Comparative Characterization of the Ginsenosides from Six

Area of Science:

• Pharmacology
• Natural Products Chemistry
• Microbiology

Background:

• Ginseng extracts are widely used in traditional medicine and supplements.
• Understanding ginsenoside composition and metabolism is crucial for their application.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize ginsenosides from six Panax plant species.
• To compare their in vitro metabolic profiles using rat intestinal microbiota.
• To investigate the biotransformation of ginsenosides.

Main Methods:

• Utilized ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography/ion mobility-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC/IM-QTOF-MS).
• Developed scheduled multiple reaction monitoring (sMRM) for quantitation.
• Performed in vitro incubation with rat intestinal microbiota.

Main Results:

• Identified 248 ginsenosides/metabolites in biotransformed samples.
• Deglycosylation was the main metabolic pathway.
• Protopanaxadiol-type and oleanolic acid-type saponins were readily metabolized.
• Compositional differences among Panax species became more pronounced after biotransformation.

Conclusions:

• Ginsenoside composition significantly changes after gut microbiota biotransformation.
• Deglycosylation is a key metabolic route for ginsenosides.
• The study reveals distinct metabolic profiles and compositional variations across different Panax species.