LIU Wei,LI Chunhui,ZHANG Linzhang,et al.Analysis of rationality of quality control for astragaloside Ⅰ based on pharmacokinetic characteristics of Astragalus saponins[J].Shanghai Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine,2026,60(1):73-81.
LIU Wei,LI Chunhui,ZHANG Linzhang,et al.Analysis of rationality of quality control for astragaloside Ⅰ based on pharmacokinetic characteristics of Astragalus saponins[J].Shanghai Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine,2026,60(1):73-81. DOI: 10.16305/j.1007-1334.2026.z20250513006.
Analysis of rationality of quality control for astragaloside Ⅰ based on pharmacokinetic characteristics of Astragalus saponins
metabolite of astragaloside compounds, this study aimed to evaluate the suitability of quality control markers for
Astragalus
saponins.
Methods
2
High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to quantify the main components in
Astragalus
aqueous extract and total
Astragalus
saponins. Pharmacokinetic studies were conducted in male C57BL/6J mice, which were ra
ndomly divided into five groups: total
Astragalus
saponins group, astragaloside Ⅰ group, astragaloside Ⅳ group, cycloastragenol group, and control group. Each treatment group was administered 50 mg·kg
-1
body weight of the corresponding agent via gavage, while the control group received physiological saline. Serum, liver tissue, and intestinal contents were collected at 10, 30, 90, 180, 300, 480, 960, and 1 440 minutes post-administration. Concentrations of astragalosides Ⅰ-Ⅳ, isoastragalosides Ⅰ-Ⅱ, and cycloastragenol were determined using UHPLC-Q-Exactive Orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS), and pharmacokinetic parameters were subsequently calculated. Additionally,
in vitro
fecal microbiota incubation assays were performed with astragalosides Ⅰ and Ⅳ; concentrations of cycloastragenol and the major saponins were measured at 0, 1, 3, 8, and 24 hours using UHPLC-Q-Exactive Orbitrap HRMS.
Results
2
In both
Astragalus
aqueous extract and total
Astragalus
saponins, the content of astragaloside Ⅰ was significantly higher than that of astragaloside Ⅳ. After oral administration, the exposure of cycloastragenol in serum and liver tissue in the total
Astragalus
saponins group was 2.6-fold and 10.4-fold higher, respectively, compared with that in the astragaloside Ⅳ group. Astragaloside Ⅰ exhibited a higher metabolic efficiency to cycloastragenol than astragaloside Ⅳ:
in vitro
, its metabolic efficiency was 7.3-fold higher, and
in vivo
, its total conversion rate was 5.9-fold greater.
Conclusion
2
Compared with astragaloside Ⅳ, astragaloside Ⅰ is a more appropriate quality control marker for
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