[Correlation between chemical composition and origin of Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma based on LC-MS, GC-MS, and...

In this study, thirteen batches of Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma samples from Wenshan and non-Wenshan producing areas in Yunnan, China were selected as the research objects. Untargeted metabolomics analysis was performed via UHPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS and GC-Q-TOF-MS to systematically compare the chemical composition of Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma from different origins. Meanwhile, electronic nose technology was employed to capture olfactory characteristics, and multivariate statistical analysis was adopted to investigate the correlations between electronic nose responses and chemical markers, thereby comprehensively evaluating the impact of geographical origin on the quality of Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma from multiple dimensions. The results of untargeted metabolomics showed significant differences in the chemical composition of Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma between Wenshan and non-Wenshan producing areas. A total of 126 non-volatile and 11 volatile differential components were identified. Among them, 60 non-volatile and 3 volatile components had higher levels in Wenshan-sourced Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma, primarily including saponins, flavonoids and their glycosides, uracil, and hydroxyproline. In contrast, samples from areas other than Wenshan showed higher levels of esters, small-molecule organic acids, sterols, terpenes, and cyclohexene derivatives. The electronic nose analysis further confirmed significant differences in the odor of Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma from different origins. The Wenshan-sourced Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma exhibited stronger responses in the W2W(sensitive to organic sulfurs), W1W(sensitive to inorganic sulfurs), and W5S(sensitive to nitrogen oxides) sensors than the samples from areas other than Wenshan. This study elucidates the influence of geographical origin on the quality of Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma from both chemical composition(differential compounds of various polarity) and electronic senses and obtains quality markers closely related to the origin. It provides a scientific basis and data support for the rapid and accurate identification of Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma origins.