No abstract

In conclusion, 627 adverse event reports associated with CAM products had been successfully analyzed and described. They constituted ~3.8% of the total number of adverse events reported from 1998 to 2009. Outbreaks of severe hypoglycemia in 2008 and 2009 were associated with the use of adulterated and illegal sexual performance enhancement products. Further work to confirm the hepatotoxicity of implicated CAM products is warranted. Reporting of suspected adverse events is strongly encouraged even if the causality is not confirmed because any signs of clustering will allow rapid regulatory actions to be taken. The analysis of spontaneously reported adverse events is important in monitoring the safety of CAM products and helps in the understanding of the benefits and risks associated with the use of such products.

BackgroundPanax notoginseng is a potential source of anticancer compounds. This study aims to investigate the effects of steaming on the chemical profile of P. notoginseng and the anti-proliferative effects of P. notoginseng on liver cancer cells.MethodsSamples of powdered raw P. notoginseng roots were steamed for various durations. Extracts of the raw and steamed samples were subjected to ultra-high pressure liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS) analysis for chemical profiling. The anti-proliferative effects on three human liver cancer cells, namely SNU449, SNU182 and HepG2, were evaluated using colorimetric WST-1 assay.ResultsSteaming changed chromatographic and pharmacological profiles of P. notoginseng, causing differences in activities such as inhibition of cancer growth. Steamed P. notoginseng exhibited greater anti-proliferative effects against liver cancer cells (SNU449, SNU182 and HepG2) than its raw form; steaming up to 24 hours increased bioactivities. Steaming increased the concentrations of ginsenoside Rh2, Rk1, Rk3 and 20S-Rg3 and enhanced growth inhibition of liver cancer cells.ConclusionSteaming changes the chemical profile as well as anti-cancer biological activities of P. notoginseng. Steamed P. notoginseng contains potential compounds for the treatment of liver cancer.

The chemical profiles of four ginseng roots samples from three species of ginseng (Panax quinquefolius, Panax ginseng and Panax notoginseng) and two commercial ginseng products containing P. quinquefolius and red P. ginseng were compared using ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time of flight mass spectrometry (UPLC/QTOF-MS). Principal component analysis allowed a holistic approach in showing distinct chemical differences between the three ginseng species and correct classification of the two commercial products to their respective species. Further investigation of the chemical profile variations yielded ten main markers that were distinct for the three species. This study shows the potential of chemical profiling for the classification of complex natural product samples, such as ginseng, and application to commercial products sold in the market. This methodology can assist the industry in authenticating the various species of ginseng and providing a quick assessment of the quality of commercial ginseng products. Keywords: metabolic profiling, natural product, mass spectrometry, authentication, LC-MS IntroductionGinseng (Panax species, Araliaceae family) has been well-used and studied in traditional Chinese medicine and has been widely adapted in North America as a herbal supplement with high growth in sales every year. 1 Ginseng has been known for its therapeutic effects on the endocrine, cardiovascular, immune, central nervous system and also reported to possess anti-cancer properties.2,3 Panax ginseng C. A. Meyer (Asian or Korean ginseng), Panax quinquefolius L. (American ginseng) and Panax notoginseng (Burk) F. H. Chen (Tienchi or Sanchi, notoginseng) are the most commonly used and studied ginseng herbs.1 Due to the continual increases in sales, there has been an increase in concern of adulteration of herbal products sold in the market. 4 Practices including misidentification of herbal species and the addition of unlabeled pharmaceuticals 5 can cause harm to the consumer and potential mistrust in the herbal and traditional medicine industry. Specifically for ginseng, intentional substitution of the wrong species in ginseng products in the market is a known issue. 6 To address this growing concern, many analytical methods have been developed to authenticate and classify the various species of ginseng.Morphological examinations 7 to genetic testing 8 has been commonly used to authenticate different species of ginseng. However, certain products in the market can be packaged ground into powder or prepared differently (extracts) which can decrease the effectiveness of these methods. Chemical methods using analytical instrumentation such as high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with diode array, 9-11 nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, 2,12,13 and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) 14 have also been used to profile ginseng species. Many of these studies have focused on identifying key chemical components in the various ginseng species for authenticatio...

α and β asarones are natural constituents of some aromatic plants, especially species of the genus Acorus (Araceae). In addition to reports of beneficial properties of asarones, genotoxicity and carcinogenicity are also reported. Due to potential toxic effects of β-asarone, a limit of exposure from herbal products of ~2 μg/kg body weight/day has been set temporarily until a full benefit/risk assessment has been carried out by the European Medicines Agency. Therefore, it is important to monitor levels of β-asarone in herbal products. In this study, we developed a simple, rapid and validated GC-MS method for quantitative determination of asarones and applied it in 20 pediatric herbal products after detecting high concentrations of β-asarone in a product suspected to be implicated in hepatotoxicity in a 3 month old infant. Furthermore, targeted toxicological effects were further investigated in human hepatocytes (THLE-2 cells) by employing various in vitro assays, with the goal of elucidating possible mechanisms for the observed toxicity. Results showed that some of the products contained as much as 4–25 times greater amounts of β-asarone than the recommended levels. In 4 of 10 samples found to contain asarones, the presence of asarones could not be linked to the labeled ingredients, possibly due to poor quality control. Cell-based investigations in THLE-2 cells confirmed the cytotoxicity of β-asarone (IC50 = 40.0 ± 2.0 μg/mL) which was associated with significant lipid peroxidation and glutathione depletion. This observed cytotoxic effect is likely due to induction of oxidative stress by asarones. Overall, the results of this study ascertained the usability of this GC-MS method for the quantitative determination of asarones from herbal products, and shed light on the importance of controlling the concentration of potentially toxic asarones in herbal products to safeguard consumer safety, especially when the target consumers are young children. Further investigations of the toxicity of asarones are warranted.