Biomedical Chromatography

Mahboub, Nasma; Cherfi, Inasse; Laouini, Salah Eddine; Bouafia, Abderrhmane; Benaissa, Abir; Alia, Khaoula; Alharthi, Fahad; Al‐Essa, Khansaa; Menaa, Farid

doi: 10.1002/bmc.70084pmid: 40207578

Rosmarinus officinalis L. (rosemary) is a widely used medicinal plant known for its antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anti‐inflammatory properties. This study evaluates the bioactive potential of its essential oil (EO), methanolic (ME), and aqueous (AE) extracts. GC‐MS analysis identified α‐pinene (21.37%), bornanone (12.73%), and eucalyptol (8.28%) as major EO components, while HPLC revealed ME's richness in salicylic acid (5.11 μg/mg) and rutin (0.43 μg/mg). Antioxidant activity, assessed via DPPH and FRAP assays, showed ME with the strongest radical scavenging capacity (IC50 = 27.30 ± 2.4%) and reducing power (IC50 = 90.88 ± 6.7%). Antimicrobial testing revealed EO as the most effective, particularly against Staphylococcus aureus (33 mm inhibition zone) and Bacillus subtilis (32 mm), while AE and ME exhibited moderate activity. Pseudomonas aeruginosa was resistant to all extracts. Additionally, AE demonstrated notable anti‐inflammatory activity (IC50 = 55.88 ± 1.02%). These findings highlight rosemary as a rich source of bioactive compounds with strong pharmacological potential, positioning ME as the best antioxidant, EO as the most potent antimicrobial, and AE as an effective anti‐inflammatory agent.

Pan, Weijie; Chen, Qianru; Wu, Menghua; Sun, Yue; Li, Ming; Wang, Shumei; Xue, Xingyang; Meng, Jiang

doi: 10.1002/bmc.70060pmid: 40091648

Moutan Cortex (MC) is a renowned Chinese medicine used for promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis. However, the active ingredients are unclear. This study aimed to identify and validate the active ingredients of MC. UPLC fingerprints of 23 batches of MC from various origins were analyzed. The activating blood efficacy of MC was assessed by evaluating the inhibitory effects on thrombin and factor Xa (FXa) using the chromogenic substrate method. Active ingredients were identified through spectrum‐effect relationship analysis using gray relation analysis (GRA), partial least squares (PLS), and support vector machine (SVM) algorithms. Consequently, five components were identified as potential active ingredients: mudanpioside H, oxypaeoniflorin, 1,2,3,4,6‐penta‐O‐galloyl‐β‐d‐glucose (PGG), benzoyloxypaeoniflorin, and suffruticoside A/B/C/D. The pharmacological activities of these five active ingredients were further confirmed by measuring their thrombin inhibition ability and antithrombotic effects in zebrafish, and their interactions with thrombin and FXa were examined using molecular docking technology. Oxypaeoniflorin, benzoyloxypaeoniflorin, and PGG demonstrated significant efficacy in promoting blood circulation and resolving blood stasis, as well as strong binding affinities. This study provides a biochemical foundation for the anticoagulant effects of MC and offers valuable insights for quality control and the development of novel anticoagulant ingredients drugs.

Yang, Lanping; Wang, Wendi; Liu, Zhenzhen; Zhai, Yangyang; Wang, Zhenhui; Li, Ying; Zhang, Zhenzhen; Hou, Baohua; Zhang, Baobao; Zhou, Jingchun

doi: 10.1002/bmc.70085pmid: 40207649

Chinese yam (Dioscorea opposita Thunb. cv. Tiegun) has been utilized in traditional medicine and as a food source for centuries. However, the metabolite profiles and antioxidant activities of yam by‐product peel have not been studied sufficiently. Thus, to effectively identify the active metabolites in yam peel, we employed a UHPLC–MS/MS‐based widely targeted metabolomics on Chinese yam peel from loessial soil (LPCY) and sandy soil (SPCY). A total of 1054 metabolites were identified, comprising 379 primary metabolites, 528 secondary metabolites, and 147 other compounds. Notably, multivariate analyses revealed the presence of 143 differentially accumulated metabolites (DAMs) between SPCY and LPCY. Linoleic acid metabolism, phenylpropanoid biosynthesis, plant hormone signal transduction, pyruvate metabolism, and sphingolipid metabolism were the main differentially regulated pathways. The DPPH, ABTS, and FRAP assays demonstrated that the antioxidant activities of LPCY were significantly higher than those of SPCY. Correlation analysis revealed that most DAMs, including phenolic acids, lipids, organic acids, and amino acids, exhibited significant positive correlations with antioxidant activities (r ≥ 0.7, p < 0.05). These results indicate that loessial soil promotes the accumulation of antioxidant‐active compounds. Overall, this study suggests that yam peels hold significant potential as a rich natural source of bioactive substances.

Su, Xuemei; Ding, Xin; Liang, Junli; Zhang, Lei; Zhang, Yang; Qiao, Yan; Ma, Hongrui; Zhang, Ya; Tang, Yuping; Tan, Guangguo

doi: 10.1002/bmc.70063pmid: 40110617

Qifu decoction (QFD) has shown potential benefits in treating heart failure. However, the potential mechanism of QFD remains unclear. In this study, myocardial lipidomics, based on ultra‐high‐performance liquid chromatography coupled with an electrospray ionization hybrid quadrupole Orbitrap mass spectrometry (UPLC‐ESI‐Q‐Exactive/MS), was employed to identify potential therapeutic targets of QFD for treating heart failure in a mice model induced by ligating the left anterior descending coronary artery. It was found that 47 lipid metabolites were associated with heart failure, of which 35 showed a significant reversal during QFD treatment. The QFD‐reversed lipid metabolites were mainly located on phosphatidylcholine, lysophosphatidylcholine, sphingomyelin, and ceramide, which were involved in glycerophospholipid and sphingolipid metabolism. The results of Western blotting analysis revealed that QFD could effectively alleviate heart failure through increasing the levels of lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase 1 (LPCAT1) and sphingomyelin synthase 1 (SMS1) and reducing the levels of acid sphingomyelinase (aSMase) and phospholipase A2 (PLA2) to regulate the metabolic disorders of glycerophospholipid and sphingolipid metabolism. All these results could be concluded that glycerophospholipid and sphingolipid metabolism were the two crucial target pathways for QFD against heart failure, which laid the theoretical groundwork for its clinical application.

Meertens, Marinda; Rosing, Hilde; Steeghs, Neeltje; Beijnen, Jos H.; Huitema, Alwin D. R.

doi: 10.1002/bmc.70056pmid: 40084678

Home‐sampling for therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) for oral targeted anticancer drugs offers a promising alternative to traditional hospital‐based sampling methods, though it presents challenges. This review aims to summarize the state‐of‐the‐art of home‐sampling methods for TDM and evaluates the analytical and clinical validation challenges. A comprehensive search was conducted across Embase, Medline, and Scopus. Eligible articles described analytical and/or clinical validation of home‐sampling methods for oral targeted anticancer drugs. ASReview was used to process unique references and to identify relevant studies. Of the 39 included articles, 32 detailed on analytical validation experiments, while 27 covered clinical validation experiments. Dried blood spot and volumetric absorptive microsampling were the primary sampling methods. Key challenges were ensuring robust sample collection, sample pretreatment, hematocrit effects, and sample stability, which were generally thoroughly investigated. Clinical validation yielded promising results for most analytes, although external validation remains crucial for confirming reliability. Home‐sampling methods for TDM of oral targeted anticancer drugs show promising results for clinical implementation. Methods for well‐studied drugs may be clinically implemented immediately, while others require further external validation. Future research should address device‐specific challenges and assess patient feasibility to facilitate the routine use of home‐sampling in clinical practice.

Yu, Yang; Jiang, Xufeng; Li, Ruirui; Xiang, Guanggang; Zhang, Yang

doi: 10.1002/bmc.70050pmid: 40091705

Gentiana scabra Bunge (Gentian) is a traditional medicinal plant valued for its anti‐inflammatory and analgesic effects, with historical use in treating atopic dermatitis. Despite its therapeutic reputation, a comprehensive scientific analysis of its constituents is lacking. This study systematically evaluates the anti‐inflammatory effects of Gentian extract and explores its molecular mechanisms. We characterized the chemical profile of Gentian extracts using HPLC and assessed their anti‐inflammatory activity in zebrafish and cellular models. Gentian extract significantly reduced inflammation, as shown by decreased neutrophil migration in response to sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), reduced tail wagging in zebrafish embryos, and alleviated lipopolysaccharide (LPS)‐induced edema. It also lowered reactive oxygen species (ROS) and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels, indicating antioxidant properties, and downregulated pro‐inflammatory cytokines and genes. In LPS‐stimulated RAW264.7 cells, the extract upregulated IκBα and reduced p65 and STAT3 phosphorylation, inhibiting NF‐κB and JAK–STAT pathways. This study is the first to systematically evaluate the anti‐inflammatory mechanisms of Gentian extract in zebrafish and RAW264.7 cell models, enhancing its understanding and providing a scientific basis for its application in anti‐inflammatory products.