Food- and gender-dependent pharmacokinetics of paeoniflorin after oral administration with Samul-tang in rats

Cnidium officinale Makino: Phytology, Phytochemistry, Toxicology, Pharmacology and Prescriptions (1967-2023)

Cnidium officinale Makino (COM), a perennial herbaceous plant in the Apiaceous family, widely distribute in Eastern Asia and Asia-Temperate. It has a long history application as a traditional medicine for invigorating the blood and removing blood stasis, and also has been employed to diet, pesticide, herbal bathing materials, the cosmetic and skin care industry. However, there has been no associated review of literature in the past half a century (1967-2023). By searching the international authoritative databases and collecting 229 literatures closely related to COM, herewith a comprehensive and systematic review was conducted. The phytology includes plant distribution and botanical characteristics. The phytochemistry covers 8 major categories, 208 compounds in total, and the quantitative determination of 14 monomer compounds, total polyphenols and total flavonoids. The clinical trial in pregnant women and toxic experiments in mice, the pharmacology of 7 aspects and 82 frequently used prescriptions are summarized. It is expected that this paper will provide forward-looking scientific thinking and literature support for the further modern research, development and utilization of COM.

Pharmacokinetic Changes According to Single or Multiple Oral Administrations of Socheongryong-Tang to Rats: Presented as a Typical Example of Changes in the Pharmacokinetics Following Multiple Exposures to Herbal Medicines

The purpose of this study was to investigate the pharmacokinetic properties of ephedrine, paeoniflorin, and cinnamic acid after single or multiple doses of Socheongryong-tang (SCRT) were administered to rats, and to present an example of the pharmacokinetic changes following multiple doses of an herbal medicine. SCRT is a traditional herbal medicine that has been used clinically for a long time, and its main ingredients include ephedrine, paeoniflorin, and cinnamic acid. However, studies on the pharmacokinetic properties of SCRT are insufficient, and particularly, no pharmacokinetic information has been reported for multiple doses. In this study, SCRT was administered orally to rats once or multiple times, and plasma sampled at different times was quantitatively analyzed for ephedrine, paeoniflorin, and cinnamic acid using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. There was a difference between the pharmacokinetic parameter values of each component (especially in paeoniflorin and cinnamic acid) obtained after single or multiple doses of SCRT. The actual observed values of each component obtained after multiple doses of SCRT were clearly different from the predicted results of multiple-dose simulations based on the pharmacokinetic profiles obtained after a single dose. The results confirmed that the plasma concentrations and, thus, exposures to paeoniflorin and cinnamic acid were significantly increased when SCRT was administered multiple times, whereas that of ephedrine was not. The results of this study are expected to provide useful pharmacokinetic data for the safety and efficacy evaluation of SCRT in the future and demonstrate the necessity of pharmacokinetic comparison studies according to single or multiple oral administrations of herbal medicines.

Influence Factors of the Pharmacokinetics of Herbal Resourced Compounds in Clinical Practice

Herbal medicines have been used to prevent and cure diseases in eastern countries for thousands of years. In recent decades, these phytotherapies are becoming more and more popular in the West. As being nature-derived is the essential attribute of herbal medicines, people believe that taking them for diseases treatment is safe enough and has no side-effects. However, the efficacy of herbal resourced compounds (HRC) depends on the multiple constituents absorbed in the body and their pharmacokinetics. Thus, many factors will influence the clinical practice of HRC, i.e., their absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (ADME). Among these factors, herb-drug interaction has been widely discussed, as these compounds may share the same drug-metabolizing enzymes and drug transporters. Meanwhile there are many other potential factors that can also change the ADME of HRC, including herb pretreatment, herb-herb interactions, pathological status, gender, age of patient, and chemical and physical modification of certain ingredients. With the aim of ensuring the efficacy of HRC and minimizing their clinical risks, this review provides and discusses the influence factors and artificial improvement of the pharmacokinetics of HRC.

Simultaneous determination of wogonin, oroxylin a, schisandrin, paeoniflorin and emodin in rat serum by HPLC-MS/MS and application to pharmacokinetic studies

Wogonin and oroxylin A in Scutellariae Radix, schisandrin in Chinensis Fructus, paeoniflorin in Moutan Cortex and emodin in Polygoni Cuspidate Rhizome et Radix are anti-inflammatory active compounds. A method for simultaneous determination of the five compounds in rat was developed and validated using high-performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). The separation was performed on a Symmetry C₁₈ column (4.6 × 50 mm, 3.5 μm) with acetonitrile and 0.1% formic acid aqueous solution as the mobile phases. The detection was performed using multiple-reaction monitoring with electrospray ionization source in positive-negative ion mode. The calibration curves showed good linearity (r ≥ 0.9955). The lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) was 5 ng/mL for wogonin and schisandrin, 10 ng/mL for oroxylin A and emodin, and 15 ng/mL for paeoniflorin, respectively. The relative standard deviations of intraday and interday precisions were <11.49 and 14.28%, respectively. The extraction recoveries and matrix effects were acceptable. The analytes were stable under the experiment conditions. The validated method has been successfully applied to pharmacokinetic studies of the five compounds in rats after oral administration of Hu-gan-kan-kang-yuan capsule. This paper would be a valuable reference for pharmacokinetic studies of Chinese medicine preparations containing the five compounds.

Simultaneous determination of paeoniflorin-6′-O-benzene sulfonate (CP-25) and its active paeoniflorin (Pae) metabolite in rat plasma using UPLC-MS/MS: an application for pharmacokinetic studies

Paeoniflorin (Pae), a water-soluble monoterpene glucoside, is the main effective component of total glucoside of paeony (TGP) paeoniflorin-6′-O-benzene sulfonate (CP-25), an acylated derivative of Pae, was synthesized via esterification.

Pharmacokinetics, Safety, and Tolerability of Amygdalin and Paeoniflorin After Single and Multiple Intravenous Infusions of Huoxue-Tongluo Lyophilized Powder for Injection in Healthy Chinese Volunteers

PURPOSE

Huoxue-Tongluo lyophilized powder for injection (HTLPI), a traditional Chinese medicine preparation, is a compound of Persicae semen and Paeoniae Radix Rubra that is used mainly for treating blood-stasis obstruction syndrome in the acute stage of cerebral ischemic stroke. Amygdalin (AD) and paeoniflorin (PF) are 2 typical bioactive components in HTLPI and were selected as indicators for this pharmacokinetic study of HTLPI. The objective of this study was to investigate the safety profile, tolerability, and pharmacokinetic properties of AD and PF after single and multiple intravenous infusions of HTLPI in healthy Chinese volunteers.

METHODS

Twenty-one healthy Chinese subjects were recruited for this open-label, single ascending-dose (3, 6, and 9 g) and multiple-dose (6 g, once daily) study. Safety profile was assessed by adverse events and physical examination throughout the study. Serial plasma and urine samples were analyzed by HPLC-MS/MS. Pharmacokinetic parameters of AD and PF were calculated using noncompartmental analysis.

FINDINGS

In the single-dose phase of the study, the mean maximum plasma concentration and the mean area under the plasma concentration-time curve of AD and PF increased proportionally with each dose escalation. In the multiple-dose phase, the steady state was achieved by day 4 after multiple-dose administration of 6 g HTLPI. Mean pharmacokinetic parameters achieved on day 1 were similar to those on day 7. No significant accumulation was observed after repeat doses of 6 g HTLPI. Approximately 79.6% of the administered AD and 48.4% of the administered PF were excreted unchanged in urine within 24 hours. No serious adverse events were observed during the entire study.

IMPLICATIONS

The pharmacokinetic properties of AD and PF were linear after a single intravenous infusion of HTLPI in the dose range of 3-9 g. No systemic accumulation was observed with repeat doses of HTLPI. Sex had no significant effect on the pharmacokinetic properties of AD and PF. Intravenous infusion of HTLPI was well tolerated in healthy Chinese subjects.

Pharmacokinetic comparisons by UPLC-MS/MS of isomer paeoniflorin and albiflorin after oral administration decoctions of single-herb Radix Paeoniae Alba and Zengmian Yiliu prescription to rats

Zengmian Yiliu (ZMYL), a traditional Chinese formula, is designed to improve clinical efficacy and reduce adverse effects in combination with cisplatin in ovarian cancer chemotherapy. In ZMYL, Radix Paeoniae Alba (RPA, made from root of Paeonia lactiflora Pall.) acts as an adjunctive drug in cancer treatment by ameliorating side effects induced by radio- and chemotherapy. The pharmacokinetics differences between isomer albiflorin and paeoniflorin, the main components of RPA, after oral administration decoction of single-herb RPA and ZMYL were compared using a sensitive and accurate UPLC-MS/MS. The results indicate that there are statistically significant differences between the pharmacokinetic parameters: decreasing area under the plasma concentration-time curve (AUC), maximum concentration (Cmax ), elimination rate constant (Ke ) and increasing apparent volume of distribution (Vd ) and clearance (CL) for albiflorin, increasing distribution half-life (T1/2d ) and decreasing elimination half-life (T1/2e ), distribution rate constant (Kd ) and absorption rate constant (Ka ) for paeoniflorin in the ZMYL group compared with the single-herb RPA group. In comparison with albiflorin, the pharmacokinetic parameters of paeoniflorin included significantly increasing mean residence time (MRT) and Vd , decreasing CL and Ke in the single-herb RPA group and increasing MRT and T1/2d and decreasing CL, Ke and Kd in the ZMYL group. Both paeoniflorin and albiflorin are more likely, as the main active ingredients in RPA and ZMYL, to play a variety of pharmacological effects, and herb-herb interactions occur, resulting in different pharmacokinetics of albiflorin and paeoniflorin in RPA and ZMYL.

High-performance liquid chromatography determination and pharmacokinetics of coumarin compounds after oral administration of Samul-Tang to rats

Background:

Samul-tang has been traditionally used for the treatment of cardiovascular, gynecologic, cutaneous, and chronic inflammation disorders. Although coumarin compounds do have various pharmacological activities and the same may be present in Samul-tang, however there is little information about it.

Objective:

A simple and sensitive high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method has been developed for the determination of nodakenin, nodakenetin, decursin, decursinol, and decursinol angelate in rat plasma. To obtain a better understanding for pharmacological properties of Samul-tang, pharmacokinetic study of coumarin compounds was performed after oral administration of Samul-tang in rats.

Materials and Methods:

Chromatographic separation of the analytes was successfully achieved on a Phenomenex Luna C₁₈ column (4.6 mm×250 mm, 5 μm) using a mobile phase composed of acetonitrile water with a gradient elution at a flow rate of 1 mL/min. Noncompartmental analysis was performed.

Results:

Calibration curves for all analytes had good linearity (r² <0.999) in a wide linear range. The lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) ranged from 0.05 to 0.1 μg/mL. The variation of intra- and interday assay was less than 15%. Nodakenin, nodakenetin, and decursinol were determined in rat plasma after oral administration of Samul-tang.

Conclusion:

This developed and validated HPLC method was successfully applied to the pharmacokinetic study of three coumarin compounds in rats, given as a single oral administration of Samul-tang. These pharmacokinetic data of the nodakenin, nodakenetin, and decursinol could offer a new point of view to evaluate the pharmacological effects of Samul-tang.

Absorption and interaction of the main constituents from the traditional Chinese drug pair Shaoyao-Gancao via a Caco-2 cell monolayer model

Shaoyao-Gancao (Paeoniae Radix Alba and Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma) is a traditional Chinese drug pair widely used in decoctions for relieving pains, especially abdominal pain. We aimed to determine the intestinal absorption and interaction of three active compounds (glycyrrhizic acid, liquiritin, and paeoniflorin) in this drug pair. We investigated the transport of these compounds across intestinal epithelial cells by using the Caco-2 cell monolayer in both the apical-to-basolateral (A-B) and B-A directions. All compounds could only travel through the Caco-2 cell monolayer at a low level when the cells were treated with single component solutions. In the presence of verapamil, an inhibitor of P-glycoprotein (P-gp), the absorptive permeability (P_AB) of paeoniflorin and liquiritin increased significantly (p < 0.05) and efflux ratios decreased, while the absorption of glycyrrhizic acid did not change significantly, which indicated that paeoniflorin and liquiritin might be P-gp substrates. In addition, when liquiritin and glycyrrhizic acid in Gancao extract and paeoniflorin in Shaoyao extract were examined, P_AB of paeoniflorin and liquiritin were significantly higher, while glycyrrhizic acid retained the same absorption level compared to the corresponding single component solutions, which suggested that some certain ingredients in the extracts can promote the absorption of paeoniflorin and liquiritin, but not that of glycyrrhizic acid. Furthermore, compared to the results of treatment with individual extracts, treatment of cells with a mixture of the two extracts considerably increased (p < 0.05) the absorption of glycyrrhizic acid and paeoniflorin and showed no change in the absorption of liquiritin, which implied that the transport of glycyrrhizic acid and paeoniflorin is increased by some ingredients from the complementary drug in the drug pair, while that of liquiritin remains unaffected.

Effects of berberine and hwangryunhaedok-tang on oral bioavailability and pharmacokinetics of ciprofloxacin in rats

Hwangryunhaedok-Tang (HR) and berberine-containing single herbs are used to treat bacterial infection and inflammatory diseases in eastern Asia. The combination of berberine-containing herbal medicines and ciprofloxacin can be an excellent antibacterial chemotherapy against multidrug resistance bacteria. To evaluate the pretreatment effect of berberine and HR, vehicle, berberine (25 and 50 mg/kg/day), and HR (1.4 g/kg/day) were daily administered to rats for five consecutive days. On day 6, ciprofloxacin was administered (10 mg/kg, i.v. and 20 mg/kg, p.o.) to rats. To assess cotreatment effect of berberine and ciprofloxacin, berberine (50 mg/kg) and ciprofloxacin (20 mg/kg) were coadministered by single oral gavage. Pharmacokinetic data were estimated by noncompartmental model. Compared with ciprofloxacin alone (control group), coadministration of berberine (50 mg/kg) and ciprofloxacin significantly decreased C(max) of ciprofloxacin (P < 0.05). In addition, the pretreatment of berberine (50 mg/kg/day) and HR (1.4 g/kg/day) significantly decreased C(max) and AUC(0→∞), compared with control group (P < 0.05). The oral bioavailability of ciprofloxacin was reduced by cotreatment of berberine and pretreatment of berberine and HR. Our results suggest that the expression of P-glycoprotein and organic anion and/or organic cation transporters (OAT/OCT) could take a role in reduced oral bioavailability of ciprofloxacin by berberine and HR.