Data on metabolic profiling of healthy human subjects' plasma before and after administration of the Japanese Kampo medicine maoto.

This data article contains the data on metabolic profiling of healthy human subjects' plasma before and after administration of the Japanese Kampo medicine maoto. Four healthy human subjects were recruited. Plasma samples were collected before and 0.25, 0.5, 1, 2, 4 and 8 h after maoto treatment. Endogenous and exogenous compounds in plasma were analyzed using MS. Endogenous compounds including saccharides, amino acids, organic acids and other hydrophilic metabolites were semi-quantitatively measured using GC-MS/MS. Lipid mediators such as arachidonic acid, docosahexaenoic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid were semi-quantitatively measured using LC-MS/MS. Maoto constituents in plasma were quantitatively measured using LC-MS/MS. The data files contain the area ratio values, which were normalized to the intensity of the internal standard, and plasma concentration of maoto compounds. The data article is related to the research article titled "Phenotyping analysis of the Japanese Kampo medicine maoto in healthy human subjects using wide-targeted plasma metabolomics" (Kitagawa et al., 2018).

Phenotyping analysis of the Japanese Kampo medicine maoto in healthy human subjects using wide-targeted plasma metabolomics.

Traditional herbal medicine (THM) consists of a vast number of compounds that exert pharmacological effects throughout the body. Comprehensive phenotyping analysis using omics is essential for understanding the nature of THM in detail. We previously reported that the Japanese Kampo medicine maoto ameliorated flu-like symptoms in a rat infection model and dynamically changed plasma metabolites as indicated by metabolome analysis. The aim of this study was to apply wide-targeted plasma metabolomics with quantitative analysis of maoto compounds in a human clinical trial to evaluate the effect of maoto on plasma metabolites. Four healthy human subjects were recruited. Plasma samples were collected before and 0.25, 0.5, 1, 2, 4 and 8 h after maoto treatment. Wide-targeted metabolomics and quantitative analysis of the main chemical constituents of maoto were then performed. Plasma metabolome analysis revealed that maoto administration decreased essential amino acids including branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) and increased various kinds of ω-3 fatty acids including eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid, consistent with previous studies in rats. Fifteen of the major compounds in maoto were identified in the systemic circulation. Finally, the correlation between endogenous metabolites and maoto compounds in plasma was analyzed and the results indicated that the decrease in plasma BCAAs might be caused by ephedrines present in maoto. The present study demonstrated that plasma metabolomic studies of endogenous and exogenous metabolites are useful for elucidating the mechanism of action of THM.