Comparative Analysis of Panax ginseng Berries from Seven Cultivars Using UPLC-QTOF/MS and NMR-Based Metabolic Profiling

Abstract

The commercial use of Panax ginseng berries is increasing as P. ginseng berries are known to contain large amounts of ginsenosides, and many pharmacological activities have been reported for the various ginsenosides. For the proper use of P. ginseng berries, it is necessary to study efficient and accurate quality control and the profiling of the overall composition of each cultivar. Ginseng berry samples from seven cultivars (Eumseung, Chung-buk Province, Republic of Korea) were analyzed using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTOF/MS) for profiling of the ginsenosides, and high-resolution magic-angle-spinning nuclear magnetic resonance (HR-MAS NMR) spectroscopy for profiling of the primary metabolites. Comparing twenty-six ginsenoside profiles between the variant representatives and between the violet-stem variant, Kumpoong and Sunwon were classified. In the case of primary metabolites, the cultivars Kumpoong and Gopoong were classified. As a result of correlation analyses of the primary and secondary metabolites, in the Gopoong cultivar, the metabolism was found to lean toward energy metabolism rather than ginsenoside synthesis, and accumulation of osmolytes was low. The Gopoong cultivar had higher levels of most of the amino acids, such as arginine, phenylalanine, isoleucine, threonine, and valine, and it contained the highest level of choline and the lowest level of myo-inositol. Except for these, there were no significant differences of primary metabolites. In the Kumpoong cultivar, the protopanaxatriol (PPT)-type ginsenosides, ginsenoside Re and ginsenoside Rg2, were much lower than in the other cultivars, while the other PPT-type ginsenosides were inversely found in much higher amounts than in other cultivars. The Sunwon cultivar showed that variations of PPT-type ginsenosides were significantly different between samples. However, the median values of PPT-type ginsenosides of Sunwon showed similar levels to those of Kumpoong. The difference in primary metabolites used for metabolism for survival was found to be small in our results. Our data demonstrated the characteristics of each cultivar using profiling data of the primary and secondary metabolites, especially for Gopoong, Kumpoong, and Sunwon. These profiling data provided important information for further research and commercial use.

Whitening and inhibiting NF-κB-mediated inflammation properties of the biotransformed green ginseng berry of new cultivar K1, ginsenoside Rg2 enriched, on B16 and LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells

“…1 B), but lowest Re among the others. Such finding has been supported by Yoon et al [ 9 ]. Anti-inflammatory activity of Kumpoong and K-1 were identified with the effect of LPS-induced NO production in RAW 264.7 cells.…”

“…GBs cultivars such as Chunpoong, Kumpoong, and Yunpoong were categorized according to variant physical representations (i.e., berry’s color and stem) [ 8 ]. Yoon et al [ 9 ] reported that only the Kumpoong (yellow color berry) has the highest ginsenoside Rg1 as compared to other existing cultivars. A new cultivar, K-1 has been reported recently with its superior representation which has excellent root shape and strong disease resistance [ 10 ].…”

Thermal transformation of polar into less-polar ginsenosides through demalonylation and deglycosylation in extracts from ginseng pulp

“…Yoon et al 28 detected malonyl-ginsenoside Rb1 and malonyl-ginsenoside Rd from seven cultivars of ginseng berry based on UPLC-QTOF/MS. Four malonyl-ginsenosides (malonyl-Re, malonyl-Rb 1 , malonyl-Rd, and malonyl-Rb 2 or malonyl-Rb 3 or malonyl-Rc), all of them are polar ginsenosides, were detected in GPS and GPE in the present study in that the ginseng pulps from which GPS and GPE were achieved were soaked in 100% ethanol immediately after picking.…”

HR-MAS NMR Applications in Plant Metabolomics

“…This is helpful when only one class has a medical application as in the case of Trichilia catigua [ 70 ] or Withania somnifera [ 71 ]. It can also help to distinguish between different cultivars of apples [ 72 ], melons [ 73 ], rice [ 74 ], persimmons [ 75 ], ginseng [ 76 ], almonds [ 77 ] and curtis [ 78 ].…”