Chemical and bioactive comparison of Panax notoginseng root and rhizome in raw and steamed forms

BACKGROUND: The root and rhizome are historically and officially utilized medicinal parts of Panax notoginseng (PN) (Burk.) F. H. Chen, which in raw and steamed forms are used differently in practice. METHODS: To investigate the differences in chemical composition and bioactivities of PN root and rhizome between raw and steamed forms, high-performance liquid chromatography analyses and pharmacologic effects evaluated by tests of anticoagulation, antioxidation, hemostasis, antiinflammation, and hematopoiesis were combined. RESULTS: With the duration of steaming time, the contents of ginsenosides Rg(1), Re, Rb(1), Rd, and notoginsenoside R(1) in PN were decreased, while those of ginsenosides Rh(1), 20(S)-Rg(3), 20(R)-Rg(3), Rh(4), and Rk(3) were increased gradually. Raw PN samples steamed for 6 h at 120°C with stable levels of most constituents were used for the subsequent study of bioeffects. Raw PN showed better hemostasis, anticoagulation, and antiinflammation effects, while steamed PN exhibited stronger antioxidation and hematopoiesis activities. For different parts of PN, contents of saponins in PN rhizome were generally higher than those in the root, which could be related to the stronger bioactivities of rhizome compared with the same form of PN root. CONCLUSION: This study provides basic information about the chemical and bioactive comparison of PN root and rhizome in both raw and steamed forms, indicating that the change of saponins may have a key role in different properties of raw and steamed PN.