Structural elucidation of in vitro metabolites of bavachinin in rat liver microsomes by LC-ESI-MSn and chemical synthesis.

1. Bavachinin isolated from Psoralea corylifolia has various activities, such as antimicrobial, antiallergic, antitumor and so on. Our previous study showed that natural bavachinin exhibits peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ-agonist activity. 2. In vitro studies on bavachinin metabolism were conducted using rat liver microsomes incubated at 37 °C for 60 min. 3. Structures of eight metabolites of the incubation mixtures were cautiously characterized using electrospray tandem mass spectra and three synthetic compounds. The results indicated that eight metabolites of bavachinin were biotransformed mainly through oxidation. 4. The metabolic pathways of bavachinin were elucidated in vitro. These results contribute to the understanding of bavachinin's in vivo metabolism.