A Metabolomics-Guided Exploration of the Phytochemical Constituents of Vernonia fastigiata with the Aid of Pressurized Hot Water Extraction and Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry

Abstract

Vernonia fastigiata is a multi-purpose nutraceutical plant with interesting biological properties. However, very little is known about its phytochemical composition and, thus the need for its phytochemical characterization. In the current study, an environmentally friendly method, pressurized hot water extraction (PHWE), was used to extract metabolites from the leaves of V. fastigiata at various temperatures (50 °C, 100 °C, 150 °C and 200 °C). Ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time of flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-qTOF-MS) analysis in combination with chemometric methods, particularly principal component analysis (PCA) and liquid/gas chromatography mass spectrometry (XCMS) cloud plots, were used to descriptively visualize the data and identify significant metabolites extracted at various temperatures. A total of 25 different metabolites, including hydroxycinnamic acid derivatives, clovamide, deoxy-clovamide and flavonoids, were noted for the first time in this plant. Overall, an increase in extraction temperature resulted in an increase in metabolite extraction during PHWE. This study is the first scientific report on the phytochemical composition of V. fastigiata, providing insight into the components of the chemo-diversity of this important plant.

Preparative mass‐spectrometry profiling of minor concentrated metabolites in Salicornia gaudichaudiana Moq by high‐speed countercurrent chromatography and off‐line electrospray mass‐spectrometry injection

“…The detected abundant molecular ion signals [M‐H] − for flavonol‐ O ‐glycosylated ( 30‐32 , 40–43 , 45 , 46 , 51 ) (Table ) were in agreement with ESI‐MS/MS data . Additionally, to the confirmation by high resolution data from LC‐ESI/TOF MS analysis, compounds ( 30 ), ( 31 ), ( 32 ), and ( 41 ) had its structure fully confirmed by NMR in previous work .…”

“…Fragments at m/z 353, 191, 179, and 173 were significant for the identification of caffeoyl quinic acid derivatives. Dihydrocaffeoyl quinic acid derivatives were identified by fragment‐ions at m/z 355, 337, and 323 .…”

Scribbling the Cat: A Case of the “Miracle” Plant, Moringa oleifera

“…It is also important to mention that the same glycosylation patterns have been noted with other similar flavonoids such as kaempferol and isorhamnetin [40]. This phenomenon of diversification can be said to be species/genus specific because other plants such as Vernonia fastigiata diversify their flavonoid composition by swapping sugar positions [42]. For instance, V. fastigiata produces two isobaric molecules, quercetin-3-O-hexoside-O-pentoside and quercetin-3-O-pentoside-O-hexoside, both appearing at m/z 595.1245 but at different retention times, again indicating differences in polarities [42].…”

“…This phenomenon of diversification can be said to be species/genus specific because other plants such as Vernonia fastigiata diversify their flavonoid composition by swapping sugar positions [42]. For instance, V. fastigiata produces two isobaric molecules, quercetin-3-O-hexoside-O-pentoside and quercetin-3-O-pentoside-O-hexoside, both appearing at m/z 595.1245 but at different retention times, again indicating differences in polarities [42]. As such, the above is an indication that advanced analytical techniques need to be developed in order to fully cover the flavonoid composition of the plant.…”

Clovamide protects cardiac progenitor cells from H2O2-induced oxidative stress

“…Clovamide, a minor compound present in the antioxidant polyphenolic fraction of Theobroma cacao L. at ppm levels, was originally identified in red clover, and was found also in many other plants. [27][28][29][30][31] Its expression can be induced by specific treatment, such as jasmonic acid, 32 and, finally, the molecule can be synthetized. 16,[33][34][35] Herein we have demonstrated that clovamide treatment of hCPCs could decrease the levels of ROS accumulated within the CPCs after an oxidative stress, which are then responsible for cell apoptosis.…”