NMR-based metabolic profiling and differentiation of ginseng roots according to cultivation ages

► Adulteration or falsification of ginseng cultivation age has been a serious problem in the commercial market. ► NMR-based metabolic profiling method was employed to differentiate ginseng root samples of various cultivation ages. ► For the differentiation of ginseng roots according to cultivation ages, various solvents for extraction and NMR measurement were tested. ► The cultivation age of ginseng could be successfully differentiated and predicted using selected two solvents, and the developed method in this study can be used as a standard protocol for discriminating and predicting the ages of ginseng root samples. Ginseng is an important herbal resource worldwide, and the adulteration or falsification of cultivation age has been a serious problem in the commercial market. In this study, ginseng ( Panax ginseng) roots, which were cultivated for 2–6 years under GAP standard guidelines, were analyzed by NMR-based metabolomic techniques using two solvents. At first, ginseng root samples were extracted with 50% methanol, and analyzed by NMR with D 2O as the NMR dissolution solvent. The 2-, 3-, 4-, and 5/6-year-old ginseng root samples were separated in PLS-DA-derived score plots. However, 5- and 6-year-old ginseng roots were not separated by the solvent system. Therefore, various solvents were tested to differentiate the 5- and 6-year-old ginseng root samples, and 100% methanol- d 4 was chosen as the direct extraction and NMR dissolution solvent. In the PLS model using data from the 100% methanol- d 4 solvent, 5- and 6-year-old ginseng roots were clearly separated, and the model was validated using internal and external data sets. The obtained RMSEE and RMSEP values suggested that the PLS model has strong predictability for discriminating the age of 5- and 6-years-old ginseng roots. The present study suggests that the age of ginseng could be successfully predicted using two solvents, and the developed method in this study can be used as a standard protocol for discriminating and predicting the ages of ginseng root samples.