Assessment of peeling of Astragalus roots using 1H NMR- and UPLC-MS-based metabolite profiling.
A metabolomic analysis was performed to examine the postharvest processing of Astragalus membranaceus roots with a focus on the peeling procedure using (1)H NMR and UPLC-MS analyses. Principal component analysis (PCA) score plots from the (1)H NMR and UPLC-MS data showed clear separation between peeled and unpeeled Astragalus roots. Peeled roots exhibited significant losses of several primary metabolites, including acetate, alanine, arginine, caprate, fumarate, glutamate, histidine, N-acetylaspartate, malate, proline, sucrose, trigonelline, and valine. In contrast, the peeled roots contained higher levels of asparagine, aspartate, and xylose, which are xylem-related compounds, and formate, which is produced in response to wound stress incurred during postharvest processing. In addition, the levels of isoflavonoids and astragalosides were significantly reduced in peeled Astragalus root. These results demonstrate that metabolite profiling based on a combination of (1)H NMR and UPLC-MS analyses can be used to evaluate peeling procedures used in the postharvest processing of herbal medicines.
Integrated Metabolomics Research Group, Seoul Center, Korea Basic Science Institute , Seoul 136-713, Republic of Korea.
Jee-Youn
JY
Jung
Youngae
Y
Jung
Jin-Sup
JS
Kim
Do Hyun
DH
Ryu
Geum-Sook
GS
Hwang
D027885:Astragalus propinquus / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid / Q000379:methods*; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy / Q000379:methods*; D013058:Mass Spectrometry / Q000379:methods*; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism
D010936:Plant Extracts