Elucidating the effects of ginger processing on Magnolia bark: A multi-platform strategy linking chemical composition to taste and bioactivity.

Magnolia officinalis (Houpo, HP) is a prominent Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM). Despite its traditional processing with ginger to reduce irritation, enhance efficacy, and improve taste, the underlying mechanisms connecting this chemical transformation to its sensory and gastrointestinal effects are not fully understood. Existing studies lack systematic analysis of shared targets across gastrointestinal diseases and the identification of quality markers (Q-markers), limiting scientific justification for its processing and clinical use. This study therefore applied an integrated UPLC-Q-TOF/MS, chemometrics, and network pharmacology approach to elucidate the effects of ginger processing. In this study a total of 46 batches of samples (22 raw, 24 ginger-processed) were analyzed by UPLC-Q-TOF/MS to identify and quantify chemical constituents. Chemometric models were used to discriminate sample types and identify potential Q-markers. The correlation between taste and chemical profiles was assessed using an electronic tongue combined with Pearson correlation analysis. Network pharmacology was employed to predict targets related to functional dyspepsia (FD), postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV), and chronic gastritis (CG), followed by GO/KEGG enrichment analysis. Molecular docking was performed to validate binding affinities between key bioactive components and core targets. The experimental results showed that Fifty-four compounds were characterized, and chemometric models clearly distinguished raw from ginger-processed HP (Jianghoupo, JHP). Electronic tongue analysis revealed that Magnoloside A plays a key role in reducing bitterness after ginger processing. Network pharmacology identified 51 overlapping targets across FD, PONV, and CG, with AKT1, TNF, CTNNB1, IL1B, and STAT3 as core nodes in the network. Molecular docking confirmed stable binding between principal components and these targets. An integrative "component transformation-taste modulation-gastrointestinal regulation" model was established, illustrating how ginger processing improves both palatability and pharmacological efficacy. In summary, ginger processing transforms the chemical and sensory profiles of HP into a state of improved palatability and strengthened gastrointestinal regulatory function. These findings provide a mechanistic rationale and scientific foundation for the traditional processing practice of combining ginger with HP in clinical use.