Identification of cytotoxic metabolites from Mahonia aquifolium using H-1 NMR-based metabolomics approach

Abstract

Herein, we propose a H-1 NMR-based metabolomics method to reveal cytotoxic metabolites from Mahonia aquifolium stem-bark. Primary and secondary metabolites in the Mahonia aquifolium extracts were identified by thorough analysis of H-1 and 2D NMR spectra, without prior isolation. An OPLS multivariate analysis method was used to correlate the chemical composition of the plant extracts with the results of cytotoxic activity against Human cervical adenocarcinoma cell line. Protoberberine alkaloids berberine and palmatine, along with bisbenzylisoquinoline alkaloid berbamine were identified as the most influential in the OPLS model, with the highest cytotoxic activity.