Efficiently Capturing Mitochondria-Targeted Constituents with Hepatoprotective Activity from Medicinal Herbs

Oxid Med Cell Longev. 2019 Apr 9:2019:4353791. doi: 10.1155/2019/4353791. eCollection 2019.

Abstract

Targeting mitochondria as a hepatic-protective strategy has gained attention, because of their important roles in energy production, adjustment of apoptosis, and generation of reactive oxygen species. To promote the discovery of natural mitochondria-targeted hepatic-protectants, we established a hepatocellular mitochondria-based capturing method by coupling affinity ultrafiltration with liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS), which is suitable for identifying mitochondrial ligands from medicinal herbs (MHs). After evaluating the feasibility of the method, it was applied for capturing mitochondria-targeting constituents from Peucedani Radix extract. A total of 10 active compounds were identified by LC/MS, all of which were newly identified mitochondrial ligands. The mitochondria-remedying activity of 4 of the 10 hits was confirmed by pharmacological tests in vitro. Additionally, the hepatic-protective abilities of 4 hits were verified in both carbon tetrachloride-damaged liver L02 cells and mice. These results indicated that the method could be used for identifying hepatic mitochondria-targeting constituents in MHs, which might be beneficial for hepatic-protective development.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Liver / drug effects
  • Liver / metabolism*
  • Male
  • Membrane Potential, Mitochondrial / drug effects
  • Mitochondria, Liver / drug effects
  • Mitochondria, Liver / metabolism*
  • Mitochondria, Liver / ultrastructure
  • Mitochondrial Membrane Transport Proteins / metabolism
  • Mitochondrial Permeability Transition Pore
  • Plant Extracts / pharmacology
  • Plants, Medicinal / chemistry*
  • Protective Agents / pharmacology*
  • Rats, Sprague-Dawley
  • Reference Standards

Substances

  • Mitochondrial Membrane Transport Proteins
  • Mitochondrial Permeability Transition Pore
  • Plant Extracts
  • Protective Agents