinting peaks affecting FT's efficacy and property flavor were screened. Five of these compounds, 2″-O-beta-L-galactopyranosylorientin, orientin, vitexin, veratric acid, and isoquercitrin, characterized using HPLC and ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HRMS), could be regarded as Q-markers of FT. Q-marker content of the FT prediction model developed adopting NIR spectroscopy was rapid and effective.
According to the strategy proposed in this study, a quantitative NIR spectroscopic method to identify Q-markers could be a tool to improve the QC efficiency of TCM.
金莲花是毛茛科植物金莲花的干燥花，具有抗炎、抗菌、抗病毒、抗氧化等药理特性。金莲花不仅是一种传统中药，也是一种被蒙古族、藏族和哈萨克族等多个民族广泛使用的民族药。
以金莲花为例，构建基于功效、性味物质基础以及采用近红外光谱和化学计量学方法对中药进行快速定量评价的质量标志物（Q-标志物）识别策略。
首先，利用RAW264.7细胞炎症模型评估了三个产地金莲花的抗炎功效，并使用电子舌对其苦味进行了表征。生成了金莲花的高效液相色谱（HPLC）指纹图谱，并采用化学计量学方法评估了不同产地金莲花的质量。接下来，利用偏最小二乘回归（PLSR）的指纹图谱-效应关系和指纹图谱-性味关系模型筛选潜在的抗炎和苦味化合物。基于可测性原则确定了金莲花的Q-标志物。然后，采用近红外光谱建立了快速、简便、准确的金莲花Q-标志物含量预测模型。
筛选出了影响金莲花功效和性味的主要共有指纹峰。其中5种化合物，即2″-O-β-L-吡喃半乳糖基荭草素、荭草素、牡荆素、藜芦酸和异槲皮苷，通过HPLC和超高效液相色谱-高分辨率质谱（UHPLC-HRMS）进行表征，可被视为金莲花的Q-标志物。采用近红外光谱建立的金莲花Q-标志物含量预测模型快速有效。
根据本研究提出的策略，一种用于识别Q-标志物的近红外光谱定量方法可能是提高中药质量控制效率的一种工具。
