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. 2025 Jan 21:19:389-404.
doi: 10.2147/DDDT.S482510. eCollection 2025.

Comprehensive Analysis of Metabolic Changes in Mice Exposed to Corilagin Based on GC-MS Analysis

Biao Xu #  1 , Changshui Wang #  2 , Xiaodong Zhu  2 , Li Zhu  3 , Guangkui Han  2 , Changmeng Cui  2
Affiliations

Comprehensive Analysis of Metabolic Changes in Mice Exposed to Corilagin Based on GC-MS Analysis

Biao Xu et al. Drug Des Devel Ther. .

Abstract

Background: Corilagin is widely distributed in various medicinal plants. In recent years, numerous pharmacological activities of Corilagin have been reported, including anti-inflammatory, antiviral, hepatoprotective, anti-tumor, and anti-fibrosis effects. However, there is still a need for systematic metabolomics analysis to further elucidate its mechanisms of action. The aim of this study was to explore the pharmacological mechanism of Corilagin.

Methods: This study utilized gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to analyze central target tissues, comprehensively exploring the pharmacological mechanism of Corilagin in mouse models. We identified the differential metabolites by multivariate analyses, which include principal component analysis (PCA) and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA). Using MetaboAnalyst 5.0 and the KEGG database was used to depict the 12 key metabolic pathways.

Results: Compared with the control group, the Corilagin induced 20, 9, 11, 7, 16, 19, 14, 15, and 16 differential metabolites in the intestine, lung, kidney, stomach, heart, liver, hippocampus, cerebral cortex, and serum, respectively. And 12 key pathways involving glucose metabolism, lipid metabolism, and amino acid metabolism were identified following Corilagin treatment.

Conclusion: This research provides insight into the action mechanism of Corilagin's anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory, anti-atherosclerotic, hepatoprotective, anti-tumor, and neuroprotective properties.

Keywords: Corilagin; amino acids; gas chromatography-mass spectrometry; metabolomics; pharmacological mechanism.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

Figures

None
Graphical abstract
Figure 1
Figure 1
Representative GC–MS TICs of QCs of (A) intestines, (B) lung, (C) kidney, (D) stomach, (E) heart, (F) liver, (G) hippocampus, (H) cortex, (I) serum.
Figure 2
Figure 2
OPLS-DA score chart and 200 permutation tests chart. (A) intestines, (B) lung, (C) kidney, (D) stomach, (E) heart.
Figure 3
Figure 3
OPLS-DA score chart and 200 permutation tests chart. (A) liver, (B) hippocampus, (C) cortex, (D) serum.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Heatmap of differentially expressed metabolites in (A) intestines, (B) lung, (C) kidney, (D) stomach, (E) heart, (F) liver, (G) hippocampus, (H) cortex, (I) serum. Samples in the Corilagin group compared to controls. The color of each part represents the importance of metabolite changes (blue, down-regulated; red, up-regulated). Columns represent metabolites, and Rows represent sample.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Pathway analysis maps were performed using MetaboAnalyst 5.0. (A) Pathway analysis in intestines: (a) Phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis; (b) Glutathione metabolism; (c) Phenylalanine metabolism; (d) Arginine biosynthesis. (B) The related metabolic pathways enriched in the lungs. (C) Pathway analysis in kidney: (e) Glycerophospholipid metabolism. (D) Pathway analysis in stomach: (f) Galactose metabolism. (E) Pathway analysis in heart: (a) Phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis. (F) Pathway analysis in liver: (a) Phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis; (b) Glutathione metabolism; (g) Pentose phosphate pathway; (h) Glycine, serine and threonine metabolism. (G) Pathway analysis in hippocampus: (a) Phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis; (i) Alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism. (H) Pathway analysis in cortex: (a) Phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis; (b) Glutathione metabolism; (d) Arginine biosynthesis; (e) Glycerophospholipid metabolism; (i) Alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism; (j) Glyoxylate and dicarboxylate metabolism; (k) Butanoate metabolism. (I) Pathway analysis in serum: (a) Phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis; (b) Glutathione metabolism; (d) Arginine biosynthesis; (h) Glycine, serine and threonine metabolism; (i) Alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism; (j) Glyoxylate and dicarboxylate metabolism; (l) Arginine and proline metabolism.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Schematic diagram of related metabolic pathways affected by Corilagin processing in the main tissues. Green arrows indicate the tricarboxylic acid cycle. Yellow arrows indicate urea cycle.
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