Abstract
Agrimonia pilosa is a perennial herbaceous flowering plant, commonly known as agrimony or hairy agrimony.
The dried aerial parts of this species have been widely used for the
treatment of acute diarrhea, hemostasis, and other inflammation-related diseases.
However, information on the in vivo metabolism of A. pilosa constituents is limited. In this
study, the phytochemical profile of A. pilosa was investigated using HPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS combined with a nontargeted diagnostic ion
network analysis strategy. An information-dependent
acquisition method with multiple filters was utilized to screen possible prototypes
and metabolites in complex biological matrices. Furthermore, various data-processing
techniques were
applied to analyze possible prototypes and their metabolites in rat plasma, feces,
and urine following oral administration of A. pilosa extract. A total of 62 compounds, which
belonged to five main structural classes (21 phenols, 22 flavonoids, 6 coumarins,
3 triterpenes, and 10 organic acids), were tentatively identified in A. pilosa. In addition, using
our proposed stepwise method, 32 prototypes and 69 metabolites were detected
in rat plasma, feces, and urine. The main metabolic pathways after the oral administration
of A. pilosa
extract were revealed to include methylation, dihydroxylation, demethylation,
hydrolysis, sulfation, and glucuronidation. This comprehensive in vivo and in vitro identification
of the possible active components in A. pilosa could provide a basis for understanding its various pharmacological activities.
Key words
Agrimonia pilosa
- Rosaceae - HPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS - chemical identification - metabolites
