Spica Prunellae is an important Chinese herbal medicine. Because of its good curative effect on various diseases, this herb is consumed in large quantities in clinical applications. The metabolites of Spica Prunellae are known to change under salt stress; however, the difference in protein levels of Spica Prunellae between saline and normal conditions is unclear. In this study, we used proteomics techniques to identify differentially expressed proteins in Spica Prunellae under different saline conditions. (iTRAQ) MS/MS was used to detect statistically significant changes in protein between salt stress and normal conditions. Ultimately, we detected 1,937 proteins, 89 of which were detected in two different comparison. Based on GO, STRING and KEGG analyses, 35 significantly differentially expressed proteins were selected for further analysis. The results of functional and signal pathway analyses indicated that the cellular protein and carbohydrate metabolism of Spica Prunellae was weaker, calcium ion transport was higher, photosynthesis was higher, and protein production was faster under saline conditions than under normal conditions. This study provides useful information for studying the causes of differences in secondary metabolites in Spica Prunellae under salt stress and the protein mechanisms related to their quality.

Scrophulariae Radix is one of the most popular traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs), which needs to be processed by ‘sweating’ methods. Primary processing of Scrophulariae Radix is an important link which closely relates to the quality of products in this TCM. To facilitate selection of the suitable ‘sweating’ processing method for Scrophulariae Radix, in this study the quality of Scrophulariae Radix processed by different ‘sweating’ methods was evaluated based on simultaneous determination of multiple bioactive constituents combined with grey relational analysis. The contents of iridoid glycosides, phenylpropanoid glycosides, and organic acids in Scrophulariae Radix processed by different ‘sweating’ methods were simultaneously determined using ultra high performance liquid chromatography coupled with triple quadrupole-linear ion trap mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTRAP-MS/MS). Furthermore, grey relational analysis (GRA) was performed to evaluate the ‘sweating’ processed samples according to the contents of twelve constituents. All of the results demonstrated that the quality of Scrophulariae Radix processed by oven drying at 35 °C and ‘sweating’ for three days was better. The developed method was useful for the overall assessment on quality of Scrophulariae Radix, and this study may provide the foundation and support for ‘sweating’ processing of Scrophulariae Radix in normalization and standardization.

A liquid chromatography–triple-quadrupole linear ion trap mass spectrometry (LC–QTrap-MS) analysis has been developed for the identification and quantification of 10 nucleosides and nucleobases in extracts of Antrodia camphorata. The method was successfully used to qualitatively identify for six nucleosides namely, cytidine, uridine, inosine, guanosine, thymidine, adenosine and four nucleobases namely, uracil, guanine, xanthine, adenine in A. camphorata. Under optimized chromatographic conditions, good separation for 10 target compounds were obtained on an Agilent HC-C₁₈(2) column (4.6 × 250 mm, 5 μm) eluted by a mobile phase of 5 mM ammonium acetate solution–methanol at a flow rate of 0.5 mL/min. Data acquisition was carried out in multiple reaction monitoring transition mode. Additional identification and confirmation of target compounds were performed using the enhanced product ion modus of the linear ion trap. It was the first report about simultaneous analysis of nucleosides and nucleobases in A. camphorata using this method. These results demonstrated that the QTRAP LC–MS/MS was a useful tool for quality evaluation of some medicinal plant products by using nucleosides and nucleobases as chemical markers. This method might also be utilized for the investigation of edible plant materials and agricultural products containing nucleosides and nucleobases.

Pseudostellariae Radix (PR) is an important traditional Chinese herbal medicine (TCM) with vast clinical consumption because of its positive effects. However, little attention has been devoted to simultaneous analysis of its bioactive components for quality control of PR based on its different harvesting times, different growing habitats, and different processing methods. In this research, the quality of PR was evaluated based on simultaneous determination of multiple bioactive components combined with grey relational analysis (GRA). A reliable method based on ultra-fast liquid chromatography tandem triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (UFLC-QTRAP-MS/MS) was established to simultaneously determine the contents of 30 components in PR, including two cyclopeptides, 12 nucleosides, and 16 amino acids. Furthermore, grey relational analysis was performed to evaluate the quality of PR samples according to the contents of these 30 components. The results showed that the quality of PR harvested in 6 August 2013, cultivated in Jurong, Jiangsu, and treated by oven drying 60 °C was better than that of other PR samples. The proposed method is useful for the overall assessment on the quality of PR, and this study provides valuable information for revealing the dynamic change laws of metabolite accumulation in PR and choosing the most suitable harvesting time and reasonable processing method of PR to obtain the best quality.