Urine and plasma metabonomics coupled with UHPLC-QTOF/MS and multivariate data analysis on potential biomarkers in anemia and hematinic effects of herb pair Gui-Hong.

Absrtract Ethnopharmacological relevance The compatibility of Angelicae Sinensis Radix (Danggui) and Carthami Flos (Honghua), a famous herb pair Gui-Hong, can produce synergistic and complementary hematinic effects. Our previous studies have indicated that Gui-Hong has therapeutic potential treatment in hemolytic and aplastic anemia (HAA). The present study aimed to investigate the hematinic effects of Danggui, Honghua and Gui-Hong on HAA rats induced by acetyl phenylhydrazine (APH) and cyclophosphamide (CP) and to explore the underlying hematinic regulation mechanisms. Materials and methods Rats were divided into 5 groups, and drugs were administered by oral gavage one time each day for continuous 7 days from the experiment began. Urine and plasma were analyzed by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QTOF/MS). Partial least-squares discriminate analysis (PLS-DA) models were built to evaluate the therapeutic effects of Danggui, Honghua and Gui-Hong. Pearson correlation matrix analysis method was used to discover the correlations between potential biomarkers and biochemical indicators of HAA rats. Results Seven potential biomarkers contribute to the separation of model group and control group were tentatively identified. The levels of l -kynurenine, phenylalanine, nicotinic acid and sphingosine increased significantly ( P l -isoleucine, l -tyrosine and serotonin decreased significantly ( P Conclusions The results of routine blood, urinary metabolic pattern and plasma metabolic pattern show the Danggui, Honghua and Gui-Hong groups are moving toward the control group and the HAA was being prevented and alleviated. The effect of Gui-Hong group is more remarkable than Danggui and Honghua groups. Some potential biomarkers like l -kynurenine, phenylalanine, l -isoleucine, l -tyrosine, serotonin, nicotinic acid and sphingosine have been found and identified. The work shows that the metabonomics method is a promising tool in the efficacy and mechanism research of traditional Chinese medicines.