LC/ESI-MSn for the determination of bioactive liver metabolites of Echinacea purpurea

ANYL 101

Bethany Amber Hovater1, Dawn Smith1, Kevin Spelman1, Katrina Tutor2, Gregory M. Raner1, Cynthia A. Wenner2, and Nadja B. Cech, nadja_cech@uncg.edu1. (1) Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of North Carolina Greensboro, P.O. Box 26170, Greenboro, NC 27402, (2) Research Institute, Bastyr University, 14500, Juanita Dr. NE, Kenmore, WA 98028
The medicinal plant Echinacea purpurea is widely used for the treatment and prevention of colds and flues. It is difficult to interpret the results of clinical trials of Echinacea due to variability in chemical composition of Echinacea preparations. The purpose of our research is to evaluate the immunomodulatory effects of chemically characterized E. purpurea extracts and constituents thereof. We hypothesize that the metabolism of E. purpurea by liver enzymes produces bioactive compounds. To test this hypothesis, E. purpurea extracts were metabolized in vitro using human liver microsomes, and the metabolic products were determined using LC/ESI-MSn. Results show that alkylamides from E. purpurea are converted to various oxidized products by cytochrome P450 metabolism, depending on duration of incubation (see Figure 1). Metabolized extracts induce changes in cytokine expression by cultured human immune cells in vitro. These findings suggest that liver metabolites of Echinacea may play a role in its immunomodulatory activity.

 

General Session
7:00 PM-9:00 PM, Sunday, 26 March 2006 Georgia World Congress Center -- Ex. Hall B4, Poster

Division of Analytical Chemistry

The 231st ACS National Meeting, Atlanta, GA, March 26-30, 2006