Effect of Processing Methods on the Chemical Composition and Cytotoxicity Against Esophageal Cancer Cells of Fresh Taraxacum mongolicum Hand.-Mazz. Leaves.

In this paper, liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry, utilizing diagnostic product ions and neutral loss techniques, reveals the different chemical composition of fresh Taraxacum mongolicum Hand.-Mazz leaves (TML) treated with three methods: juice, boiled in water for drinking, dried and then boiled for drinking. Additionally, cytotoxicity of fresh TML treated with three methods and the main compounds of TML to KYSE-150 cells were detected. A total of 81 chemical components (including seven authentic standards) were preliminarily identified in fresh TML, including 14 fatty acids, 27 flavonoids, 24 organic acids, 7 iridoid glycosides, and 9 other components. Fatty acids were predominantly present in the fresh TML juice, while other types of compounds were primarily found in the boiling water extract of fresh or dried TML. Furthermore, the boiling water extract of both fresh and dried TML has significant cytotoxicity. In contrast, juice extract of fresh TML did not show significant cytotoxicity. Among these compounds, luteolin from the boiling water extract of fresh or dried TML exhibited the highest cytotoxicity.