Toxicology and the chemical foundation of plants of Erycibe

Medicinal patterns of vines used in Chinese herbal medicine: a quantitative study

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

The botanical characteristics of twinning, climbing vine plants conceptually take shape to interlink the meridians and collaterals system throughout the human body by expelling climatic evils (e.g., wind, dampness). Thus, vines have displayed great medicinal properties in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM).

AIM OF THE STUDY

Although some popular vine species have been intensively investigated, the comparable features and medicinal specifications among a vast collection of taxonomic groups based on data visualization methods are relatively lacking in attention. Moreover, the translatability of vines from ancient ethnomedical evidence to modern medical system has not been well established. This review tends to quantitatively summarize the strength of vines in healthcare from the perspectives of medicinal part, traditional function, clinical spectrum, phytochemistry divergence, pharmacological attributes, toxicity as well as the progress of proprietary drug development.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Medicinal vines were retrieved from databases of drug standards and curated catalogues. Synonyms of plant origin across different datasets were normalized by accepted scientific names in the World Flora Online. The distribution patterns and rank of plant origin, medicinal parts, traditional functions and target conditions, as well as the correlation between phytochemical composition and clinical applications were analyzed and visualized.

RESULTS

A total of 121 crude drugs from 36 families, 77 genera, 133 species of vines were obtained and analyzed. The Fabaceae, Menispermaceae and Rubiaceae were the highest ranked families of medicinal vines. Not surprisingly, stem was the most dominant medical part. Moreover, "eliminate wind" displayed a hub node in the traditional function co-occurrence network. In addition to joint impediment disorders, these vines particularly displayed a wide range of therapeutic modalities toward conditions from various organ systems. Chemotaxonomic properties-oriented phytochemical analysis was performed and the chemical diversity among medicinal vines complementarily determined a certain group of therapeutic domains. Particularly, the anti-inflammatory effect and antiarthritic effect were highlighted for treating rheumatic diseases. Using integral animal models and cultured cells, modern pharmacological actions of medicinal vines have been largely observed and validated according to their traditional ethnopharmacology. Furthermore, a small proportion of vine species are well-known toxic plants. Successful drug development pipelines in rheumatic, cardiovascular, liver, malignant and infectious diseases have offered the capacity to generate new treatment options that are being sought out from vine plants.

CONCLUSIONS

Medicinal vines are rich sources of Chinese Material Medica (CMM) and good fit for a variety of clinical manifestations beyond arthritis and rheumatic diseases. In addition to stem, other parts are also popular for both medicines and dietary supplements. Vine plants provide extensive biologically relevant chemical space for developing value-creating drugs. Thus, our analysis can be useful for further motivating and strengthening the preclinical and clinical research of vine-derived remedies.

Acute and 13 weeks subchronic toxicological evaluation of the flavonoid-rich extract of Sophora flavescens

The roots of Sophora flavescens have a long history of use in Chinese medicine for the treatment of various medical conditions. Flavonoids from the ethyl acetate extract of S. flavescens have shown anti-inflammatory, anticancer, and antidiabetic properties. The objective of this study was to evaluate the toxicological profile of a flavonoid-rich extract of S. flavescens (SFEA). We conducted acute and sub-chronic oral toxicity studies of SFEA in Kunming (KM) mice and Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats. Acute oral administration of 9.0 g/kg SFEA did not result in mortality, clinical signs of toxicity, or abnormal changes in the body weight or food consumption patterns. No significant changes in hematological, blood biochemical, or histopathological parameters were observed. A 13-week sub-chronic toxicity study was conducted in SD rats; the rats were orally administrated with various doses of SFEA (in mg/kg): 0 (control), 40, 80, 400, 800, and 1200. Mortality, clinical signs, or treatment-related changes in body weight, food consumption, hematological parameters, blood biochemical parameters, organ weights, or histopathological parameters were not observed. We found that SFEA is practically nontoxic to KM mice at a dose of 9.0 g/kg and that the no-observed-adverse-effect-level (NOAEL) of SFEA in SD rats is greater than 1200 mg/kg.

The ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, pharmacology and toxicology of the genus Erycibe (Convolvulaceae)

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

The genus Erycibe belongs to the Convolvulaceae family that contains approximately 70 species mainly distributed from tropical and subtropical Asia to north of Australia. Several Erycibe species are traditionally used in folk medicine for the treatment of various ailments, including rheumatic arthralgia, primary glaucoma, hepatopathies, and infectious and malignant diseases.

AIM OF THE REVIEW

This review aims to summarize comprehensive and updated information on traditional medicinal uses, phytochemistry, pharmacology, and toxicology of Erycibe species to provide a reference for the further research and application of the Erycibe genus.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The scientific and extensive literatures between 1975 and 2020 were systematically gathered from scientific databases such as SciFinder Scholar, Science Direct, Web of Science, PubMed, Google Scholar, Scopus, Springer Link and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), as well as Chinese herbal classic books, PhD and MSc theses, and several official websites.

RESULTS

Erycibe species have been used for the treatment of various rheumatoid diseases, glaucoma, a variety of hepatic diseases, infectious diseases and various malignancies in the traditional and local medicine. Since the 1970s, 153 compounds, including coumarins, quinic acid derivatives, flavonoids, alkaloids, lignans, and others have been isolated from five species of the Erycibe genus. Pharmacological studies have shown that these extracts and compounds from the Erycibe genus have extensive activities consistent with the traditional and local applications, such as anti-glaucoma, anti-arthritic, hepatoprotective and anti-cancer activities, as well as anti-inflammatory, anti-respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and neuroprotective properties.

CONCLUSIONS

Although there are extensive data on the genus Erycibe, certain specific gaps still exist. For herbal preparations containing Erycibe species, clinical toxicological investigation is required for the safety of these herbal preparation therapies, as well as further investigations on pharmacokinetics and bioavailability for guideline for clinical application. Furthermore, more detailed pharmacological, toxicological and clinical researches are needed to assess the alternatives to Erycibe species. Systematic and comprehensive pre-clinical studies are similarly required to estimate the possibility of extracts and compounds from the genus Erycibe with bioactivity developing into new drugs.

Chemical compositions, pharmacological activities, quality control studies of Erycibes plants, and the development of their substitutes

Erycibes are members of the Convolvulaceae family, including more than 10 species worldwide that are distributed in tropical Asia. Some Erycibes species have long been used as traditional remedies for rheumatoid arthritis, fever, hepatitis, and liver injury in China and Thailand. A total of 152 compounds from Erycibes plants have been isolated and identified, categorized as flavonoids, coumarins, quinic acid derivatives, lignans, and alkaloids. Coumarins are the characteristic and active constituents of this species, including scopoletin and scopolin. Modern pharmacological studies have shown that the extracts and bioactive components of Erycibes plants exhibit several biological activities, including antiinflammatory, analgesic, hepatoprotective, anti-gout, antitumor, antioxidation, and other therapeutic effects. However, in recent years, due to destructive exploitation and utilization, some Erycibes plants' natural resources have become rare or endangered. Developing substitutes is a strategy to alleviate the pressure on those endangered medicinal plant resources. To provide a scientific basis for the development and protection of those threatened Erycibes species, this review summarized the current status of the chemical compositions, pharmacological activities, quality control studies, and the development of substitutes for Erycibes plants. In particular, the rationale for use of Porana sinensis currently on the market is discussed.

Qualitative and quantitative analysis of Porana sinensis Hemsl by UHPLC-Q-Exactive MS, TLC autographic method and DART-MS

INTRODUCTION

Erycibe obtusifolia and E. schmidtii are widely used in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) to treat joint pain and rheumatoid arthritis. With the reduction of wild E. obtusifolia and E. schmidtii resources, Porana sinensis has been widely used as a substitute. However, few studies have been conducted on the chemical composition and quality control of P. sinensis.

OBJECTIVE

To clarify the chemical composition and improve the quality control of P. sinensis.

METHODOLOGY

We developed an ultra-high performance liquid chromatography electrospray ionisation Q-Exactive Focus tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-ESI-Q-Exactive Focus-MS/MS) method to characterise the chemical constituents of P. sinensis. A strategy based on a combination of high-performance thin-layer chromatography (HPTLC) and direct analysis in real-time (DART) ion source was proposed for the identification of alkaloid components in P. sinensis. Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) autography for 2,2'-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl free radical (DPPH˙) and TLC bioautography for xanthine oxidase were used to rapidly screen marker compounds for high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) determination of P. sinensis. Based on the selected marker compounds, a HPLC method for the quantitative determination of eight marker compounds in P. sinensis was developed.

RESULTS

Eighteen compounds in P. sinensis were identified by UHPLC-Q-Exactive MS. Taken together with the results of TLC autography and TLC bioautography, eight compounds were chosen as marker compounds for HPLC determination of P. sinensis. The alkaloid components in P. sinensis were identified as Baogongteng A and Baogongteng C by DART-MS.

CONCLUSION

We systematically clarified the chemical composition of P. sinensis for the first time, and potentially improved its quality control. These results should promote the application of P. sinensis as a new resource for Caulis Erycibes.

Direct Analysis in Real-time Mass Spectrometry for Rapid Identification of Traditional Chinese Medicines with Coumarins as Primary Characteristics

INTRODUCTION

The increasing popularity of traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) necessitates rapid and reliable methods for controlling their quality. Direct analysis in real-time mass spectrometry (DART-MS) represents a novel approach to analysing TCMs.

OBJECTIVE

To develop a quick and reliable method of identifying TCMs with coumarins as primary characteristics.

METHODOLOGY

DART-MS coupled with ion trap mass spectrometry was employed to rapidly identify TCMs with coumarins as primary characteristics and to explore the ionisation mechanisms of simple coumarins, furocoumarins and pyranocoumarins in detail. With minimal sample pretreatment, mass spectra of Fraxini Cortex, Angelicae Pubescentis Radix, Peucedani Radix and Psoraleae Fructus samples were obtained within seconds. The operating parameters of the DART ion source (e.g. grid electrode voltage and ionisation gas temperature) were carefully investigated to obtain high-quality mass spectra. The mass spectra of samples and DART-MS/MS spectra of marker compounds were used to identify sample materials.

RESULTS

Successful authentication was achieved by analysing the same materials of different origins. Some simple coumarins, furocoumarins and pyranocoumarins can be directly detected by DART-MS as marker compounds.

CONCLUSION

Our results demonstrated that DART-MS can provide a rapid and reliable method for the identification of TCMs containing different configurations of coumarins; the method may also be applicable to other plants. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.