A UPLC-Q-TOF/MS-Based Metabolomics Study on the Effect of Corallodiscus flabellatus (Craib) B. L. Burtt Extract on Alzheimer's Disease.

A UPLC-Q-TOF/MS-based metabolomics study was carried out to explore the intervening mechanism of Corallodiscus flabellatus (Craib) B. L. Burtt (CF) extract on Alzheimer's disease (AD). The AD model group consisted of senescence-accelerated mouse prone 8 (SAMP8) mice, and the control group consisted of senescence-accelerated mouse resistant 1 (SAMR1) mice. UPLC-Q-TOF/MS detection, multivariate statistical analysis, and pathway enrichment were jointly performed to research the change in metabolite profiling in the urine of AD mice. The result suggested that the metabolite profiling of SAMP8 mice significantly changed at the sixth month compared with SAMR1 mice of the same age, and the principal component analysis (PCA) score scatter plots of the CF group closely resembled those of the control and positive drug (huperzine A, HA) group. A total of 28 metabolites were considered potential biomarkers associated with the metabolism of beta-alanine, glycine, serine, threonine, cysteine, methionine, arginine, proline, and purines in AD mice. Furthermore, the CF group was clustered with the control and positive group and was clearly separated from the model group in the heat map. In conclusion, significant anti-AD effects were firstly observed in mice after treatment with the CF extract, and the urinary metabolomics approach assisted with dissecting the underlying mechanism.

An integrated metabolomic strategy for the characterization of the effects of Chinese yam and its three active components on septic cardiomyopathy.

Chinese yam (CY), used as both a traditional Chinese medicine and a nutritious food, is an excellent candidate for treating septic cardiomyopathy (SCM). Adenosine, arbutin and allantoin are the major active components in the aqueous extract of CY. The aim of the present study was to interpret the roles of CY, adenosine, arbutin and allantoin in SCM treatment. Firstly, significant physiological indexes were examined to assess the model and treatment effects of CY, adenosine, arbutin and allantoin. Then, a metabolomic approach was utilized to reveal the metabolic disorders in SCM concerning the intervention of CY/adenosine/arbutin/allantoin. The integrated results demonstrated that adenosine, arbutin and allantoin are responsible for the efficacy of CY on SCM treatment by regulating amino acid, arachidonic acid, sphingolipid, glycerophospholipid and glycol metabolism. Moreover, adenosine and/or arbutin could be used as a substitute for CY in treating SCM, and allantoin efficacy was slightly weaker. This integrated metabolomic approach performed excellently in understanding the herbal function and the roles of its components.

A Metabolomics-Based Strategy for the Mechanism Exploration of Traditional Chinese Medicine: Descurainia sophia Seeds Extract and Fractions as a Case Study.

A UPLC-QTOF-MS based metabolomics research was conducted to explore potential biomarkers which would increase our understanding of the model and to assess the integral efficacy of Descurainia sophia seeds extract (DS-A). Additionally, DS-A was split into five fractions in descending order of polarity, which were utilized to illustrate the mechanism together. The 26 identified biomarkers were mainly related to disturbances in phenylalanine, tyrosine, tryptophan, purine, arginine, and proline metabolism. Furthermore, heat map, hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA), and correlation network diagram of biomarkers perturbed by modeling were all conducted. The results of heat map and HCA suggested that fat oil fraction could reverse the abnormal metabolism in the model to some extent; meanwhile the metabolic inhibitory effect produced by the other four fractions helped to relieve cardiac load and compensate the insufficient energy supplement induced by the existing heart and lung injury in model rats. Briefly, the split fractions interfered with the model from different aspects and ultimately constituted the overall effects of extract. In conclusion, the metabolomics method, combined with split fractions of extract, is a powerful approach for illustrating pathologic changes of Chinese medicine syndrome and action mechanisms of traditional Chinese medicine.