Abstract
Jieduquyuziyin prescription (JP), a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) prescription, has been widely used for the clinical treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). However, the complex chemical constituents of JP and the multifactorial pathogenesis of SLE make research on the therapeutic mechanism of JP in SLE challenging. In this paper, a serum metabolomics approach based on rapid resolution liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (RRLC-Q-TOF/MS) was employed to acquire the metabolic characteristics of serum samples obtained from mice in the SLE model group, JP-treated group, prednisone acetate (PA)-treated group and control group. The orthogonal partial least squares (OPLS) was applied to recognize metabolic patterns, and an obvious separation of groups was obtained. Thirteen metabolites, namely, phosphatidylethanolamine (PE 20:3), hepoxilin B3, lyso- phosphatidylethanolamine (lyso-PE 22:6), 12S-hydroxypentaenoic acid (12S-HEPE), traumatic acid, serotonin, platelet-activating factor (PAF), phosphatidylcholine (PC 20:5),eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), 12(S)-hydroxyei- cosatetraenoic acid (12S-HETE), 14-hydroxy docosahexaenoic acid (14-HDOHE), lyso-phosphatidylcholine (lyso-PC 20:4), and indole acetaldehyde, were identified and characterized as differential metabolites involved in the pathogenesis of SLE. After treatment with JP, the relative content of 12(S)-HETE, PAF, 12(S)-HEPE, EPA, PE (20:3), Lyso-PE(22:6), and 14-HDOHE were effectively regulated, which suggested that the therapeutic effects of JP on SLE may involve regulating disturbances to the metabolism of unsaturated fatty acid, tryptophan and phospholipid. This research also demonstrated that metabolomics is a powerful tool for researching complex disease mechanisms and evaluating the mechanism of action of TCM.
Highlights
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a complex systemic autoimmune disease, is a multifactorial process characterized by multi-system and multi-organ impairment
Metabolomics studies the body from a holistic perspective, which coincides with the theory of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) [7]
Rapid resolution liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (RRLC-Q-TOF/Mass spectrometry (MS)) is widely used for metabolomics studies because of its outstanding dynamic range and high sensitivity, which means that even low-response metabolites can be collected and identified [12]
Summary
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a complex systemic autoimmune disease, is a multifactorial process characterized by multi-system and multi-organ impairment. SLE involves multiple mechanisms, which suggests that traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), being based on holistic concepts and systems thinking, may have a good therapeutic effect. Metabolomics studies the body from a holistic perspective, which coincides with the theory of TCM [7] This specialty of metabolomics helps to reveal the scientific basis of TCM, but is beneficial to understanding the pathogenesis and diagnosis of disease, as well as toxicological research [8]. Rapid resolution liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (RRLC-Q-TOF/MS) is widely used for metabolomics studies because of its outstanding dynamic range and high sensitivity, which means that even low-response metabolites can be collected and identified [12].
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