Screening and Identification of the Metabolites of Water Extracts of Raw and Honey-Processed Astragalus in Rat Urine Based on UHPLC/ESI-Q-TOF-MS and Multivariate Statistical Analysis

Abstract

Radix Astragali is a famous traditional Chinese medicine and honey-processed Astragalus is a product of Radix Astragali acquired by honey-processing. These two products are widely utilized to treat various diseases. In this study, we screened bioactive components and metabolites of raw and honey-processed Astragalus in rat urine by ultra-performance liquid chromatography equipped with electrospray ionization/quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC/ESI-Q-TOF-MS) combined with multivariate statistical analysis. In total, 62 compounds, including 7 parent compounds and 55 metabolites, were detected and 11 metabolites were characterized for the first time. The identified metabolites indicated that the metabolic reactions of Astragalus in rats included hydroxylation, glucuronidation, deglucosidation, monomethylation, demethylation, sulfation, hydrogenation, and dehydroxylation. The metabolic pathways of raw and honey-processed Astragalus in rat urine also were clarified. Through multivariate statistical analysis of the data of the raw and honey-processed Astragalus groups, we found that 20 compounds were differential components and that 1 metabolite only existed in the honey-processed Astragalus group. The differences in these ingredients between these two groups might provide the basis for interpreting the biologic activity differences in traditional Chinese medicine treatments. Graphical Abstract.

Strategies for determining the bioactive ingredients of honey‐processed Astragalus by serum pharmacochemistry integrated with multivariate statistical analysis

“…It was assumed that these two new ingredients might have been quickly transformed in vivo and existed in the form of their metabolites. This phenomenon was in accordance with our previous study in which astragaloside II was completely hydrolyzed into astragaloside IV in rat urine [9].…”

“…Studies have shown that the components successfully assimilated into blood could transform the potential bioactive ingredients [8]. Seven parent compounds and 55 metabolites were explored, and 11 metabolites were first characterized in rat urine in our previous study [9]. This paper aims to explore the serum pharmacochemistry of raw and honey‐processed Astragalus and further provides the experimental basis to find the bioactive ingredients of Astragalus .…”

Analysis of plasma migration components in Patrinia villosa (Thunb.) Juss. effective parts by UPLC–Q‐TOF–MS

“…The organic layer was vacuum dried. Residues were reconstituted in 25 μL of methanol, vortexed for 1 min, ultrasonically extracted for 2 min and centrifuged at 12,000 g and 4°C for 10 min (Huang, Chen et al, ). The supernatant was used for UPLC–Q‐TOF–MS analysis.…”

Colour, chemical compounds, and antioxidant capacity of Astragali Radix based on untargeted metabolomics and targeted quantification

“…The secondary metabolites of Astragali Radix were analysed by UPLC‐Q‐TOF‐MS in both positive and negative ion modes (Figure 3). A total of 31 compounds were identified or putatively characterised by comparison with standard compounds, accurate mass, and databases from the literature 8,25–30 . The identified compounds were numbered according to their elution order (Table S3).…”

“…A total of 31 compounds were identified or putatively characterised by comparison with standard compounds, accurate mass, and databases from the literature. 8,[25][26][27][28][29][30] The identified compounds were numbered according to their elution order (Table S3).…”