A UPLC–MS/MS method for comparative pharmacokinetics study of morusin and morin in normal and diabetic rats

Deciphering the mechanisms of Yinlan Tiaozhi capsule in treating hyperlipidemia by combining network pharmacology, molecular docking and experimental verification

Yinlan Tiaozhi capsule (YLTZC) has been widely used to treat hyperlipidemia (HLP). However, its material basis and underlying pharmacological effects remain unclean. The current study aimed to explore the mechanisms involved in the treatment of YLTZC on HLP based on network pharmacology, molecular docking, and experimental verification. Firstly, UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS was used to comprehensively analyze and identify the chemical constituents in YLTZC. A total of 66 compounds, mainly including flavonoids, saponins, coumarins, lactones, organic acids, and limonin were characterized and classified. Simultaneously, the mass fragmentation pattern of different types of representative compounds was further explored. By network pharmacology analysis, naringenin and ferulic acid may be the core constituents. The 52 potential targets of YLTZC, including ALB, IL-6, TNF, and VEGFA, were considered potential therapeutic targets. Molecular docking results showed that the core active constituents of YLTZC (naringenin and ferulic acid) have a strong affinity with the core targets of HLP. Lastly, animal experiments confirmed that naringenin and ferulic acid significantly upregulated the mRNA expression of ALB and downregulated the mRNA expression of IL-6, TNF, and VEGFA. In sum, the constituents of YLTZC, such as naringenin and ferulic acid, might treat HLP by regulating the mechanism of angiogenesis and inhibiting inflammatory responses. Furthermore, our data fills the gap in the material basis of YLTZC.

Comparative pharmacokinetics of four major compounds after oral administration of Mori Cortex total flavonoid extract in normal and diabetic rats

Introduction: Mori Cortex has been used in traditional Chinese Medicine as an antidiabetic agent. The aim of this study was to establish a UPLC-MS/MS method for simultaneous determination of morin, morusin, umbelliferone and mulberroside A in rat plasma and investigate the pharmacokinetics differences between normal and diabetic rats following oral administration of Mori Cortex total flavonoid extract. Methods: Samples were pre-treated by protein precipitation and genkwanin was used as internal standard. Chromatographic separation was performed using a Hypersil GOLD C₁₈ column (50 mm × 2.1 mm, 3 μm). The mobile phase consisted of acetonitrile and water (containing 0.1% formic acid) in gradient mode at a flow rate of 0.5 ml/min. The transitions of m/z 300.9→107.1, m/z 419.3→297.1, m/z 160.9→77.0, m/z 567.1→243.2 and m/z 283.1→268.2 were selected for morin, morusin, umbelliferone, mulberroside A and internal standard, respectively. Results: The intra- and inter-day precision for analytes were less than 12.5% and the accuracy ranged from -8.1% to 3.5%. The extraction recovery was >88.5% and no obvious matrix effect was observed. The AUC _(0-t) and C _max of morin were 501.3 ± 115.5 ng/mL*h and 127.8 ± 56.0 ng/mL in normal rats and 717.3 ± 117.4 ng/ml*h and 218.6 ± 33.5 ng/ml in diabetic rats. Meanwhile, the AUC _(0-t) and C _max of morusin were 116.4 ± 38.2 ng/ml*h and 16.8 ± 10.1 ng/mL in normal rats and 325.0 ± 87.6 ng/mL*h and 39.2 ± 5.9 ng/ml in diabetic rats. For umbelliferone and mulberroside A, the AUC _(0-t) and C _max also increased significantly in diabetic rats (p < 0.05). Discussion: The validated method was successfully applied to the pharmacokinetic study in normal and diabetic rats.

Prediction of α-Glucosidase Inhibitory Activity of LC-ESI-TQ-MS/MS-Identified Compounds from Tradescantia pallida Leaves

Diabetes is a chronic disease that leads to abnormal carbohydrate digestion and hyperglycemia. The long-term use of marketed drugs results in secondary infections and side effects that demand safe and natural substitutes for synthetic drugs. The objective of this study is to evaluate the antidiabetic potential of compounds from the leaves of Tradescantia pallida. Thirteen phenolic compounds were identified from the ethyl acetate fraction of leaves of Tradescantia pallida using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. The compounds were then studied for the type of interactions between polyphenols and human α-glucosidase protein using molecular docking analysis. Prime Molecular Mechanics/Generalized Born Surface Area (MM-GBSA) calculations were performed to measure the binding free energies responsible for the formation of ligand-protein complexes. The compounds were further investigated for the thermodynamic constraints under a specified biological environment using molecular dynamic simulations. The flexibility of the ligand-protein systems was verified by Root Mean Square Deviation (RMSD), Root Mean Square Fluctuation (RMSF) and molecular interactions. The results authenticated the antidiabetic potential of polyphenols identified from the leaves of Tradescantia pallida. Our investigations could be helpful in the design of safe antidiabetic agents, but further in vitro and in vivo investigations are required.

Rapid Screening of Nonalkaloid α-Glucosidase Inhibitors from a Mulberry Twig Extract Using Enzyme-Functionalized Magnetic Nanoparticles Coupled with UPLC-MS/MS

Mulberry twigs are an important source of α-glucosidase inhibitors. To date, research studies on α-glucosidase in mulberry twigs have mainly focused on alkaloids such as 1-deoxynojirimycin (DNJ). Preliminary studies have shown that there may be more active nonalkaloid α-glucosidase inhibitors in mulberry twigs. In this study, we immobilized α-glucosidase on Fe₃O₄@SiO₂ for the first time and rapidly screened four nonalkaloid α-glucosidase inhibitors (kuwanon G, kuwanon C, kuwanon H, and morusin) using ligand fishing technology with ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) from the mulberry twig extract of Jialing 20, the excellent artificial triploid variety of mulberry cultivated extensively in Southwest China. The half maximal inhibitory concentrations (IC₅₀) of kuwanon H and kuwanon G were 2.82 ± 0.68 and 2.83 ± 0.31 μM, respectively, with better inhibition activity than that of DNJ (with an IC₅₀ of 7.04 ± 0.82 μM). Meanwhile, the molecular docking results showed that the action sites of these two isopentenyl flavonoids on α-glucosidase were different from that of DNJ. In brief, this work is beneficial to discovering new α-glucosidase inhibitors from mulberry twigs quickly and accurately and provides a theoretical basis for the mulberry twig extract as a functional food or a natural hypoglycemic drug source, as well as a reference for directional breeding of mulberry, which greatly improves the exploitation and utilization value of mulberry twigs as an agricultural byproduct in the fields of agricultural production, functional food, and natural medicine.

Based on Multi-Activity Integrated Strategy to Screening, Characterization and Quantification of Bioactive Compounds from Red Wine

According to French Paradox, red wine was famous for the potential effects on coronary heart disease (CHD), but the specific compounds against CHD were unclear. Therefore, screening and characterization of bioactive compounds from red wine was extremely necessary. In this paper, the multi-activity integrated strategy was developed and validated to screen, identify and quantify active compounds from red wine by using ultra high performance liquid chromatography-fraction collector (UHPLC-FC), ultra fast liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time-of-flight/mass spectrometry (UFLC-Q-TOF/MS) and bioactive analysis. UHPLC-FC was employed to separate and collect the components from red wine, which was further identified by UFLC-Q-TOF/MS to acquire their structural information. Furthermore, the active fractions were tested for antioxidant activity, inhibitory activity against thrombin and lipase activities in vitro by the activity screening kit. As the results, there were 37 fractions had antioxidant activity, 22 fractions had thrombin inhibitory activity and 28 fractions had lipase inhibitory activity. Finally, 77 active components from red wine were screened and 12 ingredients out of them were selected for quantification based on the integration of multi-activity. Collectively, the multi-activity integrated strategy was helpful for the rapid and effective discovery of bioactive components, which provided reference for exploring the health care function of food.

UPLC-MS/MS Profiling, Antioxidant, α-Glucosidase Inhibitory, Cholinesterase Inhibitory, and Cardiovascular Protection Potentials of Jialing 20 (Morus multicaulis Perr.) Mulberry Branch Extract

As a by-product in the sericulture industry, mulberry branches are not currently utilized effectively. Jialing 20 is an artificial triploids mulberry that widely cultivated in southwest China. In this study, the chemical composition of the Jialing 20 mulberry branch extract (MBE) was first analyzed by UPLC-MS/MS, and 42 components, including alkaloids, flavonoids, and coumarins, were obtained. Then, the antioxidant activities, hypoglycemic effect, Alzheimer’s disease inhibition, and cardiovascular protection of MBE were also evaluated in vitro. The IC₅₀ values for the scavenging DPPH and ABTS radicals were, respectively, 31.23 ± 0.57 μg/mL and 8.88 ± 0.36 μg/mL (IC₅₀ values of positive Vc were, respectively, 4.41 ± 0.19 μg/mL and 8.79 ± 0.41 μg/mL). The IC₅₀ value for inhibiting α-glucosidase was 1.90 ± 0.05 μg/mL (IC₅₀ value of positive acarbose was 0.03 μg/mL). The IC₅₀ values for inhibiting acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase were, respectively, 179.47 ± 0.38 μg/mL and 101.82 ± 3.37 μg/mL (IC₅₀ values of positive berberine were, respectively, 1.27 ± 0.03 μg/mL and 57.41 ± 0.21 μg/mL). MBE (10 μg/mL and 40 μg/mL) significantly increased the survival rate of oxidized low-density lipoprotein- (ox-LDL) induced human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and significantly decreased the intracellular reactive oxygen species. These results suggest that the extracts of Jialing 20 mulberry branches could be used as a functional food additive.

Component changes of mulberry leaf tea processed with honey and its application to in vitro and in vivo models of diabetes

Honey is a traditional food additive that can be used to preserve food, increase the flavour of food, and enhance the effect of some functional foods. Mulberry leaf is a popular tea, and it is also an anti-diabetic medicinal material. In the traditional processing of mulberry leaf tea, honey is a commonly used additive. This study used ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) to measure the changes in the contents of 11 components of mulberry leaves before and after processing using honey as an additive. We analysed the absorption and elimination characteristics of mulberry leaves before and after processing in diabetes in vivo models, and then compared the effect of mulberry leaves before and after processing in resisting hyperglycaemia and hyperlipidaemia damage in in vitro models. The results showed that honey, as an additive, not only improves the dissolution of mulberry leaves, but in diabetes models also increases the utilisation of some components. In an in vitro model, honey mulberry leaves could significantly reduce the apoptosis of vascular endothelial cells. This demonstrated that the traditional processing method using honey as an additive could promote the anti-diabetic effect of mulberry tea. So far, this is the first research report on the quality and role of honey as an additive in mulberry leaf processing.Abbreviations: ML: mulberry leaves; HML: honey mulberry leaves; QC: quality control; HQC: high quality control sample; LLOQ: lower limit of quantification; LQC: low-quality control sample; MQC: medium-quality control sample; MRM: multiple reaction monitoring; STZ: streptozotocin.

Pharmacokinetics study of 16 active ingredients from Tabson-2 decoction in normal and d-galactose induced osteoporosis rats by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

Tabson-2 decoction is the traditional Mongolian formula for anti-osteoporosis, and the ambiguous of active ingredient is an important factor in restricting its modernization and globalization. Although pharmacokinetic profiles research is a viable approach to find the components being responsible for formula efficacy, the pharmacokinetics study of Tabson-2 decoction has not been elucidated yet. Owing to the existence of isomers, low bioavailability of some small molecule and interference of endogenous, the pharmacokinetics study of Tabson-2 decoction are more difficult than that of chemical drugs. In our experiment, a specific and sensitive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method was developed and validated for simultaneous determination of 16 active ingredients in Tabson-2 decoction, which could fulfill the requirements of multi-compounds pharmacokinetic study of Tabson-2 decoction. Additionally, the ingredients with significant distributions in rats were gentianic acid, chlorogenic acid, and aucubin, which could be the main potential active components in Tabson-2 decoction. The components with a significant bioavailability difference between normal and d-galactose induced osteoporosis rats were achieved as well. These data offer useful information for screening the active ingredients in Tabson-2 decoction, and assessing the bioavailability of these active ingredients in different physiological status, which might provide a possible mechanism of anti-osteoporosis efficacy of Tabson-2 decoction.