Simultaneous determination of phenolic acids and diterpenoids and their comparative pharmacokinetic study in normal and acute blood stasis rats by UFLC–MS/MS after oral administration of Guan-Xin-Shu-Tong capsules

Dietary gallic acid as an antioxidant: A review of its food industry applications, health benefits, bioavailability, nano-delivery systems, and drug interactions

Gallic acid (GA), a dietary phenolic acid with potent antioxidant activity, is widely distributed in edible plants. GA has been applied in the food industry as an antimicrobial agent, food fresh-keeping agent, oil stabilizer, active food wrap material, and food processing stabilizer. GA is a potential dietary supplement due to its health benefits on various functional disorders associated with oxidative stress, including renal, neurological, hepatic, pulmonary, reproductive, and cardiovascular diseases. GA is rapidly absorbed and metabolized after oral administration, resulting in low bioavailability, which is susceptible to various factors, such as intestinal microbiota, transporters, and metabolism of galloyl derivatives. GA exhibits a tendency to distribute primarily to the kidney, liver, heart, and brain. A total of 37 metabolites of GA has been identified, and decarboxylation and dihydroxylation in phase I metabolism and sulfation, glucuronidation, and methylation in phase Ⅱ metabolism are considered the main in vivo biotransformation pathways of GA. Different types of nanocarriers, such as polymeric nanoparticles, dendrimers, and nanodots, have been successfully developed to enhance the health-promoting function of GA by increasing bioavailability. GA may induce drug interactions with conventional drugs, such as hydroxyurea, linagliptin, and diltiazem, due to its inhibitory effects on metabolic enzymes, including cytochrome P450 3A4 and 2D6, and transporters, including P-glycoprotein, breast cancer resistance protein, and organic anion-transporting polypeptide 1B3. In conclusion, in-depth studies of GA on food industry applications, health benefits, bioavailability, nano-delivery systems, and drug interactions have laid the foundation for its comprehensive application as a food additive and dietary supplement.

Pharmacokinetic Comparison of Nine Bioactive Compounds of Guanxinshutong Capsule in Normal and Acute Myocardial Infarction Rats

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Guanxinshutong capsules (GXST) are usually used to treat acute myocardial infarction (AMI), and the clinical effect of GXST is significant. However, there have been only a few studies on the pharmacokinetics of GXST against AMI injury. The objective of this study was to investigate the pharmacokinetics of nine bioactive compounds of GXST in normal and AMI rats.

METHODS

In this work, a rat model of AMI was established by ligating the left anterior descending coronary artery. The pharmacokinetic parameters of nine bioactive compounds (gallic acid, danshensu, protocatechuic aldehyde, rosmarinic acid, salvianolic acid B and salvianolic acid A, dihydrotanshinone I, cryptotanshinone, and tanshinone IIA) in the plasma of AMI and normal rats were compared under the same dose of GXST by a LC-MS/MS method. Then, we selected P-glycoprotein (P-gp) and some representative cytochrome P450 enzymes (CYPs) for molecular docking to further analyze the interaction between these compounds.

RESULTS

The pharmacokinetic studies showed that the area under the concentration-time curve (AUC) and maximum concentration (C_max) of phenolic acids were relatively large, while the half-life (T_½) of tanshinones was longer. Among the nine components, salvianolic acid B in AMI rats had the maximum area under the concentration-time curve (AUC_0-∞ = 1961.8 ng·h/mL), which showed a significant difference compared with normal rats (P < 0.05). Tanshinone IIA in AMI rats had the longest half-life (T_½ = 10.1 h), and it was markedly longer than that in normal rats (P < 0.01). In addition, compared with the normal group, the AUC, C_max, T_½ , and time to reach C_max (T_max) of gallic acid increased significantly in AMI rats (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01). For the molecular docking results, it was found that gallic acid may interact with CYP1A2, CYP2D6, and CYP2C9, while danshensu may interact with CYP2C9. Tanshinones may interact with CYP1A2, CYP2D6, CYP2C9, and P-gp.

CONCLUSIONS

The results suggest that the pathological injury caused by AMI has a significant impact on the pharmacokinetic characteristics of some active compounds in GXST, which are conducive to providing a reference and promoting rational clinical drug use.

Magnetic Ligand Fishing Using Immobilized Cyclooxygenase-2 for Identification and Screening of Anticoronary Heart Disease Ligands From Choerospondias axillaris

Inhibition of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) activity is an effective way for treatment of coronary heart disease. And as an important source of COX-2 inhibitors, bioactive compounds of Choerospondias axillaris and pharmacological mechanisms remained lacking in prospective researches. Therefore, for the purpose of accelerating the discovery of natural products targeting designed inhibitors, the COX-2 microreactor composed of functionalized microspheres and magnetic ligand fishing was developed and applied in Choerospondias axillaris, and the physicochemical properties of the COX-2 functionalized microspheres were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Furthermore, the bioactive compounds singled out from ethanol decoction without prepurification were dissociated and identified by ultraperformance liquid chromatography plus Q-Exactive Orbitrap tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-Exactive Orbitrap-MS/MS). Consequently, 21 bioactive compounds consisting of 6 organic acids, 8 flavonoids, and 7 others were separated and characterized from Choerospondias axillaris, which were reported to participate in the COX-2 inhibitory pathway to varying degrees. Therefore, this method could provide a prospective solution for the extraction and identification of active pharmaceutical ingredients and the rapid screening of some enzyme inhibitors in the complex mixtures.

The effect of Guanxin Shutong capsule on alleviating the myocardial fibrosis in heart failure rats

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Guanxin Shutong (GXST) capsule is a renowned traditional Chinese medicine widely used for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases in the clinic. However, no pharmacological experimental studies of GXST has been reported on the treatment of pressure overload-induced heart failure. This study aimed to investigate the effects of GXST capsule on ameliorating myocardial fibrosis conditions in pressure overload-induced heart failure rats.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Rats were randomly divided into 6 groups: Normal group, Model group, GXST-treated group at a dose of 0.5 g/kg, 1 g/kg, 2 g/kg, respectively, and digoxin positive control group at a dose of 1 mg/kg. After 4 weeks of administration, cardiac function was evaluated by echocardiography. Cardiac injury and fibrotic conditions were evaluated by H&E staining, Masson staining, and Sirius Red staining. Myocardial fibrosis was evaluated by immunohistochemistry staining and Western blot.

RESULTS

GXST significantly inhibited cardiac fibrosis, reduced the excessive deposition of collagen, and finally improved cardiac function. GXST reversed ventricular remodeling might be through the TGF-β/Smad3 pathway.

CONCLUSION

GXST capsule demonstrated a strong anti-fibrosis effect in heart failure rats by inhibiting the TGF-β/Smad3 signaling pathway.

Pharmacokinetics of 13 active components in a rat model of middle cerebral artery occlusion after intravenous injection of Radix Salviae miltiorrhizae-Lignum dalbergiae odoriferae prescription

As a representative formulation of Radix Salviae miltiorrhizae (Danshen)-Lignum Dalbergiae odoriferae (Jiangxiang), Xiangdan injection is widely prescribed for cardio- and cerebrovascular diseases in practice. This necessitates a pharmacokinetic investigation of this formulation to make it safer and more broadly applicable. We developed and validated a sensitive, selective, and reliable high-performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry method for the simultaneous determination of 11 phenolic compounds including danshensu plus two diterpenoid quinones like cryptotanshinone and tanshinone IIA in rat. We applied this method for the pharmacokinetic studies of the 13 compounds in a rat model of middle cerebral artery occlusion after intravenous injection of Xiangdan injection or Danshen injection. In sham-operated rats, the animals taking Xiangdan injection exhibited significant growth of the area under the curve for danshensu, protocatechuic aldehyde, and tanshinone IIA compared with the changes seen in the data of those administrated with Danshen injection. Such a pattern was also observed in middle cerebral artery occlusion rats, whereas increased the area under the curve values were observed for danshensu, protocatechuic aldehyde, caffeic acid, rosmarinic acid, and tanshinone IIA. These results demonstrated that synergistic interactions occurred between the components of Danshen and the active compounds of Jiangxiang both in sham-operated and middle cerebral artery occlusion rats, increasing the bioavailability of Danshen. The results presented herein can be used to determine a reference dose for the clinical application of Xiangdan injection, and to elucidate the synergistic mechanism of Danshen and Jiangxiang.

Influence Factors of the Pharmacokinetics of Herbal Resourced Compounds in Clinical Practice

Herbal medicines have been used to prevent and cure diseases in eastern countries for thousands of years. In recent decades, these phytotherapies are becoming more and more popular in the West. As being nature-derived is the essential attribute of herbal medicines, people believe that taking them for diseases treatment is safe enough and has no side-effects. However, the efficacy of herbal resourced compounds (HRC) depends on the multiple constituents absorbed in the body and their pharmacokinetics. Thus, many factors will influence the clinical practice of HRC, i.e., their absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (ADME). Among these factors, herb-drug interaction has been widely discussed, as these compounds may share the same drug-metabolizing enzymes and drug transporters. Meanwhile there are many other potential factors that can also change the ADME of HRC, including herb pretreatment, herb-herb interactions, pathological status, gender, age of patient, and chemical and physical modification of certain ingredients. With the aim of ensuring the efficacy of HRC and minimizing their clinical risks, this review provides and discusses the influence factors and artificial improvement of the pharmacokinetics of HRC.

A UFLC-MS/MS method for the simultaneous determination of eight bioactive constituents from red wine and dealcoholized red wine in rat plasma: Application to a comparative pharmacokinetic study

To explore whether alcohol has an effect on the pharmacokinetic behavior of phenolic acids, the main bioactive constituents in red wine, a highly sensitive and simple ultra-fast liquid chromatography coupled with triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (UFLC-MS/MS) method was developed for simultaneous quantitation of eight phenolic acids in plasma samples. Plasma samples were extracted by liquid-liquid extraction and the chromatographic separation was achieved on a Zorbax SB-C₁₈ column within 7.0 min. Results of the validated method revealed that all of the calibration curves displayed good linear regression (r > 0.99). The intra- and inter-day precisions of the analytes were <14.0% and accuracies ranged from -8.5 to 7.3%. The extraction recoveries of the analytes were from 71.2 to 110.2% and the matrix effects ranged from 86.2 to 105.5%. The stability of these compounds under various conditions satisfied the requirements of biological sample measurement. The method was successfully applied to a comparative pharmacokinetic study of phenolic acids in rat plasma. For gallic acid and gentisic acid, the parameters AUC_0-t and AUC_0-∞ increased remarkably (p < 0.05) after oral administration of red wine, which suggested that alcohol might enhance their absorption. This is the first report to compare the pharmacokinetic behavior of phenolic acids in red wine and dealcoholized red wine.