Metabolomic Profiling of Botanical Ingredients by ¹H NMR for Quality Evaluation ofNatural Health Products

The chemical composition of botanical natural health products can vary considerably due to
differences in plant species, geographic origin, cultivation and processing conditions, and storage
practices. Such variability can affect product quality, consistency, and authenticity, highlighting
the need for comprehensive and reliable analytical strategies for the characterisation of botanical
ingredients. Metabolomics based on proton nuclear magnetic resonance (¹H NMR) spectroscopy
provides a non-destructive, reproducible, and efficient approach for the simultaneous detection
and characterization of multiple metabolites in complex plant matrices.

Non-targeted Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy provides a comprehensive
spectral fingerprint representing numerous metabolites within a botanical sample. Such metabolic
fingerprints can be used to assess species identity and evaluate metabolite consistency among
botanical ingredients. However, there remains a gap in published research regarding the structural
elucidation and identification of bioactive molecules represented within NMR spectral fingerprints
of many botanical species.

The objective of this research is to develop NMR-based metabolite fingerprint profiles combined
with structural elucidation of bioactive molecules from selected botanical species used as
ingredients in natural health products. This approach is intended to establish a comprehensive
quality assurance workflow in which a single NMR analysis can provide three complementary
levels of information: (i) verification of botanical species identity, (ii) assessment of product
consistency through metabolite fingerprinting, and (iii) verification and structural
characterization of bioactive molecules of interest. The proposed NMR-based approach has
potential to support improved authentication, quality evaluation, and standardization of botanical
ingredients used in natural health products