Metabolomics Analysis of Different Tissues of Lonicera japonica Thunb. Based on Liquid Chromatography with Mass Spectrometry

Abstract

Lonicera japonica Thunb. (LJT) has been widely used as medicines or food additives in Asian countries for thousands of years. The flower buds are often medicinally used, and the other tissues are ignored. However, flowers, leaves and stems have also been reported to have antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. In the current study, un-targeted metabolomics analysis was performed to investigate the metabolic difference among different tissues (flowers, flower buds, stems and leaves) of LJT based on liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry. A total of 171 metabolites were identified, including 28 flavonoids, 35 phenolic acids, 43 iridoids, 9 amino acids, 6 nucleotides, 16 fatty acids, 22 lipids and 12 others. Four new secondary metabolites were discovered. Some flavonoids and iridoids were not detected in leaves and stems. Principal component analysis showed significant differences among four different tissues. Some 27, 81, 113 differential metabolites were found between flowers/flower buds, leaves/flower buds, stems/flower buds, respectively. Primary metabolites showed a higher content in the flowers and flower buds. For the flavonoids, flavones were mainly accumulated in the leaves, flavonols were mainly accumulated in the flower buds, and acylated flavonol glucosides were mainly accumulated in the flowers. Most phenolic acids showed a higher content in the flowers or flower buds, while phenolic acid-glucosides showed significantly higher content in the flower buds. The most abundant iridoids in the LJT also showed a higher content in the flowers and flower buds. These results can provide new insights into the understanding of the metabolites changes in different tissues, and lay a theoretical foundation for the comprehensive utilization of LJT.

Extraction, Purification, Structural Characteristics, Health Benefits, and Application of the Polysaccharides from Lonicera japonica Thunb.: A Review

“…L. japonica crude extracts or their active components are used as raw materials for therapeutic drugs or as medicinal extracts. The small-molecule components include essential oils, saponins, organic acids, iridoids, and flavonoids, and the macromolecules include polysaccharides, which are present in a large quantity with potent biological activities [ 97 ]. Although the small-molecule components of L. japonica have been more extensively studied, macromolecular polysaccharides have also shown good application potential.…”

A Comparative Analysis of the Phytochemical Profiles of <em>Lonicera japonica Thunb. Flos Thunb.</em> Species Native to the Mountainous and Coastal Regions of Romania

“…Lonicera japonica Thunb., is a species of flowering plant in the honeysuckle family (Caprifoliaaceae). It is native to East Asia, including China, Japan, Korea [3]. The species is widely used in Chinese Traditional Medicine with various pharmacological activities.…”

“…The species is widely used in Chinese Traditional Medicine with various pharmacological activities. In recent years, research on the plant has focused on its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties [4,5], which are attributed to its bioactive compounds such as polyphenols, flavonoids, and polysaccharides [3,6]. A review article by Li et al [7] summarized over 200 studies on the chemical constituents and pharmacological activities of Lonicera japonica Thunb.…”

Metabolome and transcriptome analyses reveal the colouring mechanism of red honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica Thunb.)

“…Recent research has shown that honeysuckle can inhibit influenza A virus and COVID-19 . Modern research indicates that the main active ingredients of honeysuckle are flavonoids, phenolic acids, and iridoids (Wang et al, 2020;Wang et al, 2023). In addition, honeysuckle is also widely used in cosmetics, food additives, beverages, and landscaping due to its medicinal properties and beautiful flowers (Cao et al, 2022;Ge et al, 2022).…”

“…Currently, research on honeysuckle mainly focuses on metabolite analysis (Wang et al, 2023), flower development (Yang et al, 2019), colour changes (Li et al, 2019;Xia et al, 2021), carotenoid metabolism (Pu et al, 2020;Yu et al, 2022), stress (Cai et al, 2022), genome sequencing (Xiao et al, 2021), and effective component biosynthesis pathway (Wang et al, 2020). However, there are few reports on the identification of pigment components, anthocyanin biosynthesis pathways, and regulatory mechanisms of red honeysuckle flower (Yuan et al, 2012;Li et al, 2019).…”