Profiling and identification of aqueous extract of Cordyceps sinensis by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography tandem quadrupole-orbitrap mass spectrometry

Integrated metabolomics and transcriptomics reveal metabolites difference between wild and cultivated Ophiocordyceps sinensis

Ophiocordyceps sinensis is a traditional medicinal fungus endemic to the alpine and high-altitude areas of the Qinghai-Tibet plateau. The scarcity of the wild resource has led to increased attention to artificially cultivated O. sinensis. However, little is known about the metabolic differences and the regulatory mechanisms between cultivated and wild O. sinensis. This study exploited untargeted metabolomics and transcriptomics to uncover the differences in accumulated metabolites and expressed genes between wild and cultivated O. sinensis. Metabolomics results revealed that 368 differentially accumulated metabolites were mainly enriched in biosynthesis of amino acids, biosynthesis of plant secondary metabolites and purine nucleotide metabolism. Cultivated O. sinensis contained more amino acids and derivatives, carbohydrates and derivatives, and phenolic acids than wild O. sinensis, whereas the contents of most nucleosides and nucleotides in wild O. sinensis were significantly higher than in cultivated O. sinensis. Transcriptome analysis indicated that 4430 annotated differentially expressed genes were identified between two types. Integrated metabolomics and transcriptomics analyses suggested that IMPDH, AK, ADSS, guaA and GUK genes might be related to the synthesis of purine nucleotides and nucleosides. Our findings will provide a new insight into the molecular basis of metabolic variations of this medicinal fungus.

Comparative metabolic profiling of wild Cordyceps species and their substituents by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

Cordyceps is a genus of ascomycete fungi and used widely in fungal drugs. However, in-depth studies of the metabolites of wild Cordyceps species and their substituents are lacking. In this study, a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS)-based metabolomics analysis was carried out to comprehensively profile the metabolites in wild Chinese Cordyceps species (Ophiocordyceps sinensis (Berk.) G.H. Sung, J.M. Sung, Hywel-Jones and Spatafora 2007) from Naqu (NCs) and Yushu (YCs) and their substituents including artificially cultivated Cordyceps species (CCs) and mycelia. A total of 901 metabolites were identified in these samples, including lipids, amino acids, nucleosides, carbohydrates, organic acids, coenzymes, vitamins, alkaloids and their derivatives. Univariate and multivariate statistical analyses revealed remarkable differences and significantly different metabolites among them. Seventy amino acid-relevant metabolites were analyzed quantitatively in four samples for the first time. The four samples contained abundant L-glutamic acid and oxidized glutathione as well as multiple unique amino acid-relevant metabolites (e.g., 3-chloro-L-tyrosine, 6-aminocaproic acid, L-theanine, anserine, γ-glutamyl-cysteine). Collectively, our study provides rich metabolic information of wild Cordyceps species and their substituents, which could facilitate their quality control and optimal utilization.

Quality Control, Anti-Hyperglycemic, and Anti-Inflammatory Assessment of Colvillea racemosa Leaves Using In Vitro, In Vivo Investigations and Its Correlation with the Phytoconstituents Identified via LC-QTOF-MS and MS/MS

Colvillea racemosa is a cultivated ornamental plant that is a monotypic genus of Fabaceae. It is native to Madagascar, with limited studies. For the first time, the leaf quality control parameters, the anti-hyperglycemic and anti-inflammatory in vitro activity of Colvillea racemosa ethanol extract (CRE) and its fractions of petroleum ether (CRP), methylene chloride (CRMC), ethyl acetate (CREA), n-butanol (CRB), and methanol (CRME) were evaluated. It exhibited significant inhibition against α-amylase, α-glucosidase and membrane stabilization. CRB was the most active fraction, and in vivo studies revealed that oral treatment with CRB of STZ-induced diabetic rats efficiently lowered blood glucose by 67.78%, reduced serum nitric oxide and lipid peroxide levels by 41.23% and 38.45%, respectively, and increased the GSH level by 90.48%. In addition, compared with the diabetic group, there was a 52.2% decrease in serum VCAM, a 55.5% increase in paraoxonase, an improved lipid profile, and improved liver and kidney functions for a treated diabetic group with CRB. Metabolite profiling of CRB was determined by UPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS and tandem MS/MS. Twenty-three chromatographic peaks were identified, which were classified into phenolic compounds and amino acids. The characterized flavonoids were apigenin and luteolin derivatives.

Stage- and Rearing-Dependent Metabolomics Profiling of Ophiocordyceps sinensis and Its Pipeline Products

Cordyceps, a parasitic complex of the fungus Ophiocordyceps sinensis (Berk.) (Hypocreales: Ophiocordycipitaceae) and the ghost moth Thitarodes (Lepidoptera: Hepialidae), is a historical ethnopharmacological commodity in China. Recently, artificial cultivation of Chinese cordyceps has been established to supplement the dwindling natural resources. However, much is unknown between the natural and cultivated products in terms of nutritional aspect, which may provide essential information for quality evaluation. The current study aims to determine the metabolic profiles of 17 treatments from 3 sample groups including O. sinensis fungus, Thitarodes insect and cordyceps complex, using Gas Chromatography - Quadrupole Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry. A total of 98 metabolites were detected, with 90 of them varying in concentrations among groups. The tested groups could be separated, except that fungal fruiting body was clustered into the same group as Chinese cordyceps. The main distinguishing factors for the groups studied were the 24 metabolites involved in numerous different metabolic pathways. In conclusion, metabolomics of O. sinensis and its related products were determined mainly by the fruiting bodies other than culture methods. Our results suggest that artificially cultured fruiting bodies and cordyceps may share indistinguishable metabolic functions as the natural ones.

Chemical profiling of Huashi Baidu prescription, an effective anti-COVID-19 TCM formula, by UPLC-Q-TOF/MS

Huashi Baidu prescription (HSBDF), recommended in the Guideline for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) Pneumonia (On Trials, the Seventh Edition), was clinically used to treat severe corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) with cough, blood-stained sputum, inhibited defecation, red tongue etc. symptoms. This study was aimed to elucidate and profile the knowledge on its chemical constituents and the potential anti-inflammatory effect in vitro. In the study, the chemical constituents in extract of HSBDF were characterized by UPLC-Q-TOF/MS in both negative and positive modes, and the pro-inflammatory cytokines were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) to determine the effects of HSBDF in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW264.7 cells. The results showed that a total of 217 chemical constituents were tentativedly characterized in HSBDF. Moreover, HSBDF could alleviate the expression levels of IL-6 and TNF-α in the cell models, indicating that the antiviral effects of HSBDF might be associated with regulation of the inflammatory cytokines production in RAW264.7 cells. We hope that the results could be served as the basic data for further study of HSBDF on anti-COVID-19 effect.

One-Pot Derivatization for Wide-Scope Detection of Nucleobases and Deoxyribosides in Natural Medicinal Foods with Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry

A new chemical labeling-based LC-MS/MS approach was developed for quantitative profiling of nine canonical bases and deoxynucleosides (dNs) in natural products. Using 2-bromo-1-(4-dimethylamino-phenyl)-ethaone (BrDPE) as the tagging reagent, a previously unexploited N-alkylpyrimidine derivative (Nad) was created for one-pot labeling of widescope nucleobases via a flexible bromophilic substitution under mild conditions. The derivatization notably improved the LC-MS detection sensitivity by 31-107 fold, enabling a fast dilute-and-shoot analysis of highly diluted samples. The optimized and validated method demonstrated satisfactory accuracy (87-107%), precision (RSDs < 7.5%), and recovery (89-105%) for matrix-matched standard addition. The method was applied to simultaneously determine all target analytes and four uncanonical analogues and base-modified species in seven traditional health foods, which differ in contents by up to 600-fold for discrimination among samples. Further, the base-labeled Nads exhibit a unique fragmentation signature that could be used for untargeted screening of nucleobase-containing metabolites by simplified LC-MS/MS workflow to improve quality evaluation of natural medicinal products.