Comprehensive quality evaluation of the lateral root of Aconitum carmichaelii Debx. (Fuzi): Simultaneous determination of nine alkaloids and chemical fingerprinting coupled with chemometric analysis

Amino alcohol alkaloids are the active components in the lateral root of Aconitum carmichaelii Debx. (Fuzi), and they have a variety of pharmacological activities. However, the chemical fingerprints of the ester alkaloids reported to date were mainly obtained from high‐performance liquid chromatography coupled with ultraviolet detection, and it is difficult to obtain information about amino alcohol alkaloids in Fuzi from such chromatograms. In this paper, a comprehensive fingerprinting method was established using high‐performance liquid chromatography coupled with an evaporative light‐scattering detector for the simultaneous quantitative analysis of both the amino alcohol alkaloids and ester alkaloids. A total of 42 samples of Fuzi from four production areas were analyzed by constructing high‐performance liquid chromatography fingerprints. Then, the quantitative results of the chemical fingerprints combined with chemometrics methods were employed to reveal the factors affecting the geo‐authentic Fuzi and to determine characteristic components that can be used to identify these samples. The results indicated distinct differences in the alkaloid contents among samples from the four regions; the geographical origin may be the primary factor affecting the geo‐authentic Fuzi, and 15 major components (including songorine, neoline, and hypaconitine, which were quantitatively determined) were found to be characteristic components for the discrimination of Fuzi samples from various regions. Neoline might be a critical component for identifying geo‐authentic Fuzi. This approach is convenient, reproducible and provides a promising method for the quality evaluation of Fuzi.     

Diterpenoid alkaloids from the Chinese traditional herbal "Fuzi" and their cytotoxic activity

Ten diterpenoid alkaloids, including eight aconitine-type C??-diterpenoid alkaloids and two hetisine-type C??-diterpenoid alkaloids, were isolated from the secondary roots of Aconitum carmichaeli Debx., known as "Fuzi" in Chinese traditional herbal medicine. Their structures were established on the basis of their spectroscopic data and comparison with those of the literature. Among these alkaloids, chasmanine, oxonitine and 15-acetylsongoramine were isolated for the first time from this medicinal plant. The cytotoxic activity of the alkaloids were tested against several cell lines by the MTT method in which aconitine, hypaconitine, mesaconitne and oxonitine were found to strongly inhibit the growth of the HePG2 cell line, which showed that the existence and quantity of the ester groups have a significant influence on the cytotoxicity of the diterpenoid alkaloids.     

Alkaloid profiling of the Chinese herbal medicine Fuzi by combination of matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization mass spectrometry with liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry

A matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS) method was developed for the high throughput and robust qualitative profiling of alkaloids in Fuzi—the processed lateral roots of the Chinese herbal medicine Aconitum carmichaeli Debx (A. carmichaeli). After optimization, powdered roots – without any further sample preparation – could be used to screen for the presence of Aconitum alkaloids. Furthermore, the semi-quantitative potential of MALDI-MS was confirmed using liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC–MS) as reference. In total over sixty alkaloids were detected by LC–MS and fifteen of them were tentatively identified. Both MALDI-MS and LC–MS analysis revealed significant variation in alkaloid content in different (commercial) samples. LC–MS analysis of three toxic alkaloids in 14 batches of Fuzi resulted in a variation of their concentrations expressed as RSDs of 138%, 99% and 221% for aconitine, hypaconitine and mesaconitine, respectively. The variation in concentrations (expressed as RSD) of about the ninety constituents detected were classified as follows: 13 constituents showed an RSD of 77–100%, 46 with an RSD of 100–150%, 21 with an RSD of 150–200% and 9 constituents with an RSD in concentration of 200–235%. These results demonstrate a strong difference in chemical composition of the various Fuzi and illustrate the necessity of adequate QA/QC procedures for both safety and efficiency of herbal medicine. The described analytical procedures for alkaloid profiling could play a role in these procedures.     

Simultaneous determination of six Aconitum alkaloids in proprietary Chinese medicines by high-performance liquid chromatography

By optimizing the extraction, separation and analytical conditions, a reliable and accurate high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method coupled with photodiode array detector (DAD) was developed for simultaneous quantitative determination of six Aconitum alkaloids, i.e., aconitine, mesaconitine, hypaconitine, benzoylaconine, benzoylmesaconine and benzoylhypaconine, in Chinese medicinal herbs, aconite roots, and 12 proprietary Chinese medicines containing processed aconite roots. The separation of these Aconitum alkaloids was achieved on an ODS column with gradient elution using solvents of acetonitrile and ammonium bicarbonate buffer (pH 10.0+/-0.2). Intra-assay and inter-assay precision of the analytes were less than 2.97%, and the average recovery rates obtained were in the range of 90-103% for all with RSDs below 3.28%. Good linear relationships were showed with correlation coefficients for the analytes exceeded 0.999. Quantitative analysis of the six Aconitum alkaloids in the unprocessed and processed aconite roots and in twelve proprietary Chinese medicines containing processed aconite roots showed that the contents of the alkaloids varied significantly. This method and quantitation results can provide a scientific and technical platform to the products manufacturers for setting up a quality control standard as well as to the public for quality and safety assurance of the proprietary Chinese medicines and other herbal preparations containing aconite roots.     

Structural characterization and identification of C19‐ and C20‐diterpenoid alkaloids in roots of Aconitum carmichaeli by rapid‐resolution liquid chromatography coupled with time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry

Aconite alkaloids from the roots of Aconitum carmichaeli (Fuzi, in Chinese) have been investigated by rapid‐resolution liquid chromatography coupled with time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry (TOFMS) in positive mode. With dynamic adjustment of the key role as fragmentor voltage in TOFMS, an efficient transmission of the ions was achieved to obtain the best sensitivity for providing the molecular formula for each analyte, and abundant fragment ions for structural information. Fifteen authentic standards isolated from Fuzi with various structures were first characterized by TOFMS, including diester‐diterpenoid alkaloids (DDAs), monoester‐diterpenoid alkaloids (MDAs), alkylol amine‐diterpenoid alkaloids (ADAs), veatchine‐type alkaloids and atisine‐type alkaloids. Fragmentation rules and key diagnostic fragment ions have been summarized, and possible pathways of fragmentation have been proposed. By accurate mass measurements within 5 ppm error for each ion, 30 C₁₉‐diterpenoid alkaloids including 10 DDAs, 3 MDAs, 9 ADAs and 8 other type alkaloids, and 8 C₂₀‐diterpenoid alkaloids including 4 veatchine‐type alkaloids and 4 atisine‐type alkaloids could be identified in a methanolic extract of Fuzi. Some isomers of aconite alkaloids were also differentiated. Based on the differences between their fragmentation pathways and special fragment ions, each type of aconite alkaloids was differentiated. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Simultaneous quantitation of seven alkaloids in processed Fuzi decoction by rapid resolution liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry

A rapid analytical method based on rapid resolution LC coupled with MS/MS was first established to quantify seven alkaloids in processed Fuzi decoction. The chromatographic method was optimized to allow simultaneous analysis of all analytes in 5 min and demonstrated good linearity (r > 0.9995), repeatability (RSD < 4.36%), intra‐ and interday precisions (RSD < 5.07%) with good accuracies (97.76–105.08%) and good recovery (95.0–107.5%) of seven alkaloids, namely higenamine, benzoylhypaconine, benzoylmesaconine, benzoylaconine, aconitine, hypaconitine, and mesaconitine. The LODs for these markers were in the range of 2.30–17.00 pg/mL. Quantitative analysis of the seven alkaloids in Baifupian decoction and Heishunpian decoction showed that the content of the seven marker chemicals varied significantly and concluded that the quality of Fuzi was greatly affected by different processed methods. The developed method could be used as a rapid, sensitive, and reliable approach for assessment of the quality of processed Fuzi and related decoction.     

Chemical UPLC‐ESI‐MS/MS profiling of aconitum alkaloids and their metabolites in rat plasma and urine after oral administration of Aconitum carmichaelii Debx. Root extract

In this paper, an ultra high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometric (UPLC‐ESI‐MS/MS) method in positive ion mode was established to systematically identify and to compare the major aconitum alkaloids and their metabolites in rat plasma and urine after oral administration of Fuzi extract. A total twenty‐nine components including twenty‐five C19‐diterpenoid alkaloids and four C20‐diterpenoid alkaloids were identified in Fuzi extract. Thirteen of the parent components and five metabolites were detected in rat plasma and sixteen parent compounds and six metabolites in urine. These parent components found in rat plasma and urine were mainly C19‐diterpenoid alkaloids. All of the metabolites in vivo were demethylated metabolites (phase I metabolites), which suggested that demethylation was the major metabolic pathway of aconitum alkaloids in vivo. A comparison of the parent components in rat plasma and urine revealed that 3‐deoxyacontine was found in plasma but not in urine, while kalacolidine, senbusine and 16‐β‐hydroxycardiopetaline existed in urine but not in plasma, which indicated that most alkaloids components were disposed and excreted in prototype form. This research provides some important information for further metabolic investigations of Fuzi in vivo.     

Analysis of the aconitine alkaloids in traditional Chinese medicines by nonaqueous capillary electrophoresis using a new recording mode

The determination of three aconitine alkaloids (hypaconitine, aconitine, mesaconitine) in five traditional Chinese medicines including two Tibetan medicines, Chuanwu, Caowu, Fuzi, Aconitum Tanguticum Maxim and Aconitum Gymnandrum Maxim by non-aqueous capillary electrophoresis using a new recording mode is described. The dissociation constants of aconitine, mesaconitine and hypaconitine have also been determined by CZE and were 7.71, 6.60 and 6.25, respectively. The separation was achieved by optimizing the applied voltage, the pH and the concentration of the buffer. The electrophoretic medium was 20 mM borax-70% (v/v) methanol (pH 8.5) and an uncoated capillary (50 cm x 75 microm i.d.) was used. Detection was carried out with a UV monitor at 214 nm. The total time for separation and determination was under 13 min.     

16-O-去甲基去氧乌头碱在肠内细菌中的生物转化研究

采用人肠内细菌和乌头碱体外温孵的方法,探讨乌头碱的代谢产物16-O-去甲基去氧乌头碱在人肠内的生物转化。利用离子阱电喷雾串联质谱(ESIMS/MSn)方法直接分析16-O-去甲基去氧乌头碱的代谢产物。乌头类生物碱在ESI正离子模式条件下形成质子化分子[M H] 。16-O-去甲基去氧乌头碱可被人肠内细菌转化,通过脱乙酰基、脱苯甲酰基、脱甲基、脱羟基以及酯化反应产生新型的单酯型、双酯型和脂类生物碱等10余种代谢产物。双酯型生物碱具有较高的毒性,相对应的单酯型和脂类生物碱毒性较低。16-O-去甲基去氧乌头碱被肠内细菌转化为单酯型和脂类生物碱会使其毒性降低。     

生附子中C19型二萜生物碱的高速逆流色谱分离及其结构鉴定

应用高速逆流色谱法分离制备了生附子中的3个C19型二萜生物碱类化合物。以正己烷-乙酸乙酯-甲醇-水(3:5:4:5, v/v/v/v)为两相溶剂系统,上相为固定相,下相为流动相,在主机转速850 r/min、流动相流速2.0 mL/min、检测波长235 nm条件下进行分离制备;一次性从90 mg附子总碱粗提物中分离制备得到15.3 mg北草乌碱,35.1 mg中乌头碱和22.7 mg次乌头碱,经高效液相色谱分析,测得它们的纯度分别为97.9%、96.2%和99.2%。并应用波谱(电喷雾离子质谱、核磁共振氢谱和核磁共振13C谱)解析法确定了它们的结构。利用该方法可以对生附子中的二萜类生物碱成分进行快速的分离和纯化     

Sensitive analysis of aconitine, hypaconitine, mesaconitine and jesaconitine in human body fluids and Aconitum tubers by LC/ESI-TOF-MS

The Aconitum species (Ranunculaceae) are widely distributed in northern Asia and North America. Their roots are popularly used in herbal medicines in China and Japan. Many cases of accidental, suicidal and homicidal intoxication with this plant have been reported; some of these were fatal because the toxicity of Aconitum is very high. It is thus important to detect and quantify Aconitum alkaloids in body fluids, with high sensitivity. We have developed a simple and sensitive method for measuring four kinds of Aconitum alkaloids (aconitine, hypaconitine, jesaconitine and mesaconitine) by LC/electrospray (ESI)-time-of-flight (TOF)-MS. For all of them, only molecular ions were observed at an orifice voltage of 75 V; at 135 V, base peaks corresponding to [M - 60 + H]+ ions were observed. These four compounds and methyllycaconitine (internal standard) in human plasma samples were purified by solid-phase extraction. The four extracted compounds were completely separated in mass chromatograms; the calibration curves showed good linearity in the range 10-300 ng/ml, and the detection limits were estimated to be 0.2-0.5 ng/ml. Using our method, we also determined the amounts of these compounds in tuber samples. The present method is applicable in clinical and forensic toxicology.     

Structure identification of five unknown dilipo-alkaloids extracted from processed tuber of Aconitum Carmiechaeli by electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry.

The alkaloids in processed aconite tuber of Aconitum Carmiechaeli were studied, and five novel alkaloids in extract from processed aconite tuber were found. The first step involved the use of electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS), and then multi-stage tandem mass spectrometry (MSn) was used to provide structural information. Based on their MSn spectra, the structures of the five novel compounds were elucidated to be C3,C8-difatty acid esters of mesaconitine, aconitine and 10-hydroxyaconitine.     

Screening and analysis of aconitum alkaloids and their metabolites in rat urine after oral administration of aconite roots extract using LC-TOFMS-based metabolomics

Aconite roots are popularly used in herbal medicines in China. Many cases of accidental and intentional intoxication with this plant have been reported; some of these are fatal because the toxicity of aconitum is very high. It is thus important to detect and identify aconitum alkaloids in biofluids. In this work, an improved method employing LC-TOFMS with multivariate data analysis was developed for screening and analysis of major aconitum alkaloids and their metabolites in rat urine following oral administration of aconite roots extract. Thirty-four signals highlighted by multivariate statistical analyses including 24 parent components and 10 metabolites were screened out and further identified by adjustment of the fragmentor voltage to produce structure-relevant fragment ions. It is helpful for studying aconite roots in toxicology, pharmacology and forensic medicine. This work also confirmed that the metabolomic approach provides effective tools for screening multiple absorbed and metabolic components of Chinese herbal medicines in vivo.     

乌头碱的LC-MS定量分析

乌头生物碱各成分毒性差异很大,其中乌头碱的毒性为其它成分的100-2000倍,是引起中毒和死亡的主要原因。乌头生物碱种类多,在煎煮或泡制过程中易水解产生不同水解产物,进入体内后代谢情况又不明,因此采用液相色谱方法对体内检材乌头碱成分仅靠保留时间确定依据不足,定量工作更是无法开展。但在现实生活中炮制后的乌头植物可入药,且炮制过的乌头植物也可检出少量原碱。遇到体内检材中检验出乌头生物碱成分时,办案单位往往希望有一个量的甄别。经查阅资料,未见体内检材(如血、肝、尿等)中乌头碱含量的报道。我们应用LC-MS,采用646.4单离子扫描方式对实际案例血中乌头碱含量进行了测定,为今后的进一步研究和同行提供数据积累。     

Norditerpenoid alkaloids from the processed tubers of Aconitum carmichaeli

Four new and five known norditerpenoid alkaloids were isolated from the processed tubers of Aconitum carmichaeli. The new alkaloids are 14-O-cinnamoylneoline (3), 14-O-anisoylneoline (4) 14-O-veratroylneoline (5), and lipo-14-O-anisoylbikhaconine (8). The known alkaloids are neoline (1), 14-O-acetylneoline (2), foresaconitine (6), crassicauline A (7), and lipohypaconitine (9). Alkaloids 2, 6, and 7 were isolated from this plant for the first time. The structures of the new alkaloids were established by spectroscopic and chemical methods.     

Investigation of Aconitine-type Alkaloids from Processed Tuber of Aconitum carmiechaeli by HPLC-ESI-MS/MS~n

Introduction Aconitine-type alkaloids isolated from the roots of Aconitum carmiechaeli show a potential toxicity and a broad spectrum of bioactivity[1-4].On the basis of the C8-substituent of C19-diterpenoid skeleton,aconitine-type alkaloids can be divided into diester-diterpenoid alkaloids(DDAs),monoester-diterpenoid alkaloids(MDAs),and lipo-alkaloids(Fig.1).     

草乌中二萜类生物碱的电喷雾串联质谱研究

利用电喷雾质谱技术对传统中药草乌中的二萜类生物碱进行直接分析鉴定.通过实验数据并对比文献发现,草乌中含有单酯型、双酯型、三酯型和脂类等共4种类型生物碱,其中三酯型和脂类生物碱在草乌中为首次发现.由于这些生物碱的结构相似,在电喷雾串联质谱中碎裂方式相同,因此根据电喷雾串联质谱结果确定了这些生物碱的结构.     

Direct analysis of alkaloid profiling in plant tissue by using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry

A method for the direct determination of alkaloid profiling in plant tissues by using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOFMS) was developed. The alkaloid profiles of the herbs were obtained without the need for complicated sample preparation. Experimental results demonstrated that the direct MALDI-TOFMS analysis allowed rapid and reliable characterization of the components in plant tissues. Four commonly used Chinese medicinal herbs were studied, including Aconitum Carmichaeli Debx. (Fuzi in Chinese) and Processed Fuzi, for herb differentiation and explanation of the significant difference in their toxicities. The direct analysis method proved valuable for the preliminary study of plant component profiles. The rapid collection of information from the direct analysis on plant tissues could be valuable for supporting the discovery of new compounds and for the quality control of medicinal herbs.     

Rapid separation and characterization of diterpenoid alkaloids in processed roots of Aconitum carmichaeli using ultra high performance liquid chromatography coupled with hybrid linear ion trap‐Orbitrap tandem mass spectrometry

The lateral root of Aconitum carmichaeli, a popular traditional Chinese medicine, has been widely used to treat rheumatic diseases. For decades, diterpenoid alkaloids have dominated the phytochemical and biomedical research on this plant. In this study, a rapid and sensitive method based on ultra high performance liquid chromatography coupled with linear ion trap‐Orbitrap tandem mass spectrometry was developed to characterize the diterpenoid alkaloids in Aconitum carmichaeli. Based on an optimized chromatographic condition, more than 120 diterpenoid alkaloids were separated with good resolution. Using a systematic strategy that combines high resolution separation, highly accurate mass measurements and a good understanding of the diagnostic fragment‐based fragmentation patterns, these diterpenoid alkaloids were identified or tentatively identified. The identification of these chemicals provided essential data for further phytochemical studies and toxicity research of Aconitum carmichaeli. Moreover, the ultra high performance liquid chromatography with linear ion trap‐Orbitrap mass spectrometry platform was an effective and accurate tool for rapid qualitative analysis of secondary metabolite productions from natural resources.     

Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis of Drug Interactions: Fritillary Mediating the Transport of Alkaloids in Caco-2 Cells by P-Glycoprotein

Ultra performance liquid chromatographic-electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry（UPLC-ESI-MS） was used to investigate the potential interaction between selected ingredients of Aconitum and fritillary. The efflux ratios of 14-benzoylmesaconine（BM）, 14-benzoylaconine（BC）, 14-benzoylhypaconine（BH）, mesaconitine（MA）, aco- nitine（AC） and hypaconitine（HA） was 11.16, 12.53, 11.69, 12.8, 11.03 and 6.15, respectively, and the secretion of them was inhibited by Veraparnil, which means they are the substrates of permeability-glycoprotein（P-gp）. The transport of Aconitum alkaloids extract through a Caco-2 cell monolayer was determined in the absence and presence of fritillary extract. And the fritillary extract increased the absorption of Aconitum alkaloids. Peimine（PE） and peimi- nine（PEN） in fritillary increased the absorption of pure Aconitum alkaloids. The transport of digoxin was respectively enhanced by PE and PEN, which means they are the inhibitors of P-gp. PEN showed more effective inhibition than PE at the same concentration. The in vitro data suggest that the compounds such as fritillary present in alkaloids were able to inhibit the P-gp activity and lead modifying the transport of alkaloids.