Brain distribution pharmacokinetics and integrated pharmacokinetics of Panax Notoginsenoside R1, Ginsenosides Rg1, Rb1, Re and Rd in rats after intranasal administration of Panax Notoginseng Saponins assessed by UPLC/MS/MS

• This is the first research on rat brain distribution of PNS by nasal delivery.
• A sensitive UPLC-MS/MS method determining PNS in rat brain was developed.
• The study verified the main existed pathways of PNS from nasal cavity to brain.
• The work affirmed the migration mechanism of nasally applied drugs in rat brain.

Panax notoginseng saponins (PNS) constitute the main active components of a traditional Chinese medicine, Panax notoginseng (Burk.) F.H. Chen (Sanqi). To investigate brain distribution of Panax Notoginsenoside R1, Ginsenosides Rg1, Rb1, Re, and Rd, and the integrated PNS in rats, their contents in cortex, striatum, hypothalamus, medulla oblongata, hippocampus and olfactory bulb were simultaneously measured by UPLC-MS/MS. Sample preparation was carried out by the protein precipitation technique with an internal Digoxin standard. The method described here was highly efficient, with short run time, excellent specificity and sensitivity, and successfully applied for pharmacokinetics studies. NGR1, GRg1, GRb1, GRe and GRd from PNS have been detected in all six brain regions studied and quantified accurately. These findings provide more insight for further understanding of the main ways from the nasal cavity to brain as well as the migration of nasally applied drugs into the CNS parenchyma.

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