A Preferable Approach for the Quality Control of Xiaoer Chiqiao Qingre Granules Based on the Combination of Chromatographic Fingerprints and Chemometrics

A Comprehensive Strategy Based on UPLC-Q/TOF-MS for the Identification of Compounds in a Chinese Patent Medicine, Xiao'er Chiqiao Qingre Granules

The aim of this study was to establish a comprehensive strategy based on liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry to potently identify as many compounds of Chinese patent medicine as possible. Ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q/TOF-MS) was used to qualitatively analyze the Chinese patent medicine Xiao'er Chiqiao Qingre Granules (XCQG), which is recorded in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia. A novel strategy, including targeted, semi-targeted and non-targeted identification, was built to explore the compounds based on accurate mass, characteristic fragments, retention time of standard substances, databases or literature. Based on the integrated identification, 250 compounds were identified in total, including 7 alcohols, 3 aldehydes, 17 alkaloids, 9 amino acids, 10 coumarins, 30 flavonoids, 29 glycosides, 12 ketones, 7 lignans, 20 organic acids, 12 phenols, 11 phenylpropanoids, 9 quinones, 3 steroids, 26 terpenes, 14 volatile oils and 31 other compounds. A novel strategy for the identification of compounds in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) was developed with Ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q/TOF-MS). It is also the first systematic study of compounds in XCQG, laying a foundation for further mechanism research of XCQG. More importantly, the strategy shows good application prospect in identifying compounds of TCM.

Spectrum-effect relationship between ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography fingerprints and antioxidant activities of Lophatherum gracile Brongn

Lophatherum gracile Brongn. is a medicinal and edible plant resource as well as a natural additive in the functional food market. To better understand its characteristics and efficacy, a method combining chromatographic fingerprints and antioxidant activity was proposed. A total of 21 common peaks were confirmed from liquid chromatography fingerprints and were identified as 14 flavonoids and 7 phenolic acids by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) coupled with quadrupole Orbitrap mass spectrometry (Q-Orbitrap/MS). Their antioxidant activities were evaluated by 1,1-diphenyl-2-trinitrophenylhydrazine (DPPH), 2,2'-diazide-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt (ABTS), and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assay. The results showed that all of the test samples had moderate to high antioxidant effects, with IC50 values ranging from 5.2 to 16.1 mg/ml and 1.2 to 2.8 mg/ml for DPPH and ABTS assays, and the FeSO4 concentrations of 1.84-4.20 mmol/L for the FRAP assay. The spectrum-effect relationship between UHPLC fingerprints and antioxidant activity was investigated through Pearson correlation analysis and Grey relational analysis (GRA) to identify the antioxidant constitutes in Lophatherum gracile Brongn. The results showed that 11 compounds were greatly associated with the antioxidant activity with a correlation degree >0.80, which can be used as the quality marker of Lophatherum gracile Brongn.

Effectiveness and safety of Danmu extract syrup for acute upper respiratory tract infection in children: A real-world, prospective cohort study

AIM

To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of Danmu Extract Syrup for the treatment of acute upper respiratory tract infection (AURI) in children.

METHODS

In this prospective cohort study, we enrolled children with AURI in the pediatric outpatient department and emergency department of West China Second Hospital. According to the treatment, they were divided into two groups: Danmu Extract Syrup Group (Danmu Group) and Xiaoer Chiqiao Granule Group (Chiqiao Group). The primary outcome was time to symptom remission, and the secondary outcomes were defervescence time, relief time, admission rate, and adherence. We used restricted mean survival time (RMST) to quantify the treatment effects and test noninferiority for primary outcome. Propensity score matching (PSM) was used to adjust confounding. Subgroup analysis and sensitivity analysis were used to verify the robustness of results.

RESULTS

We enrolled 1036 children with AURI, including 516 in Danmu Group and 520 in Chiqiao Group. After PSM, no significant difference was observed in the baseline characteristics of the two groups. The primary results showed that the RMST difference was -3 h (95% CI: -15.1 to 9.1) and the upper limit of the 95% CI was less than the noninferiority margin of 11 h. There was no statistical difference in the secondary outcomes except for defervescence between the two groups. The results of safety analysis showed that the incidence of adverse events occurred is 4.1% in Danmu Group, which was lower than the incidence of Chiqiao Group (6.9%).

CONCLUSION

This study indicated that Danmu extract syrup is noninferiority to Chiqiao Granule for AURI in children.