Characterization of curcumin metabolites in rats by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry

摘要

Rationale Curcumin is a major constituent of Curcuma longa L. and is a naturally bio-active diketone. Structural changes in curcumin have been shown to result in different biological effects. The present study aims to investigate curcumin metabolites in rat plasma, bile, urine, and feces after administration of a single oral dose of curcumin (170 mg/kg). Methods After oral administration of curcumin, the plasma, bile, feces, and urine of the rats were collected for a certain period of time, and then subjected to a series of pretreatments. The metabolic pathway of curcumin in vivo was investigated using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) combined with electrospray ionization quadruple time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-QTOF-MS). Results Twelve metabolites were identified and divided into two groups: curcumin metabolites of phase Iota metabolism (M01-M08), curcumin metabolites of phase Iota Iota metabolism (M09-M12), and metabolites M02, M03 and M04 were reported for the first time. Conclusions Results showed that curcumin metabolism can help explain the mechanism of its pharmacological effects, and that UHPLC/Q-TOF-MS can serve as an important analytical platform to gather the metabolic profile of curcumin.