High-performance liquid chromatography—Two wavelength detection of triterpenoid acids from the fruits of Ziziphus jujuba containing various cultivars in different regions and classification using chemometric analysis

Functional Nutrients and Jujube-Based Processed Products in Ziziphus jujuba

Jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.) is the first tree species in China, with a long history and abundant yield. However, fresh jujubes have a short shelf-life and are not resistant to storage. Therefore, more and more processed jujube products are being studied. These processed products can extend the shelf-life of jujubes and attract widespread attention for their rich functional nutrients. This review summarized changes in nutrients of fresh jujube and processed products and the research progress of different preparation methods of jujubes. Meanwhile, the pharmacological effects of bioactive components in jujube-based products were concluded. Jujube and its processed products contain rich polysaccharides, vitamin C, and other functional nutrients, which are beneficial to humans. As the initial processing method for jujubes, vacuum freezing or microwave drying have become the most commonly used and efficient drying methods. Additionally, processed jujube products cannot be separated from the maximum retention of nutrients and innovation of flavor. Fermentation is the main deep-processing method with broad development potential. In the future, chemical components and toxicological evaluation need to be combined with research to bring consumers higher quality functional jujube products and ensure the sustainable development of the jujube industry.

Nontargeted metabolomics and enzyme inhibitory and antioxidant activities for chemical and biological characterization of jujube (Ziziphus jujuba) extracts

The chemical and biologically active characterization of jujube samples (fruits, cores, and leaves) were carried out by the integrated nontargeted metabolomics and bioassay. Firstly, collision cross-section values of active compounds in jujubes were determined by ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography coupled with ion mobility quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Then, a multidimensional statistical analysis that contained principal component analysis, partial least squares-discriminant analysis and hierarchical clustering analysis was employed to effectively cluster different tissues and types of jujubes, making identification more scientific. Furthermore, angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) and 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) were used to evaluate the quality of jujubes from a double activity dimension. The analytical results obtained by using ACE and DPPH to evaluate the quality of jujube were different from multivariate statistics, providing a reference for the application of jujube. Therefore, integrating chemical and biological perspectives to evaluate the quality of jujube provided a more comprehensive evaluation and effective reference for clinical needs.

Triterpenoids in Jujube: A Review of Composition, Content Diversity, Pharmacological Effects, Synthetic Pathway, and Variation during Domestication

Chinese jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.) and its wild ancestor, sour jujube (Z. acidojujuba C.Y. Cheng & M.J. Liu), is a Ziziphus genus in the Rhamnaceae family. ZJ and ZA are rich in a variety of active ingredients, with triterpenoids being a unique active ingredient, which are present in the fruit, leaves, branches, and roots. More than 120 triterpenoids have been identified in ZJ and ZA, and have various biological activities. For example, betulinic and ursolic acids have anticancer, antioxidant, antibacterial and antiviral activities. ceanothic, alphitolic, and zizyberanalic acids possess anti-inflammatory activities. The MVA pathway is a synthetic pathway for triterpenoids in ZJ and ZA, and 23 genes of the MVA pathway are known to regulate triterpene synthesis in ZJ and ZA. In order to better understand the basic situation of triterpenoids in ZJ and ZA, this paper reviews the types, content dynamic changes, activities, pharmacokinetics, triterpenoid synthesis pathways, and the effects of domestication on triterpenoids in ZJ and ZA, and provides some ideas for the future research of triterpenoids in ZJ and ZA. In addition, there are many types of ZJ and ZA triterpenoids, and most of the studies on their activities are on lupane- and ursane-type triterpenes, while the activities of the ceanothane-type and saponin are less studied and need additional research.

Transcription Factors ZjMYB39 and ZjMYB4 Regulate Farnesyl Diphosphate Synthase- and Squalene Synthase-Mediated Triterpenoid Biosynthesis in Jujube

Jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.) is rich in valuable bioactive triterpenoids. However, the regulatory mechanism underlying triterpenoid biosynthesis in jujube remains poorly studied. Here, we characterized the triterpenoid content in wild jujube and cultivated jujube. The triterpenoid content was higher in wild jujube than in cultivated jujube, triterpenoids were most abundant in young leaves, buds, and later stages of development. The transcriptome analysis and correlation analysis showed that differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were enriched in the terpenoid synthesis pathways, and triterpenoids content was strongly correlated with farnesyl diphosphate synthase (ZjFPS), squalene synthase (ZjSQS), and transcription factors ZjMYB39 and ZjMYB4 expression. Gene overexpression and silencing analysis indicated that ZjFPS and ZjSQS were key genes in triterpenoid biosynthesis and transcription factors ZjMYB39 and ZjMYB4 regulated triterpenoid biosynthesis. Subcellular localization experiments showed that ZjFPS and ZjSQS were localized to the nucleus and endoplasmic reticulum and ZjMYB39 and ZjMYB4 were localized to the nucleus. Yeast one-hybrid, glucuronidase activity, and dual-luciferase activity assays suggested that ZjMYB39 and ZjMYB4 regulate triterpenoid biosynthesis by directly binding and activating the promoters of ZjFPS and ZjSQS. These findings provide insights into the underlying regulatory network of triterpenoids metabolism in jujube and lay theoretical and practical foundation for molecular breeding.

Metabolite and Gene Expression Analysis Underlying Temporal and Spatial Accumulation of Pentacyclic Triterpenoids in Jujube

Jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.) has attracted increasing attention because of its fruits’ high nutritional and medicinal value, which produce pentacyclic triterpenoids with valuable pharmacological activities beneficial to human health. However, the dynamic accumulation and metabolism pathway of triterpenoids remain unknown in jujube. Here, we performed metabolite assays of triterpenoids and expression analysis of genes involved in the corresponding metabolic processes on cultivated jujube (Z. jujuba cv. Junzao) and one type of wild jujube (Z. jujuba var. spinosa cv. Qingjiansuanzao). Our results showed that the triterpenoids accumulate predominantly in young leaves, annual stems, buds, and white-mature and beginning red stage fruit. Besides, the total triterpenoid content, ceanothic acid, oleanonic acid, and 3-ketoursolic acid were higher in ‘Qingjiansuanzao’ than in ‘Junzao’. Moreover, we found 23 genes involved in terpenoids metabolism were expressed in all organs, and the ZjSQS1, ZjCYP450/1, ZjCYP450/3, ZjOSC1, ZjFPS, and ZjAACT2 gene expression patterns were consistent with metabolites accumulation during fruit development. In addition, 100 μM MeJA induced ZjSQS1, ZjFPS, and ZjHMGR3 expression in leaves and enhanced triterpenoids accumulation. These findings will help understand the unique metabolism of terpenoids and will benefit further utilization and breeding of jujube as both edible fruit and functional food.

Genus Ziziphus for the treatment of chronic inflammatory diseases

Natural products and traditional medicine are rich sources for developing therapeutics for chronic inflammatory diseases. However, the way from natural products/traditional medicines to Western pharmaceutical practices is not always straightforward. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), chronic diseases are the greatest threat to human health. 3 of 5 people die due to chronic inflammatory disorders worldwide like chronic respiratory diseases, stroke, cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes, and obesity. Various nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are used to reduce inflammation and pain, but there are many side effects of these drugs' administration. Medicinal plants have therapeutic anti-inflammatory effects with low or no side effects. Ziziphus plant species are generally safe and not toxic to humans. Many studies on the Ziziphus species have shown that their therapeutic properties are attributed to the roots, leaves and fruits. Unfortunately, Ziziphus species from different regions worldwide with anti-inflammatory properties have not been documented in a single review paper. Therefore, it is crucial to establish ethnobotanical knowledge and applications of Ziziphus species against chronic inflammatory diseases. The current article exhaustively reviews phytochemical profile, pharmacological studies, toxicological effects, and ethnobotanical uses of Genus Ziziphus in chronic anti-inflammatory diseases. The present review article also highlights the most promising experimental data on Ziziphus extracts and pure compounds active in clinical trials and animal models of chronic inflammatory diseases. This review would be a valuable resource for contemporary researchers in the field to understand the promising role of the Ziziphus genus in chronic inflammatory disorders.

Phenolic profile of jujube fruit subjected to gut microbiota fermentation and its antioxidant potential against ethyl carbamate-induced oxidative damage

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate the composition of bioactive substances and the antioxidant effects of jujube fruit under gut microbiota fermentation (GMF), and the inhibitory effect on cytotoxicity caused by ethyl carbamate (EC).

METHODS

Changes in the contents of flavonoids, polyphenols, total sugars, and reducing sugars of jujube fruit after GMF (0, 2, 6, 12, 24, and 48 h) were determined. The oxidation resistance of fermented jujube fruits (from 0 to 48 h fermentation) was evaluated using in vitro 2,2'-azinobis-(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulphonate) (ABTS) and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays. Inhibitory effects of 48 h-fermented jujube fruit at various concentrations (0.25, 0.50, 1.00, and 2.00 mg/mL) on EC-treated toxicity and DNA damage of Caco-2 cells were estimated using 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) and nuclear staining assays, respectively. Effects of different concentrations of jujube fruit on EC-treated Caco-2 cells' intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), glutathione (GSH) levels, and mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) were also evaluated.

RESULTS

Jujube fruit has rich bioactive components after GMF and shows strong antioxidant capacity. Fermented jujube fruit can inhibit the cytotoxicity and DNA damage of Caco-2 cells caused by EC and reduce intracellular ROS generation, as well as restoring GSH and MMP.

CONCLUSIONS

Fermented jujube fruit extracts produced by GMF still contain biologically active substances which retain biological activity and antioxidation capabilities.

Therapeutic Potential of Ursonic Acid: Comparison with Ursolic Acid

Plants have been used as drugs to treat human disease for centuries. Ursonic acid (UNA) is a naturally occurring pentacyclic triterpenoid extracted from certain medicinal herbs such as Ziziphus jujuba. Since the pharmacological effects and associated mechanisms of UNA are not well-known, in this work, we attempt to introduce the therapeutic potential of UNA with a comparison to ursolic acid (ULA), a well-known secondary metabolite, for beneficial effects. UNA has a keto group at the C-3 position, which may provide a critical difference for the varied biological activities between UNA and ULA. Several studies previously showed that UNA exerts pharmaceutical effects similar to, or stronger than, ULA, with UNA significantly decreasing the survival and proliferation of various types of cancer cells. UNA has potential to exert inhibitory effects in parasitic protozoa that cause several tropical diseases. UNA also exerts other potential effects, including antihyperglycemic, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, and antioxidant activities. Of note, a recent study highlighted the suppressive potential of UNA against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Molecular modifications of UNA may enhance bioavailability, which is crucial for in vivo and clinical studies. In conclusion, UNA has promising potential to be developed in anticancer and antiprotozoan pharmaceuticals. In-depth investigations may increase the possibility of UNA being developed as a novel reagent for chemotherapy.

Role of exogenous melatonin involved in phenolic metabolism of Zizyphus jujuba fruit

To investigate the effects of exogenous melatonin (MLT) treatment on the quality of postharvest jujubes, fresh 'Lingwuchangzao', and 'Dongzao' jujubes (Zizyphus jujuba Mill) were dipped in MLT solution at the dose of 0, 50,100 and 200 μmol L^-1 for 20 min. Results showed the exogenous MLT application significantly delayed the color change and firmness decline, and maintained the content of total soluble solids and titratable acidity of both jujube cultivars, (p < 0.05). It was demonstrated that the endogenous MLT content was increased by exogenous MLT treatment. Furthermore, phenolic compounds level was enhanced by MLT application, companied by the upregulated expression of main genes involved in phenolic biosynthesis, including phenylalanine ammonia-lyase, cinnamate 4-hydroxylase, chalcone synthase, flavonoid 3β-hydroxylase, leucoanthocyanidin reductase, and anthocyanidin synthase. Given the evidence from the present study, it's proposed that the exogenous MLT approach is a promising approach for maintaining quality attributes and delaying the senescence of postharvest jujubes.

Recent Advances in Standardization of Herbal Drugs

Background:

Herbal drugs play a significant role to maintain the human healthiness and to treat the ailments since the dawn of civilization. Moreover, these plants have provided many lead compounds that culminated in modern medicine. A single herb is regarded as mini-combinatorial library of phytoconstituents hence the quality control of herbal drugs in an herbal formulation is not an easy task because a number of factors impact their pharmacological efficiency and consistent therapeutic effects. Hence, to provide consistent beneficial therapeutic effects, standardized herbal products of consistent quality and purity are required.

Methods:

This review is based on publications obtained by a selective search in PubMed using the keywords “Standardized herbal products”, “fingerprinting”, “authentication”, “chemometric, hyphenated techniques”, “quality control of herbal drugs”, “identification”.

Results:

In the era of modernization, chromatographic techniques coupled with sophisticated spectroscopic analytical methods are used in estimating the authenticity, identity and characteristic of herbal products. Further, with the advancement of computer technology, chemometrics methods have become a leading tool with an unsupervised pattern recognition technique for handling multivariate data without prior knowledge about the studied samples and mines more beneficial and valuable information about the chemical entities from the raw data.

Conclusion:

Standardization of HDs chromatographic fingerprint is not always a perfect way to present all compounds. To assess the quality of medicinal plants, new ways are regularly being explored such as combination chemical fingerprint with biological methods, biofingerprint and metabolic fingerprint quality metrology, pharmacodynamics and export system of medicinal plants have been researched in some groups but still a significant amount of work is required to achieve a perfect system for quality evaluation of herbal drugs. Further, novel chemometric techniques have been unfolded that mines more beneficial and valuable information about the chemical entities from the raw data. So this review emphasis mainly on hyphenated techniques associated with chemometric method used in herbal drugs for identifying more valuable information and various methods for providing data, among which most commonly used techniques are chemometric resolution method and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) method.

Control of Fungal Diseases and Increase in Yields of a Cultivated Jujube Fruit (Zizyphus jujuba Miller var. inermis Rehder) Orchard by Employing Lysobacter antibioticus HS124

The objective of this study is to investigate the inhibitory effects of Lysobacter antibioticus HS124 on fungal phytopathogens causing gray mold rot, stem rot, and anthracnose. Another objective of this study is to promote the yield of fruit in jujube farms. L. antibioticus HS124 produces chitinase, a lytic enzyme with the potential to reduce mycelial growth of fungal phytopathogens involving hyphal alterations with swelling and bulbous structures, by 20.6 to 27.3%. Inoculation with L. antibioticus HS124 decreased the appearance of fungal diseases in jujube farms and increased the fruit yield by decreasing fruit wilting and dropping. In addition, L. antibioticus HS124 produced the phytohormone auxin to promote vegetative growth, thereby increasing the fruit size. The yield of jujube fruits after L. antibioticus HS124 inoculation was increased by 6284.67 g/branch, which was 2.9-fold higher than that of the control. Auxin also stimulated fine root development and nutrient uptake in jujube trees. The concentrations of minerals, such as K, Ca, Mg, and P in jujube fruits after L. antibioticus HS124 inoculation were significantly increased (1.4- to 2.0-fold greater than the concentrations in the control). These results revealed that L. antibioticus HS124 could not only control fungal diseases but also promote fruit yield in jujube farms.

Ursonic acid exerts inhibitory effects on matrix metalloproteinases via ERK signaling pathway

Ursonic acid is a pentacyclic triterpenoid compound that can be extracted from Ziziphus jujuba Mill., a traditional medicine. Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are involved in cancer metastasis and skin aging. Regulation of various MMPs is closely associated with mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs), including ERK, p38, and JNK MAPKs. In this study, we investigated the possibility of ursonic acid as an anti-cancer/anti-skin aging agent targeting MMPs. Cytotoxic effects of ursonic acid were analyzed by cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) assay. Invasive abilities of ursonic acid-treated A549 and H1299 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells were tested with Boyden chamber assay. Effects of ursonic acid on MMPs were analyzed by zymography assays and quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). We also conducted flow cytometry and western blot analysis to elucidate the mechanisms of MMP regulation by ursonic acid. Our results revealed that ursonic acid inhibited transcriptional expression of gelatinases (MMP-2 and MMP-9) via inhibition of ERK and CREB signaling pathways in NSCLC cells. Moreover, ursonic acid reduced mRNA levels of collagenase (MMP-1) via suppression of ERK and c-Fos signaling pathways in HaCaT keratinocytes. These results suggest that ursonic acid could be a potential candidate for development of an effective novel anti-cancer and anti-wrinkle agent.

Anti-inflammatory and cytotoxic activities of constituents isolated from the fruits of Ziziphus jujuba var. inermis Rehder

Three new sesquilignans, zijusesquilignans A-C (1-3), together with fifteen known compounds (4-18), were isolated from fruits of Ziziphus jujuba var. inermis Rehder (Rhamnaceae). Their chemical structures were established using spectroscopic analyses including 1D- and 2D-NMR, HR-EIMS, and ECD spectra. These compounds were assessed for their inhibitory effects on nitric oxide (NO) production. Of these compounds, 1-3 and 17 displayed inhibitory effects on NO production, with IC₅₀ values ranging from 18.1 to 66.4 μM. Pretreatment with 1 and 17 significantly suppressed LPS-induced expression of nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) protein in cells. Moreover, compounds 1-3, 7, 9, and 17 exhibited cytotoxic activities against three human tumor cell lines, with IC₅₀ values ranging from 8.4 to 44.9 μM.

Simultaneous determination of eight flavonoids in Sedum sarmentosum Bunge from different areas by UHPLC with triple quadrupole MS/MS

Sedum sarmentosum Bunge (SSB) is a traditional Chinese herbal medicine containing multiple components that has been extensively used clinically to treat chronic viral hepatitis and some inflammatory diseases. Total flavonoids are major pharmacologically active components of SSB. To gain a deeper understanding of SSB resources, we analyzed eight chemical constituents in 33 batches of SSB from 11 regions in China. An accurate, precise and sensitive ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with triple quadrupole electrospray tandem mass spectrometry method was developed for the determination of eight flavonoids in SSB. Under the optimized chromatographic conditions, good separation for the eight target components was obtained on an Agilent Zobax SB C₁₈ (50 × 2.1 mm, 5 μm) column within 4 min. The established methods were validated with good linearity (r ≥ 0.9988), precision (RSD ≤ 2.68%), stability (1.43-3.28%) and repeatability (1.14-2.89%). Moreover, the average recoveries were 95.91-100.68%, and the RSDs were 1.50-3.80%. In addition, the analytical conditions of UPLC-ESI-MS/MS provided better sensitivity with a shorter analysis time when compared with the HPLC-DAD method. Hierarchical clustering analysis and principal component analysis were performed to estimate and classify these samples based on the contents of the eight chemical constituents. This study provided the theoretical basis and scientific evidence for the development and utilization of SSB resources.

Triterpenoids from Ziziphus jujuba induce apoptotic cell death in human cancer cells through mitochondrial reactive oxygen species production

Ziziphus jujuba var. inermis Rehder is an edible fruit-producing species of the Rhamnaceae family. In the present study, we isolated eight triterpenoids (1-8) from the fruits of Z. jujuba var. inermis and evaluated their apoptotic cell-death-inducing activities in human cancer cell lines (A549, PC-3, and MDA-MB-231). The structures of compounds 1-8 were determined by spectroscopic methods. Among these, four isomers of coumaroyl alphitolic acid showed potent cytotoxic activities on these cancer cells: 3-O-cis-p-coumaroyl alphitolic acid (3), 3-O-trans-p-coumaroyl alphitolic acid (4), 2-O-trans-p-coumaroyl alphitolic acid (5), and 2-O-cis-p-coumaroyl alphitolic acid (6). Moreover, compounds 3-6 induced apoptotic cell death in a concentration-dependent manner. We further investigated the apoptosis-inducing effects of compound 4 in PC-3 cells which triggered the cleavage of procaspase-3, procaspase-7, procaspase-8, bid, and PARP. Compound 4 increased both the mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and the phosphorylation of p38 MAPK (mitogen-activated protein kinase), but decreased the mitochondrial membrane potential. Pretreatment with Mito-TEMPO (a specific mitochondrial-targeted antioxidant) or a specific p38 inhibitor (SB203580) attenuated apoptotic cell death triggered by compound 4 which suggests that compound 4 may induce apoptotic cell death in these cancer cells by increasing the mitochondrial ROS production as well as the subsequent p38 MAPK activation. The study findings provide a rational base to use Ziziphus extracts for cancer treatments in traditional oriental medicine.

In Vivo Anti-Inflammatory, Anti-Bacterial and Anti-Diarrhoeal Activity of Ziziphus Jujuba Fruit Extract

BACKGROUND

Ziziphus jujuba belongs to family Rhamnaceae widely distributed in subtropical and tropical countries. It is used traditionally for several pharmacological purposes including anti-inflammation, antidiarrhoeal and antibacterial, as well as tonic and sometimes as hypnotic (sedative).

AIM

To determine the in vivo antidiarrhoeal, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory activities of Z. jujuba fruit ethanolic extract.

METHOD

The fruit was macerated and extracted by 95% (v/v) ethanol. The antidiarrhoeal activity was evaluated using castor oil and Escherichia coli induced diarrhoea mouse model. The antidiarrhoeal and antibacterial activity was investigated at graded doses (400-1200 mg/kg). The anti-inflammatory effects were tested using the carrageenan-induced paw oedema in female Wistar rats. Rat's treatment groups received tragacanth, 100 mg/kg diclofenac sodium, 800 mg/kg, 1200 mg/kg or 1600 mg/kg of an ethanolic extract of Z. jujuba (EEZJ). All treatment groups were fed with the compounds one hour before carrageenan injection at of rat's paw. Also, the EEZJ was further analysed by HPLC-PDA system for identification of the presence of betulinic acid and quercetin.

RESULTS

EEZJ different doses did not show inhibitory activity against castor oil induced diarrhoea except for the higher (1200 mg/kg) dose. However, the frequency of defecation of stools and watery stool were reduced significantly when compared to control group (P ≤ 0.05 and P ≤ 0.01 respectively), resulted in overall 67% inhibition of diarrhoea. Our anti-inflammatory results demonstrated that EEZJ was able to inhibit the carrageenan-induced paw oedema in rats to a significant degree (p ≤ 0.05) and the paw volume and thickness of both left and right paw were affected compared to the negative control group.

CONCLUSION

EEZJ possesses antidiarrhoeal and antibacterial activity in a dose depending manner and may provide a pharmacological basis for its clinical use in diarrheal diseases. The activity may partially be due to the presence of betulinic acid and quercetin.

Protective Effect of Flavonoids from Ziziphus jujuba cv. Jinsixiaozao against Acetaminophen-Induced Liver Injury by Inhibiting Oxidative Stress and Inflammation in Mice

This study was aimed to investigate the chemical composition, antioxidant activities and hepatoprotective effect of flavonoids from Ziziphus jujuba cv. Jinsixiaozao (ZJF). The composition of ZJF was analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS), and antioxidant properties were investigated by biological assays in vitro. The hepatoprotective activity of ZJF was evaluated in acetaminophen (APAP)-treated BALB/c mice. Results indicate that ZJF displayed significant antioxidant capacity. Pretreatment with ZJF significantly decreased APAP-elevated serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and total bilirubin (TB). Activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) were enhanced with ZJF administration, while malondialdehyde (MDA) level and glutathione (GSH) depletion were reduced. Meanwhile, ZJF reversed the suppression of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) nuclear translocation, and up-regulated the protein expression of NAD(P)H: quinone oxidoreductase 1(NQO1) in liver damage mice. Furthermore, ZJF attenuated APAP-induced inflammatory mediator production, such as nitric oxide (NO), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β). Expression of p65 showed that ZJF dampened nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) activation. The results strongly indicate that the hepatoprotective role of ZJF in APAP-induced hepatotoxicity might result from its induction of antioxidant defense via activation of Nrf2 and reduction of inflammation via inhibition of NF-κB.

Comparative analysis of 15 chemical constituents in Scutellaria baicalensis stem-leaf from different regions in China by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography with triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry

Scutellaria baicalensis is a traditional Chinese herbal medicine containing multiple components, which has been extensively used in clinics to treat epidemic febrile disease and hyperactivity cough. To get a deeper understanding about Scutellaria baicalensis stem-leaf resources, we analyzed 15 chemical constituents in 35 batches of Scutellaria baicalensis stem-leaf from eight regions in China. A rapid, simple, and sensitive method using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with triple quadrupole electrospray tandem mass spectrometry has been developed for the first time to simultaneously determine 15 chemical constituents (including phenolic acids and flavonoids) in Scutellaria baicalensis stem-leaf. Sufficient separation of 15 target constituents was achieved on a Waters Acquity UPLC BEH C₁₈ (2.1 mm × 100 mm, 1.7 μm) column within 14 min under the optimized chromatographic conditions. The established method was validated and showed good linearity, precision, repeatability, stability, and recovery and was successfully applied for the simultaneous determination of the 15 chemical constituents in these samples. Hierarchical clustering analysis and principal components analysis were performed to estimate and classify these samples based on the contents of the 15 chemical constituents. This study provided theoretical basis and scientific evidence for the development and utilization of Scutellaria baicalensis stem-leaf resources.

Implementation of chemometrics in quality evaluation of food and beverages

Conventional methods for food quality evaluation based on chemical or microbiological analysis followed by traditional univariate statistics such as ANOVA are considered insufficient for some purposes. More sophisticated instrumental methods including spectroscopy and chromatography, in combination with multivariate analysis-chemometrics, can be used to determine food authenticity, identify adulterations or mislabeling and determine food safety. The purpose of this review is to present the current state of knowledge on the use of chemometric tools for evaluating quality of food products of animal and plant origin and beverages. The article describes applications of several multivariate techniques in food and beverages research, showing their role in adulteration detection, authentication, quality control, differentiation of samples and comparing their classification and prediction ability.

Review: DNA Barcoding and Chromatography Fingerprints for the Authentication of Botanicals in Herbal Medicinal Products

In the last two decades, there has been a tremendous increase in the global use of herbal medicinal products (HMPs) due to their claimed health benefits. This has led to increase in their demand and consequently, also, resulted in massive adulteration. This is due to the fact that most of the traditional methods cannot identify closely related species in a process product form. Therefore the urgent need for simple and rapid identification methods resulted in the discovery of a novel technique. DNA barcoding is a process that uses short DNA sequence from the standard genome for species identification. This technique is reliable and is not affected by external factors such as climates, age, or plant part. The difficulties in isolation of DNA of high quality in addition to other factors are among the challenges encountered using the DNA barcoding in the authentication of HMP. These limitations indicated that using DNA barcoding alone may ineffectively authenticate the HMP. Therefore, the combination of DNA barcoding with chromatographic fingerprint, a popular and generally accepted technique for the assessment and quality control of HMP, will offer an efficient solution to effectively evaluate the authenticity and quality consistency of HMP. Detailed and quality information about the main composition of the HMPs will help to ascertain their efficacy and safety as these are very important for quality control.

Betulinic Acid from Zizyphus Joazeiro Bark Using Focused Microwave-Assisted Extraction and Response Surface Methodology

BACKGROUND

The effect of the extraction time (min) and temperature (°C) on the yield of betulinic acid (BA) from Zizyphus joazeiro barks using focused microwave-assisted extraction was investigated.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The ethyl acetate was used as extractor solvent because it was shown to provide a betulinic acid-clean extract. A full two-level statistical factorial design was applied to determine the important effects and interactions of these independent variables upon the yield of BA.

RESULTS

The conditions that produced the highest yield of BA were at temperature of 70°C and an extraction time of 15 min (3.33 mg per gram of plant).

CONCLUSION

The BA has drawn attention due to its use as a raw material in the synthesis of active compounds against the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV).

SUMMARY

The extraction of betulinic acid (BA) from Zizyphus joazeiro barks using focused microwave was investigatedA full two-level statistical factorial design was applied to determine the effects and interactions of the independent variables (time and temperature) upon the yield of BAThe reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detector was used for quantification. Abbreviation used: BA: Betulinic acid; FMAE: Focused microwave assisted extraction; HPLC: High-performance liquid chromatography; RSD: Relative standard deviations.

Bioactive Fraction of Annona reticulata Bark (or) Ziziphus jujuba Root Bark along with Insulin Attenuates Painful Diabetic Neuropathy through Inhibiting NF-κB Inflammatory Cascade

The present study explains the neuroprotective ability of bioactive fractions of Annona reticulata bark (ARB) and Ziziphus jujuba root bark (ZJ) along with insulin against diabetic neuropathy. By using different solvents of increasing polarity ARB and ZJ were undergone for bioactive guided fractionation. The neuroprotective ability of the all the plant fractions were tested against H₂O₂ induced toxicity in SHSY5Y neuroblastoma cell lines and DRG neuronal cells. Among all the fractions tested, the methanol extract of ARB and ZJ (ARBME and ZJME) and its water fractions (ARBWF and ZJWF) exhibited significant neuroprotection against H₂O₂ induced toxicity in SHSY5Y cells and DRG neuronal cells. Further both the active fractions were tested against streptozotocin (55 mg/kg i.p.) induced diabetic neuropathy in male Wistar rats. Body weight changes, blood glucose levels and pain threshold through hot plate, tail immersion, cold plate and Randall-Sillitto methods were measured throughout the study at weekly interval. After completion of the drug treatment period, all the animals were sacrificed to measure the sciatic nerve lipid peroxidation, antioxidative enzyme levels (SOD, catalase, and GSH) and cytokine levels (IL-1β, IL-6, IL-10, TNF-α, iNOS, and NFκB) through ELISA and western blotting analysis. Results of this study explain that ARBME, ZJME, ARBWF, and ZJWF along with insulin potentially attenuate the thermal, mechanical hyperalgesia and cold allodynia in diabetic neuropathic rats, where insulin treatment alone failed to diminish the same. Reduction of sciatic nerve oxidative stress, NF-κB and iNOS mediated inflammatory cascade and normalization of abnormal cytokine release confirms the possible mechanism of action. The present study confirms the neuroprotective ability of ARB and ZJ against painful diabetic neuropathy through inhibiting oxidative stress and NF-κB inflammatory cascade.

Cytotoxic Ceanothane- and Lupane-Type Triterpenoids from the Roots of Ziziphus jujuba

Ziziphus jujuba, a plant in the family Rhamnaceae, is used in several Asian countries as a food and traditional medicine. Fifteen new ceanothane-type (1-15) and three new lupane-type triterpenoids (16-18) were isolated from the roots of Z. jujuba, as well as 12 previously known triterpenoids (19-30). Their structures were elucidated by 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopic and HR mass spectrometric data analysis. Compounds 12 and 13 were found to possess a rare E-ring γ-lactone structure, and 14 was assigned as the first 2,28-dinorlupane derivative isolated as a natural product. Twenty-five of the isolates were examined for cytotoxicity against human hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 cells, and compounds 6-8, 14, 17, 23, 25, 29, and 30 showed cytotoxicity with IC50 values ranging from 1.9 to 5.9 μM.

Physico-chemical, nutritional, and volatile composition and sensory profile of Spanish jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.) fruits

BACKGROUND

Jujube fruit is eaten mostly fresh, but may be dried (Chinese dates and tea) or processed into confectionary recipes in bread, cakes, compotes, and candy. Given that the quality of jujube available on the market differs on account of various factors such as geographical environment, cultivar, processing conditions, and storage conditions, and that, for consumers, flavour and nutrition properties of jujube represent the major parameters in determining the quality of jujube, the main goal of this study were to determine the main physico-chemical properties of jujube fruits, sugars and organic acids profiles, protein, mineral constituents, volatile composition and sensory profile of jujube fruits. This would allow breeders to select cultivars with higher levels of nutrients and also enable increasing dietary intake by consumers.

RESULTS

Investigations showed that jujube fruit weight ranged from 4.8 to 29.3 g fruit(-1) . Four sugars (glucose, fructose, sucrose and sorbitol) and four organic acids (citric, malic, ascorbic and succinic acids) were identified and quantified by high-performance liquid chromatography in jujube fruits. Potassium, calcium and magnesium were the major mineral constituents in jujube fruits. Fifteen volatiles compounds were found in the aroma profile of jujube fruits (nine were aldehydes, three terpenes, one ester, one ketone and one linear hydrocarbon).

CONCLUSION

The results showed that Spanish jujube cultivars studied are a good source of vitamin C, and they have a low content of Na. The jujube cultivar with the most appreciated quality by consumers was GAL; the GAL fruits were sweet, crunchy, and had high intensities of jujube ID and apple flavour a long after-taste. Therefore, jujube grown in Spain has a great potential to be exploited for functional foods. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry.

Contents Changes of Triterpenic Acids, Nucleosides, Nucleobases, and Saccharides in Jujube (Ziziphus jujuba) Fruit During the Drying and Steaming Process

Chinese jujube (Ziziphus jujuba), a medicinal and edible plant, is widely consumed in Asian countries owing to the remarkable health activities of its fruits. To facilitate selection of the suitable processing method for jujube fruits, in this study their contents of triterpenic acids, nucleosides, nucleobases and saccharides after drying and steaming treatment were determined using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography and high performance liquid chromatography coupled with evaporative light scattering detector methods. The results showed that except for sucrose, the content levels of most analytes were increasing in the jujube fruits during drying treatment at 45 °C. The levels of cyclic nucleotides such as adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate and guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate, were significantly decreased after the fruits were steamed. Therefore, owing to the bioactivities of these components for human health, the dried fruits would be the better choice as medicinal material or functional food, and dried jujube fruit should not be further steamed.

"Ziziphus jujuba": A red fruit with promising anticancer activities

Ziziphus jujuba Mill. (Z. jujuba) is a traditional herb with a long history of use for nutrition and the treatment of a broad spectrum of diseases. It grows mostly in South and East Asia, as well as in Australia and Europe. Mounting evidence shows the health benefits of Z. jujuba, including anticancer, anti-inflammation, antiobesity, antioxidant, and hepato- and gastrointestinal protective properties, which are due to its bioactive compounds. Chemotherapy, such as with cis-diamminedichloroplatinium (CDDP, cisplatin) and its derivatives, is widely used in cancer treatment. It is an effective treatment for human cancers, including ovarian cancer; however, drug resistance is a major obstacle to successful treatment. A better understanding of the mechanisms and strategies for overcoming chemoresistance can greatly improve therapeutic outcomes for patients. In this review article, the bioactive compounds present in Z. jujuba are explained. The high prevalence of many different cancers worldwide has recently attracted the attention of many researchers. This is why our research group focused on studying the anticancer activity of Z. jujuba as well as its impact on chemoresistance both in vivo and in vitro. We hope that these studies can lead to a promising future for cancer patients.

Simultaneous determination of four active components in Alisma orientale (Sam.) Juz. by HPLC-DAD using a single reference standard

A rapid, simple and practical high-performance liquid chromatography method coupled with diode array detector (HPLC-DAD) was developed to evaluate the quality of Alisma orientale (Sam.) Juz. through a simultaneous determination of four major active triterpenes using a single standard to determine the multi-components (SSDMCs). Alisol B 23-acetate was selected as the reference compound for calculating the relative response factors. All calibration curves showed good linearity (R2>0.9998) within test ranges. RSDs for intra- and inter-day of four analytes were less than 3.6% and 2.3%; the overall recovery was 92.1-110.2% (SSDMC). The proposed method was successfully applied to quantify the four components in 20 samples from different localities in China. Moreover, significant variations were demonstrated in the content of these compounds. In addition, hierarchical clustering analysis (HCA) and principal components analysis (PCA) were performed to differentiate and classify the samples based on the contents of Alisol C 23-acetate, Alisol A, Alisol A 24-acetate and Alisol B 23-acetate. This simple, rapid, low-cost and reliable HPLC-DAD method using SSDMC is suitable for routine quantitative analysis and quality control of A. orientale (Sam.) Juz.

Content variations of triterpenic acid, nucleoside, nucleobase, and sugar in jujube (Ziziphus jujuba) fruit during ripening

Jujube (Ziziphus jujuba) fruit is widely consumed as food and traditional Chinese medicine in Asian countries due to its potential effects for human health. To facilitate selection of the maturity stage providing optimum health benefits, jujube fruits were analysed at six stages of growth (S1-6) for triterpenic acids, nucleosides, nucleobases, and sugars by UHPLC-MS/MS or HPLC-ELSD methods. The content levels of most triterpenic acids and sugars increased with ripening, and reached the highest at S5 and S6, respectively. The accumulation of the cyclic nucleotides (cAMP and cGMP) was mainly in the later stage of ripening (S5-6). Therefore, if taking triterpenic acids as the major quality indicator, S5 should be the ideal time to harvest jujube fruit, and the full ripen stage (S6) maybe the best choice when taking sugars and cyclic nucleotides as the most important components.

Recent Progress of Research on Herbal Products Used in Traditional Chinese Medicine: the Herbs belonging to The Divine Husbandman's Herbal Foundation Canon ( Shén Nóng Běn Cǎo Jīng)

This article will review selected herbal products from Chinese Materia Medica that are used in Traditional Chinese Medicine. The herbs come from the upper, middle, and lower class medicines as listed in The Divine Husbandman's Herbal Foundation Canon (神農本草經 Shén Nóng Běn Cǎo Jīng). The review will focus on the active constituents of the herbs and their bioactivities, with emphasis on the most recent progress in research for the period of 2003 to 2011.

Polysaccharide Isolated from Zizyphus jujuba ( Hóng Zǎo) Inhibits Interleukin-2 Production in Jurkat T Cells

Zizyphus jujuba ( Hóng Zǎo), a traditional Chinese herb widely used in many Asian countries, has been shown to possess vital biological activities such as anti-cancer activity. The objective of this study was to evaluate the immunomodulatory effect of deproteinated polysaccharide (DP) isolated from Z. jujuba. The DP isolated from Z. jujuba consisted of two polysaccharide fractions and their molecular weights (MWs) were found to be 143,108 and 67,633 Da, respectively. The DP could significantly decrease interleukin (IL)-2 production in phytohemagglutinin (PHA)-activated Jurkat T cells in a dose-dependent manner after 48 h of incubation, with the inhibition being 47.5%, 61.2%, and 81.7% for DP concentrations of 0.75, 1.75, and 2.5 mg/ml, respectively. Thus, our study showed that DP isolated from Z. jujuba may possess anti-inflammatory activity as it could significantly reduce IL-2 production in activated Jurkat T cells.

Chemometrics: A new scenario in herbal drug standardization

Chromatography and spectroscopy techniques are the most commonly used methods in standardization of herbal medicines but the herbal system is not easy to analyze because of their complexity of chemical composition. Many cutting-edge analytical technologies have been introduced to evaluate the quality of medicinal plants and significant amount of measurement data has been produced. Chemometric techniques provide a good opportunity for mining more useful chemical information from the original data. Then, the application of chemometrics in the field of medicinal plants is spontaneous and necessary. Comprehensive methods and hyphenated techniques associated with chemometrics used for extracting useful information and supplying various methods of data processing are now more and more widely used in medicinal plants, among which chemometrics resolution methods and principal component analysis (PCA) are most commonly used techniques. This review focuses on the recent various important analytical techniques, important chemometrics tools and interpretation of results by PCA, and applications of chemometrics in quality evaluation of medicinal plants in the authenticity, efficacy and consistency.

The jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.) fruit: a review of current knowledge of fruit composition and health benefits

The nutritional jujube ( Ziziphus jujube Mill.) fruit belonging to the Rhamnaceous family grows mostly in Europe, southern and eastern Asia, and Australia, especially the inland region of northern China. Jujube has a long history of usage as a fruit and remedy. The main biologically active components are vitamin C, phenolics, flavonoids, triterpenic acids, and polysaccharides. Recent phytochemical studies of jujube fruits have shed some light on their biological effects, such as the anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antiobesity, immunostimulating, antioxidant, hepatoprotective, and gastrointestinal protective activities and inhibition of foam cell formation in macrophages. A stronger focus on clinical studies and phytochemical definition of jujube fruits will be essential for future research efforts. This review may be useful for predicting other medicinal uses and potential drug or food interactions and may be beneficial for people living where the jujube fruits are prevalent and health care resources are scarce.

Rapid determination of amino acids in fruits of Ziziphus jujuba by hydrophilic interaction ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with triple-quadrupole mass spectrometry

In this study, a sensitive and rapid method for the simultaneous determination of free amino acids without derivatization using hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (HILIC-MS/MS) was developed. The method was performed on an ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) separation system coupled with a triple-quadrupole mass spectrometry (TQ-MS) instrument. Sufficient separation of 23 underivatized amino acids was achieved on an Acquity BEH Amide column (2.1 mm × 100 mm, 1.7 μm) in a single run of 12 min. Then the method was applied for the analysis of the free amino acids in 46 batches of Ziziphus jujuba fruits which comprised 39 cultivars from 26 cultivation regions. Multivariate statistical analysis was also used to investigate the differences in free amino acid profiles among the samples. This study showed that HILIC-UHPLC-TQ-MS is an effective technique to analyze underivatized amino acids in the food samples.