Study on the Protective Effect and the Metabolomics Features of Rutaecarpine on Ethanol-induced Acute Gastric Ulcer

As a prevalent digestive disease, Gastric ulcer (GU) has a high incidence and is seriously harmful to human health. It is an urgent need to finding a natural drug with a gastroprotective effect. Rutaecarpine (RUT) is an alkaloid isolated from Evodia rutaecarpa Bentham (Rutaceae). This plant is a traditional Chinese medicine that has been treating gastrointestinal diseases for a long time. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of RUT on ethanol-induced acute GU in mice. After intragastrical administration of RUT for 3 consecutive days, acute GU were induced in the mice by ethanol treatment for 1.5 h. The expression levels of SOD, CAT, NO, ET-1 in serum and EGF, TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6 in gastric tissues were measured by kits. In addition, hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining of gastric mucosa for pathological changes was evaluated. The serum metabolomics method based on ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography combined with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF/MS) was used to explore the potential mechanism. A total of 7 potential metabolites involved in 9 metabolic pathways were identified. This study helps us to further understand the pathogenesis of GU and provide a potential natural anti-ulcer drug for clinic.