Changes in Triterpenes in Alismatis rhizoma after Processing Based on Targeted Metabolomics Using UHPLC-QTOF-MS/MS

Abstract

Alismatis rhizoma (AR) has been used as an herbal medicine in China for over a thousand years. Crude AR, salt-processed AR (SAR), and bran-processed AR (BAR) are recorded in the Pharmacopoeia of the People′s Republic of China. However, the differences of chemical composition between crude AR and its processing products remain limited. In this study, triterpenes were identified from crude AR, SAR, and BAR by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight-mass spectrometer (UHPLC-QTOF-MS/MS). Subsequently, the differences of triterpenes between the crude AR and processed ARs were compared via a targeted metabolomics approach. Finally, a total of 114 triterpenes were identified, of which 83, 100, and 103 triterpenes were found in crude AR, SAR, and BAR, respectively. After salt-processing, there were 17 triterpenes newly generated, 7 triterpenes with trends of increasing, and 37 triterpenes decreased. Meanwhile, 56 triterpenes including 21 newly generated and 35 with significant increases were observed in BAR. This study could be benefit to investigate the processing mechanism of AR, as well as support their clinical applications.

Properties and Fungal Communities of Different Soils for Growth of the Medicinal Asian Water Plantain, Alisma orientale, in Fujian, China

“…AR predominantly contain a suite of putatively bioactive terpenes, specifically protostane-type triterpenes and guaiane-type sesquiterpenes [ 34 ]. The triterpenoid components, including alisol B23-acetate, alisol B, and alisol C23-acetate, serve as the primary pharmacologically active compounds in AR [ 35 ]. In this study, we observed that AR cultivated in GST displayed robust growth with the maximum diameter value and heaviest weight, followed by those planted in SDT and SST, while AR planted in CST exhibited the smallest diameter and lightest weight ( Table 4 ).…”

Comparison of the effects and mechanisms of Alismatis Rhizoma with and without salt processing in ameliorating edema due to kidney Yin deficiency based on UPLC-Q-TOF-MS and transcriptomics

“…The TICs showed no notable differences in the chemical composition between AR and SAR, which indicated no evident formation or disappearance of novel components after salt processing. According to the relevant literature, [10][11][12][13] 63 primary compounds and 47 major terpenoids (including 2 sesquiterpenes and 45 triterpenoids such as alisol A, alisol B 23-acetate, and alisol C 23-acetate) were identified based on the relative retention time, accurate molecular weights, and MS/MS fragmentation information. Additionally, compounds 1, 7, 14, 25, 30, 46, and 52 were verified with standards.…”

Pharmacological Properties and Molecular Targets of Alisol Triterpenoids from Alismatis Rhizoma

“…Crude AR extracts contain a multitude of triterpenoids and their composition also varies with the processing method. In a recent study, up to 114 triterpenes were identified from salt-processed and bran-processed AR extracts using state-of-the-art ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry [ 31 ]. Another study pointed out over 220 compounds, including di-/tri-/sesqui-terpenoids, alkaloids, phenylpropanoids, flavones, steroids, and polysaccharides from AR extracts [ 2 ].…”