Deciphering the Q-markers of nourishing kidney-yin of Cortex Phellodendri amurense from ZhibaiDihuang pill based on Chinmedomics strategy

Cortex Phellodendri amurensis (CPA) has high medicinal value in the treatment of kidney-yin deficiency diseases. However, due to the lack of research on the therapeutic material basis of CPA, the current quality control standard for CPA is defective, and the effect of the nourishing kidney-yin of CPA was limited. Based on the principle of correspondence between the syndrome and prescriptions, we studied the CPA in ZhibaiDihuang pill (ZBDH) to identify quality markers (Q-markers) of CPA in ZBDH for treating kidney-yin deficiency and seek the potential Q-markers of CPA under nourishing kidney-yin effect combined with the analysis of single CPA. Taking Chinmedomics as the core strategy, metabonomics analysis and effective component identification were performed by UPLC-MS. A total of 121 chemical components of ZBDH were identified, among which the contents of berberine, palmatine, jatrorrhizine and magnoflorine changed the most obviously with the addition of CPA. Forty-five components were identified in the blood in the markedly effective state, including berberine, palmatine, jatrorrhizine and magnoflorine. The therapeutic material basis of ZBDH in the treatment of kidney-yin deficiency was found, and 6 components were found to derive from CPA, including magnoflorine and jatrorrhizine. In addition, seventeen components were identified in the blood in the single CPA treatment, including berberine, palmatine, jatrorrhizine and magnoflorine. Magnoflorine and jatrorrhizine were the Q-markers of CPA for treating kidney-yin deficiency in the formula of ZBDH and they were also potential Q-markers of the nourishing kidney-yin of CPA.