A Metabonomics Study of Guan-Xin-Shu-Tong Capsule against Diet-Induced Hyperlipidemia in Rats

Guan-Xin-Shu-Tong capsule is a widely used traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. However, little knowledge about the metabolic profiling in vivo after treating with Guan-Xin-Shu-Tong capsule was reported. To acquire the changed metabolism pathways and search for the potential biomarkers, a metabonomics approach of Guan-Xin-Shu-Tong capsule against hyperlipidemia was developed based on UPLC-MS/MS. A Shimpack XR-ODS C18 column (75 × 3.0 mm, 2.2 μm) was applied for separation at the flow rate of 0.4 mL min−1. Multivariate statistical analysis (OPLS and OPLS-DA) revealed obvious differentiation between the natural group, hyperlipidemia group, positive group and Guan-Xin-Shu-Tong capsule treated group in both positive and negative ion modes. A total of 19 metabolites from urine samples and 16 metabolites from plasma samples were identified as potential biomarkers. Our results showed that such a metabonomics approach could not only provide a systematic view of hyperlipidemia-related metebolism, but also reveal the mechanism of therapeutic effect of Guan-Xin-Shu-Tong capsule in treating hyperlipidemia.