Metabolites identification for major active components of Agastache rugosa in rat by UPLC-Orbitap-MS: Comparison of the difference between metabolism as a single component and as a component in a multi-component extract

Agastache rugosa (fisch. & C.A. Mey.) Kuntze (A. rugosa) is used in traditional medicine in Korea since it has variety of medicinal activities, such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-photoaging. Acacetin, tilianin, and rosmarinic acid are the active components of A. rugosa but their metabolites have not yet been fully identified. The purpose of this study was to identify the metabolites of A. rugosa after oral administration in Sprague-Dawley rats. For this study, active components (acacetin, tilianin, rosmarinic acid) and A. rugosa extract were dissolved in 0.5% carboxymethyl cellulose sodium solution respectively and treated by oral gavage at a dose of 50 mg/kg (for single compounds) and 200 mg/kg (for A. rugosa extract). For metabolite identification, plasma, urine, and fecal samples were collected after oral administration and analyzed using liquid chromatography coupled with Orbitrap mass spectrometry (UPLC-Orbitrap-MS) for data acquisition and metabolite identification. Metabolite identification was performed by considering the mass difference of the metabolites from the parent compounds and using their exact m/z and MS/MS fragments. The main biotransformation of the major components of A. rugosa was hydrolysis to acacetin, followed by demethylation, methylation, and conjugation. That of rosmarinic acid is methylated and conjugated. There were differences in metabolism between the treatment of single active components and extract; some sulfate-conjugated metabolites or metabolic intermediates were only detected in the treatment of single active components. The reason for this is thought to be the low content of the active components in the extract, which react competitively with the components present in the extract in the metabolic process. This study provides valuable evidence for a comprehensive understanding of the metabolism of A. rugosa.