Zhi-Min Wang

Two new triterpenoid saponins from the flowers and buds of Lonicera japonica.

Two new triterpenoid saponins, loniceroside D (1) and loniceroside E (2), were isolated from the dry flowers and buds of Lonicera japonica Thunb., along with seven known compounds, chlorogenic acid (3), sweroside (4), vogeloside (5), epi-vogeloside (6), loniceroside A (7), loniceroside B (8), and loniceroside C (9). Their structures were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic data, physicochemical properties, and acid hydrolysis.

iNOS Inhibitory Activity of Sesquiterpenoids and a Monoterpenoid from the Rhizomes of Curcuma wenyujin

Eleven new sesquiterpenoids, wenyujinins A-K (1-11), and a new monoterpenoid, wenyujinin L (12), were isolated from the rhizomes of Curcuma wenyujin. Their structures and relative configurations were elucidated using 1D and 2D NMR, X-ray crystallographic analysis, and HRESIMS data. The absolute configurations of 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, and 10 were determined by comparison of the experimental and calculated ECD spectra. The absolute configuration of 5 was determined from the ECD data of the [Rh2(OCOCF3)4] complex, whereas those of 7 and 12 were determined from the ECD spectra of the compounds alone. Compounds 7 and 7a strongly inhibited the induction of NO production by LPS, with IC50 values of 7.6 and 8.5 μM, respectively. Compounds 6 and 10 moderately inhibited NO production with IC50 values of 47.7 and 48.6 μM, respectively.

Influence of Sulfur Fumigation on the Chemical Constituents and Antioxidant Activity of Buds of Lonicera japonica

Lonicera japonica flos is widely used as a pharmaceutical resource and a commonly-employed ingredient in healthy food, soft beverages and cosmetics in China. Sometimes, sulfur fumigation is used during post-harvest handling. In this study, a comprehensive comparison of the chemical profile between sun-dried and sulfur-fumigated samples was conducted by HPLC fingerprints and simultaneous quantification of nine constituents, including secologanic acid, along with another eight usually-analyzed markers. Secologanic acid was destroyed, and its sulfonates were generated, whereas caffeoylquinic acids were protected from being oxidized. The residual sulfur dioxide in sulfur-fumigated samples was significantly higher than that in sun-dried samples, which might increase the potential incidence of toxicity to humans. Meanwhile, compared with sun-dried samples, sulfur-fumigated samples have significantly stronger antioxidant activity, which could be attributed to the joint effect of protected phenolic acids and flavonoids, as well as newly-generated iridoid sulfonates.

Fourier transform mid-infrared spectroscopy (FT-MIR) combined with chemometrics for quantitative analysis of dextrin in Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza) granule.

The granule of Chinese medicine (GCM) is prepared by water-soluble extract of single yinpian (WESY) of herbal medicine, and used as a drug ingredient for clinical formulation. The WESY content or corresponding yinpian amount is the most important parameter in evaluating the quality of GCM. Low WESY content reflects poor GCM. Classical quantitative methods, such as HPLC, cannot fully detect the adulteration by adding characteristic ingredients and less WESY production. GCM is composed of WESY and a high content of specific excipient. The WESY content in the GCM may be indirectly analyzed using mid-infrared spectroscopy (MIR). In this paper, a quantitative method to evaluate the quality of Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza) granule (DG) was developed using MIR combined with chemometrics. Appropriate characteristic quantitative regions (CQR) were extracted by selecting the spectral regions corresponding to altered excipient content in DG. The best model of dextrin content determination in DG with low RMSEC of 1.97, low RMSEP of 2.07, and excellent RPD of 5.03 (>5.0) was obtained using partial least-squares (PLS) regression, and validated using accepted values of precision and recovery. The results suggest that FT-MIR combined with PLS is a rapid and valuable analytical tool to determine the WESY in DG based on excipient content. The model enabling indirect calculation of WESY content in GCM represents a reference standard for rapid analysis of other WESYs in GCM industry.

Chemical compositions and antioxidant activities of polysaccharides from the sporophores and cultured products of Armillaria mellea.

Armillaria mellea is a traditional Chinese medicinal and edible mushroom. Many cultured products of A. mellea have been used to develop commercial medicines in recent years. The chemical composition and activities of the major bioactive chemical components—polysaccharides—may be different because of differences in the raw materials used. Four polysaccharides (SP, CMP, CFBP and CFMP) were obtained from wild sporophores and cultured products (including mycelia, fermentation broth and fermentation mixture) of A. mellea. Their yields, carbohydrate contents, monosaccharide compositions, FT-IR spectra, NMR spectroscopy and antioxidant activities were investigated. All of the polysaccharides were composed of xylose, glucose and galactose without protein. Glucose was the dominant monosaccharide in SP, CMP and CFMP, whereas galactose was the dominant monosaccharide in CFBP. SP and CMP showed higher scavenging DPPH• and ABTS•+ activities and reducing power among four polysaccharides. The carbohydrate content and corresponding glucose percentage were positive influences on the antioxidant activities, whereas the corresponding xylose and galactose percentage were negative influences. A. mellea polysaccharides are potential natural antioxidants. Polysaccharides from cultured products, especially mycelia, are good substitutes for SP and are also potential sources for both dietary supplements and food industries.

Chemical Profiling of an Antimigraine Herbal Preparation, Tianshu Capsule, Based on the Combination of HPLC, LC-DAD-MS (n) , and LC-DAD-ESI-IT-TOF/MS Analyses.

Chemical profiling is always the first task in the standardization and modernization of Traditional Chinese Medicine. HPLC and LC-MS were employed to find out the common chromatographic peaks in various batches of Tianshu Capsule (TSC) and the contribution of the characteristic peaks from individual herbs to the whole chromatographic profile of TSC sample. A total of 38 constituents were identified in TSC sample based on the comparison of retention time and UV spectra with authentic compounds as well as by summarized MS fragmentation rules and matching of empirical molecular formula with those of published components. This is the first systematic report on the chemical profiling of the commercial TSC product, which provides the sufficiently chemical evidence for the global quality evaluation of TSC products.

IDENTIFICATION AND DETERMINATION OF THE CHEMICAL CONSTITUENTS IN A HERBAL PREPARATION, COMPOUND KUSHEN INJECTION, BY HPLC AND LC-DAD-MS/MS

The qualitative and quantitative analyses by HPLC and LC-DAD-MS/MS were conducted for the quality consistency evaluation of Compound Kushen Injection (CKI). For fingerprint analysis, 8 peaks were selected as the characteristic peaks in the HPLC chromatograms of 27 different batches of CKI samples and their similarities were more than 0.90, except the four samples. For the typical HPLC profile, peak identification was carried out by HPLC and LC-MS/MS analyses and as a result, 21 chromatographic peaks were identified or characterized based on the comparison of retention time and UV spectra with authentic compounds as well as by summarized MS fragmentation rules. Six of these identified compounds, including oxymatrine, oxysophocarpine, N-methylcytisine, matrine, sophocarpine, and trifolirhizin, were simultaneously determined and the results showed that the total amounts of six marker compounds were variable, to some extent, which was deduced to be related to the quality of the crude materials and the manufacturing process employed. Supplemental materials are available for this article. Go to the publishers online edition of the Journal of Liquid Chromatography & Related Technologies to view the supplemental file.

Review of bioactive compounds from root barks of Morus plants (Sang-Bai-Pi) and their pharmacological effects

Abstract Morus, a plant genus from the family of Moraceae, most plants of which are used as traditional medicines in Asian counties. The root barks of Morus plants are normally called as Sang-Bai-Pi (SBP) in Chinese and used for the treatment of inflammatory and respiratory diseases. Decades of research on phytochemistry of SBP have led to the identification of various compounds, such as Diels–Alder-type adducts, flavonoids, benzofurans, stilbenes, polyhydroxylated alkaloids, etc. These compounds have showed a wide range of bioactive features including anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative, anti-microbic, etc. This review focus on the bioactive compounds and their pharmacological effects of SBP which will help us fully understand the effective substances of SBP, and pave our way to further explore medicinal uses of SBP and comprehensive utilization of Morus species.

Bufadienolides and polyhydroxycholestane derivatives from Bufo bufo gargarizans

A new polyhydroxycholestane sulfate ester, 3α,12β,25,26-tetrahydroxy-7-oxo-5β-cholestane 26-O-sulfate (1), was isolated from dried skin of Bufo bufo gargarizans Cantor and its structure was elucidated on the basis of extensive 1D and 2D NMR as well as HR-ESI-MS analysis. A comparison of steroidal metabolite profiles, based on HPLC and LC–MS analyses, indicates that the chemical compositions of the various parts of toads, such as venom, skin and stratum corneum, are significantly different.

Three new guaiane sesquiterpene lactones from rhizomes of Curcuma wenyujin

Three new guaiane sesquiterpene lactones (4S)-4-hydroxy-gweicurculactone (1), zedoalactone G (2), and (1R, 4R, 5S, 10S)-zedoalactone B (3), and three known guaiane sesquiterpene lactones, including zedoarolide B (4), zedoalactone B (5), and a new natural product (+)-zedoalactone A (6), were isolated from the rhizomes of Curcuma wenyujin Y.H. Chen et C. Ling. The structures were elucidated by spectroscopic methods including 1D and 2D NMR and HR-ESI-MS. The absolute configuration of 2 was determined via the calculated electronic circular dichroism (ECD), whereas the absolute configurations of 1 and 3 were determined via the ECD data of the [Rh2(OCOCF3)4] complex and [Mo2(OAc)4] complex, respectively. The inhibitory effects of compounds 1–6 on nitric oxide production in lipopolysaccharide-activated macrophages were evaluated. All of them exhibited weak anti-inflammatory activity.