Untargeted serum and gastric metabolomics and network pharmacology analysis reveal the superior efficacy of zingiberis rhizoma recens-/euodiae fructus-processed Coptidis Rhizoma on gastric ulcer rats.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Zingiberis rhizoma recens-/wine-/euodiae fructus-processed Coptidis Rhizoma (CR, zCR/wCR/eCR) are the commonly used processed products of CR in clinic. After being processed with different excipients, the efficacy of CR will change accordingly. I.e., wCR could resolve excessive heat of the upper energizer, zCR could eliminate gastric heat and harmonize the stomach, eCR could smooth the liver and harmonize the stomach. However, the underlying mechanisms were still unclear. AIM OF THE STUDY: To further verify the differential efficacy of the three processed CR products and compare the mechanisms on gastric ulcer. MATERIAL AND METHODS: First, a GU model, whose onset is closely related to the heat in stomach and the disharmony between liver and stomach, was established, and the therapeutic effects of zCR/wCR/eCR/CR were evaluated by pathologic observation and measurement of cytokine levels. Second, metabolomics analysis and network pharmacology were conducted to reveal the differential intervening mechanism of zCR/eCR on GU. Third, the predicted mechanisms from metabolomics analysis and network pharmacology were validated using western blotting, flow cytometry and immunofluorescence. RESULTS: zCR/wCR/eCR/CR could alleviate the pathologic damage to varying degrees. In metabolomics research, fewer metabolic pathways were enriched in serum samples, and most of them were also present in the results of gastric tissue samples. The gastroprotective, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-apoptotic effects of zCR/wCR/eCR/CR might be due to their interference on histidine, arachidonic acid, and glycerophospholipids metabolism. Quantitative results indicated that zCR/eCR had a better therapeutic effect than wCR/CR in treating GU. A comprehensive analysis of metabolomics and network pharmacology revealed that zCR and eCR exerted anti-GU effects via intervening in five core targets, including AKT, TNF, IL6, IL1B and PPARG. In the validation experiment, zCR/eCR could significantly reverse the abnormal expression of proteins related to apoptosis, inflammation, oxidative stress, gastric function, as well as the PI3K/AKT signaling pathways. CONCLUSION: zCR and eCR could offer gastroprotective benefits by resisting inflammation and apoptosis, inhibiting gastric-acid secretion, as well as strengthening gastric mucosal defense and antioxidant capacity. Integrating network pharmacology and metabolomics analysis could reveal the acting mechanism of drugs and promote the development of medications to counteract GU.

Study on the Neuroprotective Effects of Eight Iridoid Components Using Cell Metabolomics.

Iridoid components have been reported to have significant neuroprotective effects. However, it is not yet clear whether the efficacy and mechanisms of iridoid components with similar structures are also similar. This study aimed to compare the neuroprotective effects and mechanisms of eight iridoid components (catalpol (CAT), genipin (GE), geniposide (GEN), geniposidic acid (GPA), aucubin (AU), ajugol (AJU), rehmannioside C (RC), and rehmannioside D (RD)) based on corticosterone (CORT)-induced injury in PC12 cells. PC12 cells were randomly divided into a normal control group (NC), model group (M), positive drug group (FLX), and eight iridoid administration groups. Firstly, PC12 cells were induced with CORT to simulate neuronal injury. Then, the MTT method and flow cytometry were applied to evaluate the protective effects of eight iridoid components on PC12 cell damage. Thirdly, a cell metabolomics study based on ultra-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q/TOF-MS) was performed to explore changes in relevant biomarkers and metabolic pathways following the intervention of administration. The MTT assay and flow cytometry analysis showed that the eight iridoid components can improve cell viability, inhibit cell apoptosis, reduce intracellular ROS levels, and elevate MMP levels. In the PCA score plots, the sample points of the treatment groups showed a trend towards approaching the NC group. Among them, AU, AJU, and RC had a weaker effect. There were 38 metabolites (19 metabolites each in positive and negative ion modes, respectively) identified as potential biomarkers during the experiment, among which 23 metabolites were common biomarkers of the eight iridoid groups. Pathway enrichment analysis revealed that the eight iridoid components regulated the metabolism mainly in relation to D-glutamine and D-glutamate metabolism, arginine biosynthesis, the TCA cycle, purine metabolism, and glutathione metabolism. In conclusion, the eight iridoid components could reverse an imbalanced metabolic state by regulating amino acid neurotransmitters, interfering with amino acid metabolism and energy metabolism, and harmonizing the level of oxidized substances to exhibit neuroprotective effects.

[Metabolomics of interventional effects of Coptidis Rhizoma and its processed products on oral ulcer due to excess heat in rats].

Ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry(UPLC-Q/TOF-MS) was employed to examine the impact of Coptidis Rhizoma(CR) and its processed products on the metabolism in the rat model of oral ulcer due to excess heat and to compare the effectiveness of CR and its three products. Male SD rats were randomly allocated to the sham-operation(Sham), model(M, oral ulcer due to excess heat), CR, wine/Zingiberis Rhizoma Recens/Euodiae Fructus processed CR(wCR/zCR/eCR), and Huanglian Shangqing Tablets(HST) groups. Except the Sham group, the other groups were administrated with Codonopsis Radix-Astragali Radix decoction by gavage for two consecutive weeks. The anal temperature and water consumption of rats were monitored throughout the modeling period of excess heat. Following the completion of the modeling, oral ulcer was modeled with acetic acid. Hematoxylin-eosin(HE) staining was employed to observe the mucosal pathological changes in oral ulcer. A colorimetric assay was employed to determine the serum level of glutathione peroxidase(GSH-Px). Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA) was conducted to determine the levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha(TNF-α), interleukin-6(IL-6), interleukin-1ß(IL-1ß), superoxide dismutase(SOD), and malondialdehyde(MDA) in the serum. The non-targeted metabolomics analysis based on UPLC-Q/TOF-MS was conducted on the serum samples. Metabolic profiles were then built, and the potential biomarkers were screened by principal component analysis(PCA) and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis(OPLS-DA). The Mev software was used to establish a heat map and conduct cluster analysis on the quantitative results of the markers. The online databases including MBRole, KEGG, and MetaboAnalyst were used for pathway enrichment analysis and metabolic network building. The experimental results showed that the modeling led to pathological damage to the oral mucosa, elevated serum levels of TNF-α, IL-6, IL-1ß, and MDA, and lowered levels of SOD and GSH-Px in rats. The drug administration recovered all the indices to varying extents, and wCR exhibited the best performance. Non-targeted metabolomics identified 48 differential metabolites including 27 metabolites in the positive ion mode and 21 metabolites in the negative ion mode. Five enriched pathways were common, including glycerophospholipid metabolism, linoleic acid metabolism, and tyrosine metabolism. Conclusively, CR and its three processed products could alleviate the inflammation and oxidative stress injury in rats suffering from oral ulcers due to excess heat by regulating lipid and amino acid metabolism. Notably, wCR demonstrated the most significant therapeutic effect.

Coptis chinensis-Induced Changes in Metabolomics and Gut Microbiota in Rats.

Rhizoma coptidis (CR) is traditionally used for treating gastrointestinal diseases. Wine-processed CR (wCR), zingiber-processed CR (zCR), and evodia-processed CR (eCR) are its major processed products. However, the related study of their specific mechanisms is very limited, and they need to be further clarified. The aim of this study is to compare the intervening mechanism of wCR/zCR/eCR on rats via faecal metabolomics and 16S rDNA gene sequencing analysis. First, faecal samples were collected from the control and CR/wCR/zCR/eCR groups. Then, a metabolomics analysis was performed using UHPLC-Q/TOF-MS to obtain the metabolic profile and significantly altered metabolites. The 16S rDNA gene sequencing analysis was carried out to analyze the composition of gut microbiota and screen out the significantly altered microbiota at the genus level. Finally, a pathway enrichment analysis of the significantly altered metabolites via the KEGG database and a functional prediction of relevant gut microbes based on PICRUSt2 software were performed in combination. Together with the correlation analysis between metabolites and gut microbiota, the potential intervening mechanism of wCR/zCR/eCR was explored. The results suggested that wCR played a good role in maintaining immune homeostasis, promoting glycolysis, and reducing cholesterol; zCR had a better effect on protecting the integrity of the intestinal mucus barrier, preventing gastric ulcers, and reducing body cholesterol; eCR was good at protecting the integrity of the intestinal mucus barrier and promoting glycolysis. This study scientifically elucidated the intervening mechanism of wCR/zCR/eCR from the perspective of faecal metabolites and gut microbiota, providing a new insight into the processing mechanism research of Chinese herbs.

Exploring the efficacy mechanism and material basis of three processed Coptidis Rhizoma via metabolomics strategy.

Wine/zingiberis rhizoma recens/euodiae fructus processed Coptidis Rhizoma (wCR/zCR/eCR) are the major processed products of CR in clinic, and the role of CR is highlighted in different aspects after being processed with different excipients. To explore the mechanism and material basis for the highlighted efficacy of wCR/zCR/eCR, the metabolomics strategy was introduced to the comparative study between wCR/zCR/eCR and CR. Firstly, the metabolomics approach was applied to compare the chemical profiling and differential components between wCR/zCR/eCR and CR extract. Secondly, the rats were treated with CR/wCR/zCR/eCR extracts and a serum metabolomics approach was adopted to compare the metabolic profiling and significantly changed metabolites in CR/wCR/zCR/eCR groups, base on which the metabolic pathways were enriched, the metabolic network was constructed and the highlighted efficacy wCR/zCR/eCR was investigated. Lastly, the pathological and biochemical assessments (VIP, COX, HSL and HMGR) were implemented to validate the results inferred from metabolomics study. In chemical research, 23 differential components between wCR/zCR/eCR and CR extracts were identified. Thereinto, the content of alkaloids and organic acids decreased in wCR extract, the content of partial alkaloids and most organic acids increased in zCR extract, the content of alkaloids decreased, and partial organic acids increased in eCR extract. In serum metabolomics study, wCR had no outstanding effect, zCR played a more prominent role in resisting inflammation of gastrointestinal tissue by interfering with arachidonic acid metabolism, eCR exhibited the hottest drug property and the strongest effect on smoothing the liver and harmonizing the stomach by interfering with of bile acids biosynthesis. Based on the changes in chemical composition and efficacy before and after processing, as well as biochemical validation, it can be concluded that the above activity of zCR might be related to the increased alkaloids and organic acids in zCR extract, and the prominent role of eCR may be related to the increased organic acids in eCR extract. In brief, hot processing excipients could alleviate the cold property of CR, and different excipients have different effects on the chemical composition and efficacy mechanism. The present study fully reflects the advantage of metabolomics and provides guidance for the rational use of CR.

Characterizing the specific mechanism of series processed Coptidis Rhizoma by multi-organ metabolomics combined with network pharmacology and molecular docking.

BACKGROUND: After being processed with different excipients, the clinical application of Coptidis Rhizoma (CR) is differentially investigated. However, the underlying mechanism and material basis are not clear, and there is a lack of attention to the collaborative working mode of herbal medicine during exploration. PURPOSE: To characterize the specific mechanism of wine/zingiberis rhizoma recens/euodiae fructus processed CR (wCR/zCR/eCR) and to investigate the role of excipients during processing. METHODS: The multi-organ metabolomics approach was employed to explore the target organs of wCR/zCR/eCR and multiple pathways being triggered in each organ. The tissue distribution of CR and wCR/zCR/eCR components was compared to indicate the material basis of efficacy change after processing. Further, the network pharmacology study coupled with experimental validation was conducted to support metabolomic research and predicted active ingredients and core targets, and the molecular docking coupled with binding test was performed to identify the binding between active ingredient and core target. RESULTS: The multi-organ metabolomics and network pharmacology study elucidated the intervening effect of wCR on heart/lung, zCR on stomach/colon, and eCR on liver/colon/stomach. Combined with molecular docking, binding test and tissue distribution studies, the specific mechanism was as follows: the wine made iso-quinoline alkaloids in CR more likely to accumulate in heart/lung, thus triggering the core targets of PTGS2, NOS2, ESR1 and SLC6A4 in heart/lung, and thereby highlighting the detoxifying and cardiopulmonary protective effect of wCR. The zingiberis rhizoma recens and euodiae fructus made organic acids in CR more likely to accumulate in stomach/colon and liver/colon/stomach respectively, thus triggering the core targets of ACTB, TNF and PRKCA in stomach/colon, the core targets of ACTB, TNF, PRKCA and GPT in stomach/colon/liver, and thereby highlighting the improving effect of zCR/eCR on digestive function. CONCLUSION: Iso-quinoline alkaloids were the material basis of CR for anti-inflammation, and organic acids were mainly responsible for regulating gastrointestinal function. Due to the influence of excipients on the accumulation tendency of CR components, the differentially highlighted application of wCR/zCR/eCR was achieved. These findings propose a novel strategy for processing mechanism research.

Comparative pharmacokinetic studies of Ephedra herba in common cold and nephrotic syndrome rat models.

Ephedra herba is a conventional Chinese medicine to treat cold, fever, asthma, edema, and lung diseases in the clinic. At present, most pharmacokinetic studies focus on the pharmacokinetic process of alkaloids in normal animals. However, the non-alkaloid components are also active. In addition, the pharmacokinetic studies under pathological state make more sense for clarifying the material basis of efficacy. In this study, a sensitive and rapid ultra-high-performance-tandem mass spectrometry method was developed and applied to determine nine bioactive components (ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, methylephedrine, (+)-catechin, epicatechin, vitexin, vicenin-2, cinnamic acid, and ferulic acid) in normal, common cold and nephrotic syndrome rats after the oral administration of Ephedra herba. Compared to the normal group, except for ferulic acid, the exposure levels of the other eight components were significantly increased and the plasma clearance clearly declined in common cold rats. Similarly, the exposure levels of seven components other than cinnamic acid and ferulic acid were also significantly augmented and the plasma clearance decreased significantly in nephrotic syndrome rats. In brief, the pathological conditions of the common cold and nephrotic syndrome could lead to alterations in the pharmacokinetics profiles of the nine components, which provide a reference for further exploration of the pharmacodynamics basis of Ephedra herba.