title: Chemical profiling of Wu-tou decoction by UPLC-Q-TOF-MS.
abstract: Wu-tou decoction (WTD), a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) formula, is composed of Aconiti Radix Cocta, Ephedrae Herba, Paeoniae Radix Alba, Astragali Radix and Glycyrrhiza Radix Preparata, and it has been used for more than a thousand years to treat rheumatic arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and pain of joints, while the active constitutions of WTD are unclear. In this research, an ultra performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF-MS) method in both positive and negative ion mode was established to investigate the major constitutions in WTD. A Waters ACQUITY UPLC BEH C18 column was used to separate the aqueous extract of WTD. Acetonitrile and 0.1% aqueous formic acid (v/v) were used as the mobile phase. 74 components including alkaloids, monoterpene glycosides, triterpene saponins, flavones and flavone glycosides were identified or tentatively characterized in WTD based on the accurate mass within 15 ppm error and tandem MS behavior. All the constitutions were also detected in the corresponding individual herbs. These results will provide a basis for further study in vivo of WTD and the information of potential new drug structure for treating rheumatic arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.
authors.affiliation: Changchun Center of Mass Spectrometry & Chemical Biology Laboratory, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 5625 Renmin Street, Changchun 130022, China; University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100039, China.
authors.forename: Yao
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Qi
authors.forename: Shizhe
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Zifeng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Pi
authors.forename: Fengrui
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Song
authors.forename: Na
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Shu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Zhiqiang
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D031841:Aconitum / Q000737:chemistry*; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000032:analysis*; D005419:Flavonoids / Q000032:analysis*; D006027:Glycosides / Q000032:analysis*; D015394:Molecular Structure; D029596:Paeonia / Q000737:chemistry*; D021241:Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization; D019032:Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization
chemical_list: D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal; D005419:Flavonoids; D006027:Glycosides
keywords: Chemical profiling; Traditional Chinese medicine formula; UPLC–MS; Wu-tou decoction