Abstract
Postharvest processing plays a very important role in improving the quality of traditional Chinese medicine. According to previous studies, smoke-drying could significantly promote the accumulation of the bioactive components and pharmacological activities of rhubarb, but so far, the molecular mechanism has not been studied yet. In this research, to study the molecular mechanisms of postharvest processing for rhubarb during shade-drying and smoke-drying, label-free proteomic analyses were conducted. In total, 1,927 differentially abundant proteins (DAPs) were identified from rhubarb samples treated by different drying methods. These DAPs were mainly involved in response and defense, signal transduction, starch, carbohydrate and energy metabolism, and anthraquinone and phenolic acid biosynthesis. Smoke-drying significantly enhanced the expression of proteins involved in these metabolic pathways. Accordingly, the molecular mechanism of the accumulation of effective ingredients of rhubarb was clarified, which provided a novel insight into the biosynthesis of active ingredients that occur during the rhubarb dry process.
Highlights
Rhubarb is promoted as a remarkable and ancient plant that is widely used in Chinese herbal medicine (Wang et al, 2018); it was exported from China and is still used as a vital agent for various medical procedures (Kalisz et al, 2020)
Free anthraquinone contents in shade-drying and smoke-drying were 3.04 and 1.97 mg/g, respectively, and were significantly higher than in fresh rhubarb (0.87 mg/g; Figure 1D). These results show that both shade-drying and smoke-drying could increase effective ingredient content of rhubarb, but the effect of smoke-drying was more obvious
Rhubarb undergoes a series of physiological changes during the drying process, and these changes will further affect the metabolism and synthesis of endogenous chemicals
Summary
Rhubarb is promoted as a remarkable and ancient plant that is widely used in Chinese herbal medicine (Wang et al, 2018); it was exported from China and is still used as a vital agent for various medical procedures (Kalisz et al, 2020). Rhubarb is distributed worldwide and is used as both a food and medicine. Ex Balf., and Rheum officinale Baill’s rhizomes are commonly used as medicinal rhubarb in China, while Rheum rhaponticum L.’s petioles are used as a vegetable in Europe (Romaniello, 2016; Kalisz et al, 2020). Fresh rhubarb cannot be used as a medicinal material immediately after harvest; it needs to undergo a series of processes to make it suitable for use as a decoction or as raw material in Chinese medicines.
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