Study on the quality difference between raw and ginger juice processed Magnoliae officinalis cortex by UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS and GC-MS coupled with color measurement.

INTRODUCTION: Magnoliae officinalis cortex (MOC) has been used for thousands of years as a traditional Chinese herb. In Chinese Pharmacopoeia (2020 edition), it has two types of decoction pieces, raw Magnoliae officinalis cortex (RMOC) and ginger juice processed Magnoliae officinalis cortex (GMOC). The quality difference between RMOC and GMOC has not been explored systemically. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to discover the quality difference between RMOC and GMOC, and clarify the effect of ginger juice during processing comprehensively. METHODS: Ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) were applied to study the non-volatile and volatile components of RMOC and GMOC; electronic eye was applied for color measurement. Meanwhile, water processed Magnoliae officinalis cortex (WMOC) was studied as the blank sample. RESULTS: There were 155 non-volatile and 72 volatile substances identified. Between RMOC and GMOC, 29 distinctive non-volatile and 34 distinctive volatile compounds were detected, among which 23 new compounds appeared and five compounds disappeared due to the addition of ginger juice during processing. The intensities of 12 common non-volatile compounds and the relative percentage contents of four common volatile compounds showed significant differences between RMOC and GMOC. In color measurement of RMOC, GMOC, and WMOC, 14 common compounds with significant differences were discovered related to their color values, and their mathematical prediction functions were built. CONCLUSION: There were significant differences between RMOC and GMOC; the processing mechanism of GMOC would be carried out based on the differential compounds in further investigation.

Discrimination between raw and ginger juice processed Fructus Gardeniae based on UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS and Heracles NEO ultra-fast gas phase electronic nose.

INTRODUCTION: Fructus Gardeniae (ZZ), a traditional Chinese herb, has been used in treating patients with jaundice, inflammation, etc. When mixed with ginger juice and stir-baked, ginger juice-processed Fructus Gardeniae (JZZ) is produced, and the chemical compositions in ZZ would be changed by adding the ginger juice. OBJECTIVE: To illuminate the differential components between ZZ and JZZ. METHODS: HPLC, UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS, and Heracles NEO ultra-fast gas phase electronic nose were applied to identify the differential components between ZZ and JZZ. RESULTS: HPLC fingerprints of ZZ and JZZ were established, and 24 common peaks were found. The content determination results showed that the contents of shanzhiside, geniposidic acid, genipin-1-ß-D-gentiobioside and geniposide increased, while the contents of crocin I and crocin II decreased in JZZ. By UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS, twenty-six possible common components were inferred, among which 11 components were different. In further investigation, eight components were identified as the possible distinctive non-volatile compounds between ZZ and JZZ. By Heracles NEO ultra-fast gas phase electronic nose, four substances were inferred as the possible distinctive volatile compounds in JZZ. CONCLUSION: Shanzhiside, caffeic acid, genipin-1-ß-D-gentiobioside, geniposide, rutin, crocin I, crocin II, and 4-Sinapoyl-5-caffeoylquinic acid were identified as the possible differential non-volatile components between ZZ and JZZ. Aniline, 3-methyl-3-sulfanylbutanol-1-ol, E-3-octen-2-one, and decyl propaonate were inferred as the possible distinctive volatile compounds in JZZ. This experiment explored a simple approach with objective and stable results, which would provide new ideas for studying decoction pieces with similar morphological appearance, especially those with different odors.

[Processing Magnoliae Officinalis Cortex with ginger juice: process optimization based on AHP-CRITIC weighting method and composition changes after processing].

The weight coefficients of appearance traits, extract yield of standard decoction, and total content of honokiol and magnolol were determined by analytic hierarchy process(AHP), criteria importance though intercrieria correlation(CRITIC), and AHP-CRITIC weighting method, and the comprehensive scores were calculated. The effects of ginger juice dosage, moistening time, proces-sing temperature, and processing time on the quality of Magnoliae Officinalis Cortex(MOC) were investigated, and Box-Behnken design was employed to optimize the process parameters. To reveal the processing mechanism, MOC, ginger juice-processed Magnoliae Officinalis Cortex(GMOC), and water-processed Magnoliae Officinalis Cortex(WMOC) were compared. The results showed that the weight coefficients of the appearance traits, extract yield of standard decoction, and total content of honokiol and magnolol determined by AHP-CRITIC weighting method were 0.134, 0.287, and 0.579, respectively. The optimal processing parameters of GMOC were ginger juice dosage of 8%, moistening time of 120 min, and processing at 100 ℃ for 7 min. The content of syringoside and magnolflorine in MOC decreased after processing, and the content of honokiol and magnolol followed the trend of GMOC>MOC>WMOC, which suggested that the change in clinical efficacy of MOC after processing was associated with the changes of chemical composition. The optimized processing technology is stable and feasible and provides references for the modern production and processing of MOC.

[Molecular Identification on Three Medicinal Phlomis Species Produced in Yunnan Province Based on ITS and matK].

Objective: To analyze ITS region and matK gene sequences of three medicinal Phlomis plants,in order to provide molecular basis for identifying and protecting their wild resources. Methods: PCR and sequencing were conducted on Phlomis likiangensis,Phlomis melanantha and Phlomis betonicoides wild populations by primers pairs ITS4 / ITS5 and matKXF / matK5 R. Results: The smallest inter-K2 P genetic distance was further than the largest intra-K2 P genetic distance in Phlomis likiangensis, Phlomis melanantha and Phlomis betonicoides. Different samples of three medicinal Phlomis plants were gathered together and could be distinguished from other exogenous species by Neighbor-Joining( NJ) tree. Phlomis likiangensis, Phlomis melanantha and Phlomis betonicoides had three, three and one sites on ITS2 for their effective identification, and had three,three and three sites on ITS1 for their effective identification respectively. Phlomis betonicoides had three sites on matK for its effective identification, while Phlomis likiangensis or Phlomis melanantha needed multiple sites for their effective identification. Conclusion: The study implies that ITS1,ITS2 and matK fragments could be used for molecular identification of Phlomis likiangensis, Phlomis melanantha and Phlomis betonicoides.