Abstract
Sulfur Angelicae Dahuricae Radix (Baizhi) is a common medicinal herb in Asian countries. A practical protocol combining metabolomics, pharmacology, and cytotoxicity was developed to comprehensively evaluate the influence of sulfur-fumigation on the quality of Baizhi. Furocoumarins could be transformed into sulfur-containing compounds during the sulfuring process, among which 1 and 3 were purified with relatively high abundance and identified as 3,4-dihydrobyakangelicin-4-sulfonic acid and (4R,12S)-3,4-dihydrooxypeucedanin hydrate-4-sulfonic acid (OXH-S), respectively. OXH-S was found to be an addition product of sulfite and oxypeucedanin hydrate (OXH-N). Then, the cytotoxicity and anti-inflammatory activity of OXH-N, OXH-S, and water extracts of sulfured (extraction-S), and unsulfured Baizhi (extraction-N) were evaluated. OXH-S and extraction-S were less toxic than OXH-N and extraction-N, respectively. A comparison of OXH-N with OXH-S and extraction-N with extraction-S showed no significant differences in anti-inflammatory activity. These results suggest that sulfur fumigation can reduce toxicity and does not influence the anti-inflammatory activity of Baizhi, even after chemical composition changes. The proposed protocol based on marker screening, pharmacology, and safety evaluation provides a scientific basis for the standardization and regulation of sulfured Baizhi and other medical materials.
Highlights
In traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), sulfur fumigation is an extensively used processing method that has been employed for over 100 years
For ultra-performance Liquid chromatography (LC) quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MS) (UPLC-Q-TOF-MS) analysis, sulfured Baizhi 1–3 samples were prepared as reported previously to obtain the material with sulfur dioxide residue at approximately 750 mg/kg (Kang et al, 2017)
20 g of sulfur was lighted with 12 ml alcohol in the box for sulfured groups. 12 ml alcohol was lighted in the box of unsulfured group
Summary
In traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), sulfur fumigation is an extensively used processing method that has been employed for over 100 years. The method allows good moisture-retention, while inhibiting insect and mold growth, as well as preserving the color and freshness of the medicinal products (Wu et al, 2012; Duan et al, 2016). Despite the beneficial effects of sulfur fumigation, several researchers have expressed concerns regarding its negative impact on the safety and effectiveness of TCM, considering the presence of residual sulfur dioxide and the chemical changes it may introduce (Wu et al, 2012; Kong et al, 2017; Lou et al, 2017; Sun et al, 2017). Due to insufficient evidence to prove that sulfur fumigation can degrade the quality of TCMs, these concerns remain debatable
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