Yang Qing, Wulu Jiansang, He Min, Chen Ming, Liang Zichang, Li Juan, Li Jing, Zhang Zhifeng, Zhang Jianguang
Institute of Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, College of Pharmacy and Food, Southwest Minzu University, Chengdu, China.
Sichuan Provincial Qiang-Yi Medicinal Resources Protection and Utilization Technology Engineering Laboratory, Chengdu, China.
Rapid Commun Mass Spectrom. 2025 Dec 15;39(23):e10105. doi: 10.1002/rcm.10105.
Curcumae Rhizoma (Ezhu) and Curcumae Radix (Yujin) are both derived from Curcuma kwangsiensis (CK), an important species in the Zingiberaceae family. They have different clinical applications in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM): The rhizome is mainly used for antitumor treatments, whereas the radix is known for antidepressant and cholagogic effects, both officially listed in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia. However, non-medicinal parts such as the aerial portions and fibrous roots are sometimes mixed in, leading to confusion in clinical formulation use.
This study aimed to analyze different parts of CK, including its rhizome (RHCK), radix (RACK), aerial parts (APCK), and fibrous root (FRCK) using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-electrostatic field Orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q Exactive Orbitrap-MS), and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS).
These mineral elements of different parts in CK were determined by using (ICP-MS). The nonvolatile metabolites were achieved by UPLC-Q Exactive Orbitrap-MS, and the volatile metabolites were identified by GC-MS. Statistical analysis, including principal component analysis (PCA) and orthogonal partial least-squares discriminate analysis (OPLS-DA) model, was used to classify different parts of CK based on mineral elements and metabolites. Furthermore, linear discriminant analysis (LDA) was utilized to effectively differentiate the different parts by analyzing the data.
In total, 26 mineral elements, 738 nonvolatile metabolites, and 87 volatile metabolites were identified. Multivariate analysis revealed 14 mineral elements, 390 nonvolatile metabolites, and 42 volatile metabolites (VIP > 1) as potential markers. A LDA model effectively distinguished the four plant parts, achieving a classification accuracy of 95%.
These findings offer a practical strategy for accurately identifying and differentiating medicinal from non-medicinal parts of CK, reducing misidentification in TCM formulations and enhancing clinical safety.
莪术和郁金均来源于广西莪术，这是姜科的一种重要植物。它们在传统中医中有不同的临床应用：莪术根茎主要用于抗肿瘤治疗，而郁金则以其抗抑郁和利胆作用而闻名，二者均被正式列入《中国药典》。然而，有时会混入地上部分和须根等非药用部位，导致临床配方使用时出现混淆。
本研究旨在使用电感耦合等离子体质谱（ICP-MS）、超高效液相色谱-四极杆-静电场轨道阱高分辨质谱（UPLC-Q Exactive Orbitrap-MS）和气相色谱-质谱（GC-MS）分析广西莪术的不同部位，包括其根茎（RHCK）、根（RACK）、地上部分（APCK）和须根（FRCK）。
采用ICP-MS测定广西莪术不同部位的这些矿物元素。通过UPLC-Q Exactive Orbitrap-MS获得非挥发性代谢物，并通过GC-MS鉴定挥发性代谢物。使用包括主成分分析（PCA）和正交偏最小二乘判别分析（OPLS-DA）模型在内的统计分析，基于矿物元素和代谢物对广西莪术的不同部位进行分类。此外，利用线性判别分析（LDA）通过分析数据有效区分不同部位。
共鉴定出26种矿物元素、738种非挥发性代谢物和87种挥发性代谢物。多变量分析显示14种矿物元素、390种非挥发性代谢物和42种挥发性代谢物（VIP>1）为潜在标志物。LDA模型有效区分了四个植物部位，分类准确率达到95%。
这些发现为准确识别和区分广西莪术的药用部位与非药用部位提供了一种实用策略，减少了中药配方中的误认情况，提高了临床安全性。
