Characterisation of the degradation of salvianolic acid B using an on-line spectroscopic analysis system and multivariate curve resolution

Salvia bowleyana Dunn root is a novel source of salvianolic acid B and displays antitumor effects against gastric cancer cells

Salvianolic acid B (Sal-B) is widely used in China for the treatment of numerous diseases. Currently, Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge is the main source of this compound, but Salvia bowleyana Dunn, a surrogate of S. miltiorrhiza Bge, may provide a novel source for obtaining more Sal-B. In the present study, a simple method for separation and purification of phenolic compounds from S. bowleyana Dunn roots was employed. Sal-B was subsequently purified and its inhibitory effect on the gastric cancer HGC-27 and AGS cell lines was investigated. Sal-B extracted from S. bowleyana Dunn displayed significant antitumor activity in proliferation and apoptosis assays. Overall, it was found that S. bowleyana Dunn has a higher Sal-B content than S. miltiorrhiza Bge and may be used as a novel source of this potential anti-gastric cancer compound.

Chemical Analysis and Multi-Component Determination in Chinese Medicine Preparation Bupi Yishen Formula Using Ultra-High Performance Liquid Chromatography With Linear Ion Trap-Orbitrap Mass Spectrometry and Triple-Quadrupole Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Bupi Yishen Formula (BYF), a Chinese medicine preparation, has been clinically applied for the recovery of chronic kidney disease and for delaying its progress. Nevertheless, the chemical components in BYF have yet to be fully clarified. Ultra-high performance liquid chromatography with linear ion trap-Orbitrap mass spectrometry (UHPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MSⁿ) and triple-quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-TQ-MS/MS) methods were developed for qualitative chemical profiling and multi-components quantitative analysis in BYF. The chromatographic separation was performed on a Phenomenex Kinetex C₁₈ column (2.1 × 100 mm i.d., 1.7 μm) using gradient elution of water (A) and acetonitrile (B) both containing 0.1% formic acid. Eighty-six compounds, including flavones, saponins, phenolic acids, and other compounds were authenticated or temporarily deduced according to their retention behaviors, mass mensuration, and characteristic fragment ions with those elucidated reference substances or literatures. Among the herbal medicinal materials of the formula, Astragali Radix, Codonopsis Radix, Salviae Miltiorrhizae Radix Rhizoma, and Polygoni Multiflori Radix Praeparata contributed to the bulk of the dissolved metabolites of the formula extraction. In addition, seven analytes were simultaneously determined by UHPLC-TQ-MS/MS, which was validated and has managed to determine major components in BYF. The study indicated that the established qualitative and quantitative methods would be potent and dependable analytical tools for characterizing multi-constituent in complex prescriptions decoction and provided a basis for the evaluation of bioactive components in BYF.

A Comprehensive Strategy to Evaluate Compatible Stability of Chinese Medicine Injection and Infusion Solutions Based on Chemical Analysis and Bioactivity Assay

Stability of traditional Chinese medicine injection (TCMI) is an important issue related with its clinical application. TCMI is composed of multi-components, therefore, when evaluating TCMI stability, several marker compounds cannot represent global components or biological activities of TCMI. Till now, when evaluating TCMI stability, method involving the global components or biological activities has not been reported. In this paper, we established a comprehensive strategy composed of three different methods to evaluate the chemical and biological stability of a typical TCMI, Danhong injection (DHI). UHPLC-TQ/MS was used to analyze the stability of marker compounds (SaA, SaB, RA, DSS, PA, CA, and SG) in DHI, UHPLC-QTOF/MS was used to analyze the stability of global components (MW 80–1000 Da) in DHI, and cell based antioxidant capability assay was used to evaluate the bioactivity of DHI. We applied this strategy to assess the compatible stability of DHI and six infusion solutions (GS, NS, GNS, FI, XI, and DGI), which were commonly used in combination with DHI in clinic. GS was the best infusion solution for DHI, and DGI was the worst one based on marker compounds analysis. Based on global components analysis, XI and DGI were the worst infusion solutions for DHI. And based on bioactivity assay, GS was the best infusion solution for DHI, and XI was the worst one. In conclusion, as evaluated by the established comprehensive strategy, GS was the best infusion solution, however, XI and DGI were the worst infusion solutions for DHI. In the compatibility of DHI and XI or DGI, salvianolic acids in DHI would be degraded, resulting in the reduction of original composition and generation of new components, and leading to the changes of biological activities. This is the essence of instability compatibility of DHI and some infusion solutions. Our study provided references for choosing the reasonable infusion solutions for DHI, which could contribute the improvement of safety and efficacy of DHI. Moreover, the established strategy may be applied for the compatible stability evaluation of other TCMIs.

Identification of a Quality Marker (Q-Marker) of Danhong Injection by the Zebrafish Thrombosis Model

Quality-marker (Q-marker) is an emerging concept to ensure the quality and batch-to-batch consistency of Chinese medicine (CM). However, significant difficulties remain in the identification of Q-markers due to the unclear relationship between complex chemical compositions and the pharmacological efficacy of CM. In the present study, we proposed a novel strategy to identify the potential Q-marker of danhong injection (DHI) by an in vivo zebrafish thrombosis model. The anti-thrombotic effects of DHI and its major constituents were evaluated by the zebrafish model of arachidonic acid (AA)-induced thrombosis. The results indicated that DHI can attenuate tail venous thrombus and recover the decrease of heart red blood cell (RBC) intensity in a dose-dependent manner. The result that DHI prevented the formulation of thrombosis in zebrafish was also validated in the zebrafish thrombosis model with green fluorescence protein (GFP)-labeled hemoglobin. The major components of DHI, namely danshen (DS) and honghua (HH), as well as the major chemical constituents of DHI, also exerted anti-thrombotic effects, among which rosmarinic acid (RA) and p-coumaric acid (pCA) showed moderate anti-thrombotic effects. This is the first time that pCA from HH has been found as an active compound exerting an anti-thrombotic effect in a dose-dependent manner, whose IC₅₀ value is approximately 147 μg/mL. By analyzing 10 batches of normal DHI samples and five abnormal samples by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), we found the contents of pCA and RA can be positively correlated to the anti-thrombotic effect of DHI, suggesting that pCA and RA could be potential Q-markers of DHI to ensure batch-to-batch consistency. Our findings illustrated that discovering major active compounds from CM by in vivo pharmacological models can be a useful approach to identifying Q-markers of CM, and in vivo pharmacological models can be a potential tool to evaluate batch-to-batch consistency of CMs.

Toward a scientific understanding of the effectiveness, material basis and prescription compatibility of a Chinese herbal formula Dan-hong injection

Since traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is a complex mixture of multiple components, the application of methodologies for evaluating single-components Western medicine in TCM studies may have certain limitations. Appropriate strategies that recognize the integrality of TCM and connect to TCM theories remain to be developed. Here we use multiple unique approaches to study the scientific connotation of a TCM formula Dan-hong injection (DHI) without undermining its prescription integrity. The blood circulation improving and healing promoting effects of DHI were assessed by a qi stagnation blood stasis rat model and a mouse model of laser irradiation induced cerebral microvascular thrombosis. By UFLC-PDA-Triple Q-TOF-MS/MS and relevance analysis between chemical characters and biological effects, 82 chemical constituents and nine core components, whose blood circulation promoting effects were found comparable to that of whole DHI, were successfully identified. What’s more, the rationality of DHI prescription compatibility could be reflected not only in the maximum efficacy of the original ratio, but also in the interactions of compounds from different ingredient herbs, such as complementary activities and facilitating tissues distribution. This study provides scientific evidences in explanation of the clinical benefits of DHI, and also gives a good demonstration for the comprehensive evaluation of other TCM.

Degradation Kinetics and Mechanism of Lithospermic Acid under Low Oxygen Condition Using Quantitative 1H NMR with HPLC-MS

A novel quantitative ¹H NMR (Q-NMR) combined with HPLC-MS method has been proposed for investigating the degradation process of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) components. Through this method, in-situ monitoring of dynamics degradation process of lithospermic acid (LA), one of the popular polyphenolic acids in TCM, was realized under low oxygen condition. Additionally, this methodology was proved to be simple, rapid and specific. Degradation kinetic runs have been carried out to systematically investigate the effects of two key environmental factors, initial pH values and temperatures. Eight main degradation products of LA were detected, seven of which were tentatively structural elucidated with the help of both NMR and LC-MS in this work and salvianolic acid A (Sal A) was the primary degradation product of LA. A possible degradation pathway of LA was proposed, subsequently. The results showed that the degradation of LA followed pseudo-first-order kinetics. The apparent degradation kinetic constants increased as the initial pH value of the phosphate buffer increased. Under the given conditions, the rate constants of overall degradation as a function of temperature obeyed the Arrhenius equation. Our results proved that the Q-NMR combined with HPLC-MS method can be one of the most promising techniques for investigating degradation process of active components in TCM.

Chemical Analysis of the Herbal Medicine Salviae miltiorrhizae Radix et Rhizoma (Danshen)

Radix Salviae miltiorrhizae et Rhizoma, known as Danshen in China, is one of the most popular traditional Chinese medicines. Recently, there has been increasing scientific attention on Danshen for its remarkable bioactivities, such as promoting blood circulation, removing blood stasis, and clearing away heat. This review summarized the advances in chemical analysis of Danshen and its preparations since 2009. Representative established methods were reviewed, including spectroscopy, thin layer chromatography, gas chromatography, liquid chromatography (LC), liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS), capillary electrophoresis, electrochemistry, and bioanalysis. Especially the analysis of polysaccharides in Danshen was discussed for the first time. Some proposals were also put forward to benefit quality control of Danshen.

Conversion of salvianolic acid B into salvianolic acid A in tissues of Radix Salviae Miltiorrhizae using high temperature, high pressure and high humidity

Salvianolic acid A (Sal A), an important constituent of Radix Salviae Miltiorrhizae (RSM), is effective for the treatment of myocardial infarction (MI) and coronary heart disease due to its potential in the improvement of acute myocardial ischemia. However, its content is very low in RSM. So it is obvious to find a rich source of Sal A or to improve its content by conversion of other related components into Sal A modifying reaction conditions. In this research we focused on the conversion of Sal B into Sal A in aqueous solutions of RSM by using different reaction conditions including pH, temperature, pressure and humidity. During the reactions, the contents of Sal A, Sal B and danshensu in the RSM were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LCMS). The results indicated that the conversion of Sal B into Sal A in RSM tissues under the conditions of a high temperature, high pressure and high humidity was efficient and thereby, was readily utilized to prepare rich Sal A materials in practice.

Tissue-smashing based ultra-rapid extraction of chemical constituents in herbal medicines

Sample extraction is the first challenge in analysis of herbal medicines (HMs). Numerous methods have been developed to improve extraction efficiency, use less solvent and short time. In this work, a tissue-smashing based ultra-rapid extraction (TSURE) method has been proposed through the designed particle crushing, drastic stir, and dynamic molecular permeation at normal temperature. Factors in TSURE like extraction time, volts, and solvents were optimized for extraction efficiency of salvianolic acid B, cryptotanshinone, and tanshinone IIA from Salvia miltiorrhiza. The TSURE method was validated in terms of repeatability (RSD<2.2%) and extraction recoveries (93-106% with RSD<5.0%). TSURE showed a comparable extraction efficiency to conventional heat reflux extraction (HRE) and better than ultrasonic assisted extraction (UAE). The extraction time was about 2.0-3.0 min for TSURE, 60 times faster than the performance of HRE and 20 times faster than UAE. Microscopic analysis showed that the Krummbein diameter of plant particles after extraction were about 600-1200 μm for HRE and UAE, and decreased to 50-80 μm for TSURE. Subsequently, the developed TSURE was applied to high-throughput extraction of 19 S. miltiorrhiza samples collected in different regions of China. Besides, application of TSURE to other herbal medicines was also investigated, including Panax quinquefolius and Lonicera japonica. TSURE method provided an ultra-rapid and promising alternation for extraction of ingredients in herbal medicines, and can be extended to pharmaceutics, foods and cosmetics.

Danshensu is the major marker for the antioxidant and vasorelaxation effects of Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza) water-extracts produced by different heat water-extractions

Some of the major components of Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza), a widely used Chinese herbal medicine rich in phenolic acids, are thermosensitive and may degrade to other phenolic acids during extractions with heating. The chemical profiles of Danshen water-extract may vary with different heat water extraction at different temperatures, affecting the composition and bioactivity of the extracts. In this study, six water-extracts of Danshen obtained from heat reflux water extraction and microwave-assisted extraction with water (MAE-W) at different temperatures were tested for their composition and pharmacological effects. Among these extracts, the third-round MAE-W (100°C) extract had the highest phenolic acids and tanshinones contents, with the strongest antioxidant activity in 2,2-diphenyl-1-(2,4,6-trinitrophenyl) hydrazyl (DPPH) assay and ferric reducing/antioxidant potential (FRAP) assay. This extract also showed the strongest inhibitory effects on 2,2'-azobis-2-amidinopropane (AAPH)-induced hemolysis in human red blood cells, hydrogen peroxide-induced apoptosis in rat heart H9c2 cells and the highest relaxation effects on rat basilar artery. The antioxidant effects of Danshen water-extracts linearly correlated to their relaxation effects (r=0.895-0.977). Through multiple linear regression analysis, danshensu was found to be the most significant marker in the antioxidant and vasodilation effects of Danshen water-extract, while tanshinone IIA as the marker on hydrogen peroxide-induced apoptosis in rat heart H9c2 cells. Danshensu is, therefore, a useful marker for the quality control of Danshen water-extracts in antioxidant and vasodilation, while tanshinone IIA for anti-apoptotic potential of different extracts.