Abstract

Uncariae Ramulus Cum Uncis (Gou-Teng), the dried hook-bearing stems of several Uncaria plants (Rubiaceae), is a well-known herbal medicine in China. The clinical application of Gou-Teng is bewildered for the morphological and chemical similarity between different species. In order to discern their chemical and biological difference, an ultra-fast liquid chromatography equipped with ion trap time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UFLC-IT/TOF-MS) combining with melatonin (MT₁ and MT₂) and 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT_1A and 5-HT_2C) receptors agonistic assay in vitro was conducted on seven Uncaria species. As a result, 57 compounds including 35 indole alkaloids, ten flavonoids, five triterpenoids, five chlorogenic analogues, and two other compounds were characterized based on their MS/MS patterns and UV absorptions. Specifically, cadambine-type and corynanthein-type alkaloids were exclusively present in U.rhynchophylla and U.scandens, whereas corynoxine-type alkaloids were commonly detected in all the seven Uncaria plants. Three Uncaria species, U. rhynchophylla, U. macrophylla, and U. yunnanensis showed obviously agnostic activity on four neurotransmitter receptors (MT₁, MT₂, 5-HT_1A, and 5-HT_2C). This first-time UFLCMS-IT-TOF analyses integrated with biological assay on seven Uncaria plants will provide scientific viewpoints for the clinical application of Gou-Teng.

Graphic Abstract

中文翻译：

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与褪黑素/5-羟色胺受体激动测定相结合的七种钩藤属物种的 UFLC-PDA-MS/MS 分析。

摘要

钩藤（Uncariae Ramulus Cum Uncis），为茜草科植物钩藤（Uncariae Ramulus Cum Uncis）的干燥带钩茎，是我国著名草药。不同物种之间的形态和化学相似性使钩藤的临床应用感到困惑。为了辨别它们的化学和生物学差异，配备离子阱飞行时间质谱 (UFLC-IT/TOF-MS) 的超快速液相色谱法结合褪黑激素（MT 1 和_MT 2 _）和 5-羟色胺对七个钩藤属物种进行了体外（5-HT _1A和 5-HT _2C ）受体激动试验。结果，根据 MS/MS 模式和 UV 吸收对 57 种化合物进行了表征，其中包括 35 种吲哚生物碱、10 种黄酮类化合物、5 种三萜类化合物、5 种绿原类似物和另外两种化合物。具体而言，卡丹宾型和棒状花青素型生物碱仅存在于钩藤和乌带中，而棒状花碱型生物碱在所有七种钩藤属植物中均常见。钩藤属3种，钩藤属、大叶钩藤属和云南钩藤属对四种神经递质受体（MT ₁、MT ₂、5-HT _1A和5-HT _2C）表现出明显的不可知活性。本次首次对七种钩藤属植物进行UFLCMS-IT-TOF分析与生物测定相结合，将为钩藤的临床应用提供科学观点。

图文摘要