Metabolite profiling analysis of plasma, urine, and feces of rats after oral administration of Flos Chrysanthemi Indici preparation through UHPLC-Q-Exactive-MS combined with pharmacokinetic study of markers by UHPLC-QQQ-MS/MS.

Zhenju Antihypertensive Tablet is one of the Flos Chrysanthemi Indici preparations (FCIP) with antihypertensive effect. In order to investigate its process in vivo, a method using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadruple Exactive mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-Exactive-MS) was established for comprehensive analysis of the absorbed active component and metabolites in rat plasma, urine, and feces after the oral administration of FCIP. As a result, a total of 61 FCIP-related xenobiotics were identified, including 35 in plasma (25 prototypes, 10 metabolites), 40 in urine (23 prototypes, 17 metabolites), and 25 in feces (12 prototypes, 13 metabolites). The metabolism reactions included phase I reactions (such as oxidation, methylation, and reduction) and phase II reactions (such as sulfate conjugation and glucuronide conjugation). Meanwhile, a verified and optimized ultra-performance liquid chromatography with triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QQQ-MS/MS) method was developed for the simultaneous investigation of the pharmacokinetic profiles of four markers in FCIP. The results showed that all of the four components had good oral absorption effect. This study simultaneously investigated the comprehensive metabolic profiling of FCIP in rat plasma, urine, and feces after the oral administration as well as the four components pharmacokinetic behavior. The results can provide the therapeutic material basis for FCIP.

Predictive quality control for compound liquorice tablets by the intelligent mergence fingerprint method combined with the systematic quantitative fingerprint method.

INTRODUCTION: Compound liquorice tablet (CLT) is a herbal compound preparation and is used as a classic antitussive and expectorant in China. It is composed of liquorice extract powder, opioid powder, star anise oil, camphor, and sodium benzoate. The complexity of herbal materials brings a huge challenge in producing compound preparations with stable and uniform quality consistency. OBJECTIVE: To establish a new intelligent model for predicting the quality of CLT. METHODS: The HPLC fingerprints of raw materials including liquorice extract powder, powdered opium, star anise oil, and sodium benzoate were tested and merged to generate the intelligent mergence fingerprints, whose correlation with the raw materials and the CLT samples was studied. The consistency of the intelligently merged fingerprints with the standard fingerprints was observed by using the systematic quantitative fingerprint method in order to calculate quality evaluation results. RESULTS: The intelligent mergence fingerprints covered all the main fingerprint peaks of four raw materials and had a good correlation with the CLT sample fingerprint. There were no significant quality differences either among the six intelligent mergence models obtained by combining different batches of raw materials or between the reference fingerprint of the intelligent mergence connection fingerprints (RFPIMFC ) and the theoretical standard preparation (RFPS ). CONCLUSION: The computer-aided model of intelligent mergence fingerprints could be used to predict the quality of herbal compound preparations based on raw materials. In this way, preproduction quality prediction can be realised in order to avoid low-quality medicinal materials and improve the quality consistency among different batches.

Comparative transcriptome analysis reveals the mechanism of ß-glucan in protecting rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) from Aeromonas salmonicida infection.

To study the mechanism of ß-glucan in immune protection, rainbow trout were fed diets with or without 0.2% ß-glucan for 42 days and then infected with Aeromonas salmonicida. After that, spleen tissues were sampled on 4- and 6-days post infection (dpi). Transcriptome analysis was compared between control group (CG, without ß-glucan addition) and 0.2% ß-glucan group (BG). In CG vs BG, 378 and 406 DEGs were identified on 4 dpi and 6 dpi respectively; furthermore, 46 DEGs were shared on 4 dpi and 6 dpi, enriching in GO terms, such as complement activation, inflammatory response, and metabolic process. KEGG pathway analysis revealed that some DEGs in CG vs BG were involved in immune or metabolic signaling pathways such as complement and coagulation cascades, toll-like receptor signaling pathway, NF-κB signaling pathway, antigen processing and presentation, and platelet activation on 4 or 6 dpi. DEGs, such as fgg, fgb, f5, c9, c3, c5, tlr5, and myd88, were analyzed in CG vs BG on 4 dpi and 6 dpi, implying their potential roles in ß-glucan-modulated immunity. These results are beneficial to understand the mechanism of ß-glucan in resisting bacteria in fish.

A Canopy Information Measurement Method for Modern Standardized Apple Orchards Based on UAV Multimodal Information.

To make canopy information measurements in modern standardized apple orchards, a method for canopy information measurements based on unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) multimodal information is proposed. Using a modern standardized apple orchard as the study object, a visual imaging system on a quadrotor UAV was used to collect canopy images in the apple orchard, and three-dimensional (3D) point-cloud models and vegetation index images of the orchard were generated with Pix4Dmapper software. A row and column detection method based on grayscale projection in orchard index images (RCGP) is proposed. Morphological information measurements of fruit tree canopies based on 3D point-cloud models are established, and a yield prediction model for fruit trees based on the UAV multimodal information is derived. The results are as follows: (1) When the ground sampling distance (GSD) was 2.13-6.69 cm/px, the accuracy of row detection in the orchard using the RCGP method was 100.00%. (2) With RCGP, the average accuracy of column detection based on grayscale images of the normalized green (NG) index was 98.71-100.00%. The hand-measured values of H, SXOY, and V of the fruit tree canopy were compared with those obtained with the UAV. The results showed that the coefficient of determination R2 was the most significant, which was 0.94, 0.94, and 0.91, respectively, and the relative average deviation (RADavg) was minimal, which was 1.72%, 4.33%, and 7.90%, respectively, when the GSD was 2.13 cm/px. Yield prediction was modeled by the back-propagation artificial neural network prediction model using the color and textural characteristic values of fruit tree vegetation indices and the morphological characteristic values of point-cloud models. The R2 value between the predicted yield values and the measured values was 0.83-0.88, and the RAD value was 8.05-9.76%. These results show that the UAV-based canopy information measurement method in apple orchards proposed in this study can be applied to the remote evaluation of canopy 3D morphological information and can yield information about modern standardized orchards, thereby improving the level of orchard informatization. This method is thus valuable for the production management of modern standardized orchards.

Measurement Method for Height-Independent Vegetation Indices Based on an Active Light Source.

A coefficient CW, which was defined as the ratio of NIR (near infrared) to the red reflected spectral response of the spectrometer, with a standard whiteboard as the measuring object, was introduced to establish a method for calculating height-independent vegetation indices (VIs). Two criteria for designing the spectrometer based on an active light source were proposed to keep CW constant. A designed spectrometer, which was equipped with an active light source, adopting 730 and 810 nm as the central wavelength of detection wavebands, was used to test the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Ratio Vegetation Index (RVI) in wheat fields with two nitrogen application rate levels (NARLs). Twenty test points were selected in each kind of field. Five measuring heights (65, 75, 85, 95, and 105 cm) were set for each test point. The mean and standard deviation of the coefficient of variation (CV) for NDVI in each test point were 3.85% and 1.39% respectively, the corresponding results for RVI were 2.93% and 1.09%. ANOVA showed the measured VIs possessed a significant ability to discriminate the NARLs and had no obvious correlation with the measurement heights. The experimental results verified the feasibility and validity of the method for measuring height-independent VIs.

Assessment of quality consistency in traditional Chinese medicine using multi-wavelength fusion profiling by integrated quantitative fingerprint method: Niuhuang Jiedu pill as an example.

Under the wave of the revival of traditional Chinese medicine, there is a quite imperative duty to study an integrated and comprehensive method of fingerprint data processing and analysis on the quality consistency of traditional Chinese medicine. So, we proposed six parameters from two aspects (qualitative and quantitative), three levels (biased to strong peaks, biased to weak peaks, no obvious bias), to comprehensively evaluate the similarity of the two fingerprints. On this basis, another five parameters were proposed to evaluate the integrated effects (consistency, volatility, and similarity). This method was applied to 22 batches of Niuhuang Jiedu pill samples. Next, a practical and convenient multi-wavelength fusion method was designed to provide more information, and the generated fusion profilings were used for subsequent evaluation. The characteristics of the parameters were confirmed by correlation analysis. The results of both hierarchical clustering analysis and principal component analysis for raw data and standardized data were consistent with integrated quantitative fingerprint method results. At the same time, this method gave a reasonable explanation for abnormal and dissimilar samples. This work illustrated that the proposed method was particularly suitable for similarity analysis of fingerprints and capable of ensuring the quality consistency in traditional Chinese medicine.

Measurement Method Based on Multispectral Three-Dimensional Imaging for the Chlorophyll Contents of Greenhouse Tomato Plants.

Nondestructive plant growth measurement is essential for researching plant growth and health. A nondestructive measurement system to retrieve plant information includes the measurement of morphological and physiological information, but most systems use two independent measurement systems for the two types of characteristics. In this study, a highly integrated, multispectral, three-dimensional (3D) nondestructive measurement system for greenhouse tomato plants was designed. The system used a Kinect sensor, an SOC710 hyperspectral imager, an electric rotary table, and other components. A heterogeneous sensing image registration technique based on the Fourier transform was proposed, which was used to register the SOC710 multispectral reflectance in the Kinect depth image coordinate system. Furthermore, a 3D multiview RGB-D image-reconstruction method based on the pose estimation and self-calibration of the Kinect sensor was developed to reconstruct a multispectral 3D point cloud model of the tomato plant. An experiment was conducted to measure plant canopy chlorophyll and the relative chlorophyll content was measured by the soil and plant analyzer development (SPAD) measurement model based on a 3D multispectral point cloud model and a single-view point cloud model and its performance was compared and analyzed. The results revealed that the measurement model established by using the characteristic variables from the multiview point cloud model was superior to the one established using the variables from the single-view point cloud model. Therefore, the multispectral 3D reconstruction approach is able to reconstruct the plant multispectral 3D point cloud model, which optimizes the traditional two-dimensional image-based SPAD measurement method and can obtain a precise and efficient high-throughput measurement of plant chlorophyll.

Nondestructive Determination of Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium Contents in Greenhouse Tomato Plants Based on Multispectral Three-Dimensional Imaging.

Measurement of plant nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) levels are important for determining precise fertilization management approaches for crops cultivated in greenhouses. To accurately, rapidly, stably, and nondestructively measure the NPK levels in tomato plants, a nondestructive determination method based on multispectral three-dimensional (3D) imaging was proposed. Multiview RGB-D images and multispectral images were synchronously collected, and the plant multispectral reflectance was registered to the depth coordinates according to Fourier transform principles. Based on the Kinect sensor pose estimation and self-calibration, the unified transformation of the multiview point cloud coordinate system was realized. Finally, the iterative closest point (ICP) algorithm was used for the precise registration of multiview point clouds and the reconstruction of plant multispectral 3D point cloud models. Using the normalized grayscale similarity coefficient, the degree of spectral overlap, and the Hausdorff distance set, the accuracy of the reconstructed multispectral 3D point clouds was quantitatively evaluated, the average value was 0.9116, 0.9343 and 0.41 cm, respectively. The results indicated that the multispectral reflectance could be registered to the Kinect depth coordinates accurately based on the Fourier transform principles, the reconstruction accuracy of the multispectral 3D point cloud model met the model reconstruction needs of tomato plants. Using back-propagation artificial neural network (BPANN), support vector machine regression (SVMR), and gaussian process regression (GPR) methods, determination models for the NPK contents in tomato plants based on the reflectance characteristics of plant multispectral 3D point cloud models were separately constructed. The relative error (RE) of the N content by BPANN, SVMR and GPR prediction models were 2.27%, 7.46% and 4.03%, respectively. The RE of the P content by BPANN, SVMR and GPR prediction models were 3.32%, 8.92% and 8.41%, respectively. The RE of the K content by BPANN, SVMR and GPR prediction models were 3.27%, 5.73% and 3.32%, respectively. These models provided highly efficient and accurate measurements of the NPK contents in tomato plants. The NPK contents determination performance of these models were more stable than those of single-view models.

Monitoring quality consistency of Liuwei Dihuang Pill by integrating the ultraviolet spectroscopic fingerprint, a multi-wavelength fusion fingerprint method, and antioxidant activities.

Liuwei Dihuang Pill, a classical traditional Chinese medicine, has been widely used to treat kidney yin deficiency in China for hundreds of years. Little attention, however, has been paid to quality control methods for this formulation. In the present study, we aimed to establish a comprehensive and practical quality evaluation system for Liuwei Dihuang Pill. Thus, ultraviolet spectroscopic fingerprints and multi-wavelength fusion fingerprints have been proposed for quality consistency evaluation of the popular patent. The similarity analysis of Liuwei Dihuang Pill samples was evaluated by systematic quantitative fingerprint method from qualitative and quantitative perspectives. The results showed that 26 batches of samples were classified into five grades for fusion fingerprints and three grades for ultraviolet spectroscopic fingerprints. Moreover, the fingerprint-efficacy correlation was also established and confirmed through the partial least squares model to visualize the antioxidant activity of Liuwei Dihuang Pill in vitro. In conclusion, these results indicated that integrating ultraviolet spectroscopic fingerprints and multi-wavelength fusion fingerprints coupled with antioxidant activities provide a rapid and effective approach to monitor the quality consistency of Liuwei Dihuang Pill.

Quantitative fingerprinting based on the limited-ratio quantified fingerprint method for an overall quality consistency assessment and antioxidant activity determination of Lianqiao Baidu pills using HPLC with a diode array detector combined with chemometric methods.

Lianqiao Baidu pills are widely used herbal medicinal preparation that were analyzed to develop a quality consistency technique. The characteristic fingerprints of 28 batches of Lianqiao Baidu pill samples were established at five wavelengths and simultaneously assessed by using a limited-ratio quantified fingerprint method using 15 marker compounds. The principal component analysis and fingerprinting results were compared, and the qualitative classification of the samples by principal component analysis agreed with their quantitative evaluation by the limited-ratio quantified fingerprint method. Furthermore, the antioxidant activities of the samples were surveyed and determined using a 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical-scavenging approach. A relationship between the common peaks in the fingerprints and the antioxidant activities was established using a partial least squares model. The relationship can be used both to determine the antioxidant activities of the Lianqiao Baidu pill preparations in vitro and as a reference for the selection of active constituents for sample quality classification. The classification results for the samples based on principal component analysis agreed with the quantitative evaluation by the limited-ratio quantified fingerprint method, which demonstrated that the method can be applied to the holistic quality control of traditional Chinese medicine and herbal preparations.

Effect of dietary ß-glucan on growth, survival and regulation of immune processes in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) infected by Aeromonas salmonicida.

The present study evaluated the effects of dietary ß-glucan (0, 0.05%, 0.1%, and 0.2%) on growth performance after 42 days of feeding. Thereafter, rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) were infected with Aeromonas salmonicida, and survival rates as well as the regulating processes of stress- and immune-related factors were analyzed. In general, higher dietary ß-glucan levels obviously improved specific growth rate (SGR), weight gain (WG) and feed efficiency (FE) (P ≤ 0.05). Survival rates in ß-glucan groups increased significantly compared with the control group after A. salmonicida infection (P ≤ 0.05). Serum total superoxide dimutase (T-SOD), peroxidase (POD) as well as catalase (CAT) activities, and their mRNA expressions in the head kidney of fish in the ß-glucan groups generally increased to higher levels after infection, and more quickly, compared with in the control group. Serum lysozyme (LSZ) and its expression in the head kidney in ß-glucan groups reached a higher peak earlier than in the control group. Serum glutamic oxalacetic transaminase (GOT) and glutamic pyruvic transaminase (GPT) levels in the ß-glucan groups were significantly lower than in the control group (P ≤ 0.05). The peak of heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) expression in the 0.2% ß-glucan group was higher and occurred earlier than in other groups (P ≤ 0.05). These results confirm that 0.1% and 0.2% dietary ß-glucan are beneficial for promoting growth in rainbow trout and enhancing resistance against A. salmonicida. Furthermore, ß-glucan could play an important role in regulating stress- and immune-related factors in rainbow trout to more quickly fight against bacterial infection.

The biofilteration ability of oysters (Crassostrea gigas) to reduce Aeromonas salmonicida in salmon culture.

Pathogen contamination in the environment is inevitable with the rapid development of intensive aquaculture. Therefore, alternative ecofriendly biological strategies to control pathogenic bacteria are required. However, our aim was to investigate the ability of oysters (Crassostrea gigas) to filter the important opportunistic pathogen, Aeromonas salmonicida (strain C4), using a green fluorescent protein tag (GFP) in the Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) farming wastewater. Hence, A. salmonicida removal efficiency and ingestion rate were detected in two different oyster stages (larvae and adults). To evaluate the practical performance of oysters as A. salmonicida biofilter, adult oysters were applied to an integrated constructed wetlands system (ICWS) and their long-term C4-GFP removal efficiency was recorded for 60 days. Overall, our results clearly indicated that oysters had substantial A. salmonicida removal ability via their ingestion process when observed under a fluorescent microscope. Approximately 88-95% of C4-GFP was removed by oyster larvae at an ingestion rate of 6.4 × 103-6.2 × 105 CFU/h·ind, while 79-92% of C4-GFP was removed by adult oysters at an ingestion rate of 2.1 × 104-3.1 × 106 CFU/h·ind. Furthermore, 57.9 ± 17.2% of C4-GFP removal efficiency was achieved when oysters were applied to ICWS. We, therefore, concluded that using oysters as a biofilter represents an effective alternative for removing A. salmonicida from aquaculture wastewater. However, the fate of oysters after ingesting the pathogenic bacteria, acting as a potential reservoir or vector for pathogens, is still debatable. This research provides the basis for the application of oysters as a biofilter to remove pathogens from aquaculture wastewater in industrialized production.

Characterization and mechanism of anti-Aeromonas salmonicida activity of a marine probiotic strain, Bacillus velezensis V4.

The bacterium Aeromonas salmonicida is the causative agent of furunculosis, a systemic, ubiquitous disease of fish in the salmon family, characterized by high mortality and morbidity. Probiotics are a promising approach for prevention of furunculosis in aquaculture. A bacterial strain with anti-A. salmonicida properties, Bacillus velezensis V4, was isolated and the mechanisms underlying these properties were investigated. Anti-A. salmonicida compounds present in cell-free supernatant of V4 were purified and structurally identified as members of the iturin, macrolactin, and difficidin groups. The compounds contributed jointly to inhibition of A. salmonicida, and the diversity of the compounds was related to the versatility of their mode of action. Addition of the compounds to A. salmonicida cell suspensions reduced cell density. Analyses by confocal microscopy and scanning electron microscopy revealed cell membrane disruption, deletion of cellular content, and cell lysis of A. salmonicida. The V4 genome was sequenced, and gene clusters involved in synthesis of anti-Aeromonas compounds were detected and identified. A possible probiotic effect on growth performance of Oncorhynchus mykiss (rainbow trout) was investigated by addition of 0, 1, and 3 % (v/w) V4. Relative to control, mortality was reduced 27.25 % in the 1 % addition group and 81.86 % in the 3 % addition group. Feed coefficient ratio was reduced 19.49 % and weight gain ratio was increased 71.22 % in the 1 % addition group. Our findings demonstrate that V4 is an effective probiotic strain in O. mykiss and has clear potential for both control of furunculosis and growth promotion of aquaculture animals.

Integrated evaluation of HPLC and UV fingerprints for the quality control of Danshen tablet by systematic quantified fingerprint method combined with antioxidant activity.

Danshen tablet, which consists of Salviae Miltiorrhizae Radix et Rhizoma, Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma and Borneolum syntheticum, has been widely used in the therapy of cardiovascular disease. The aim of this study was to develop comprehensive evaluation methods for the quality control of Danshen tablet. First, five-wavelength fusion fingerprint was established to avoid one-sidedness of a single wavelength. Then, the ultraviolet spectrum fingerprint was applied to reflect the information of unsaturated bond and conjugated system of chemical substances in Danshen tablet. The similarity analyses of these two fingerprints were performed by systematic quantified fingerprint method in terms of qualitative and quantitative aspects. After that, the evaluation results of high-performance liquid chromatography and ultraviolet fingerprints were integrated by the mean algorithm, which could reduce the error caused by single method. The integrated evaluation results showed that 30 batches of samples were classified into seven grades. Finally, the fingerprint-efficacy relationship was established using an on-line antioxidant system and partial least-squares model to explore the connection between chemical components and antioxidant activities. The methods established in this paper were found suitable for the analysis of Danshen tablet.

Total detection of Tianma Toutong tablets for quality consistency by a five-wavelength fusion fingerprint and chemometrics.

A fingerprint method was developed and combined with chemometrics for quality evaluation of Tianma Toutong tablets, which are herbal medicine tablets used to treat migraine. Samples were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography, where five single-wavelength profiles (203, 232, 254, 280 and 310 nm) were fused to generate a five-wavelength fusion fingerprint and were also used for the quantitative analysis of seven chemical markers (gastrodin, caffeic acid, hesperidin, isoimperatorin, chlorogenic acid, ferulic acid and imperatorin). A systematic quantitative fingerprint method and principal component analysis were used to analyze the generated data. Samples could be well distinguished from different manufacturers by analyzing the chromatographic data sets. In addition, the partial least squares model can serve as an antioxidant activity evaluation of Tianma Toutong tablets, as well as a reference for the selection of active constituents to analyze the spectrum-activity relationship. In summary, the integrated use of the fingerprint and chemometric analysis provides a reliable method for the identification of markers and the quality control of Tianma Toutong tablets.

Quantitative analysis combined with chromatographic fingerprint and antioxidant activities for the comprehensive evaluation of Compound Danshen Tablets.

The composition of traditional Chinese medicine is extremely complex, so it is difficult to ensure quality consistency. We took Compound Danshen Tablets as the object of the study, by using high-performance liquid chromatography to establish multiwavelength fusion fingerprints. Characteristic fingerprints of 30 batches of samples were generated at four wavelengths and evaluated by systematic quantified fingerprint method. An on-line antioxidant determination method was used for the determination of the antioxidant components in Compound Danshen Tablets. The fingerprint analysis of the marker compounds can reflect the content of the marker compounds, which were determined by using the external standard method. This study elucidated that multiwavelength fusion fingerprint profiles and multiple markers compound analysis in conjunction with the assay of antioxidant activity offered a reliable and efficient approach to quantitatively evaluate the quality consistency of the traditional Chinese medicine and herbal preparations.

Micellar electrokinetic chromatography fingerprinting combined with chemometrics as an efficient strategy for evaluating the quality consistency and predicting the antioxidant activity of Lianqiao Baidu pills.

An approach combining micellar electrokinetic chromatography fingerprinting with chemometrics was developed to evaluate the quality consistency of Lianqiao Baidu pills, which are traditional Chinese patent medicines composed of 19 herbs used mainly to treat skin ulcers, common cold, rheumatism, herpes, and constipation. The triangle optimization method was employed to choose a satisfactory background electrolyte, with the information index, I, as an objective function for assessing the capillary electrophoresis conditions. Then, under the optimal conditions, the micellar electrokinetic chromatography fingerprints of 28 batches of samples were established, and five marker compounds were quantitatively determined simultaneously. A limited-ratio quantified fingerprint method was introduced to evaluate the chromatographic fingerprints both qualitatively and quantitatively. Principle component analysis revealed that the 28 batches of samples can be clustered according to different manufacturers. Moreover, the relationship between the fingerprint and the antioxidant activity was explored by orthogonal partial least-squares regression, which provided critical medicinal efficacy information for quality control. The present study establishes a powerful and reliable method for monitoring the quality consistency of Lianqiao Baidu pill.

Novel strategy for quality consistency evaluation of Chinese medicine "YIQING" tablet that combines the simultaneous quantification and screening of ten bioactive constituents.

The UV characteristics for different categories compounds in complex traditional Chinese medicines and herbal preparations usually vary. Thus, to achieve the integral analysis of multiwavelength fingerprint characteristics, we introduced a novel strategy of multiwavelength total fusion profiling. The simultaneous separation and quantification of multiple components by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with diode array detection was developed in an effective, accurate, and reliable way. Furthermore, a 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH) scavenging assay was set up to detect and screen the bioactivity of similar-structure constituents (aloe-emodin, rhein, emodin, chrysophanol, baicalein, wogonin, baicalin, wogonoside, berberine hydrochloride, and jatrorrhizine hydrochloride). Moreover, the high-performance liquid chromatography DPPH assay was developed to monitor the relationship between the biological activity and the spatial structure, the number of hydroxyl groups, the concentration of the analytes in samples. The result of qualitative classification for 15 batches of "YIQING" tablets using principle component analysis was consistent with the quantitative fingerprint assessment using the average linear quantitative fingerprint method. Therefore, chemometrics, multiwavelength total fusion profiling in conjunction with average linear quantitative fingerprint method and antioxidant activity can control the quality of traditional Chinese medicines/herbal preparations comprehensively and practically.

Micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography fingerprints combined with multivariate statistical analyses to evaluate the quality consistency and predict the fingerprint-efficacy relationship of Salviae miltiorrhizae Radix et Rhizoma (Danshen).

Micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography fingerprinting combined with quantification was successfully established and applied to evaluate the quality consistency of Danshen, which is a medicinal herb used to treat various diseases, especially coronary cerebrovascular diseases. A background electrolyte composed of 20 mmol/L sodium tetraborate, 90 mmol/L orthoboric acid, 25 mmol/L sodium phosphate monobasic dehydrate, and 65 mmol/L sodium dodecyl sulfate was used to separate compounds. To optimize micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography conditions, a response surface strategy was set up for orthogonal experimental design. In fingerprint assessments, a systematic quantified fingerprint method was established for integrated quality assessment of Danshen samples from qualitative and quantitative perspectives, by which the quality of 30 samples was well differentiated. The principal component analysis coupled with quantitative determination of two components was applied to explain that the quality consistency of the medicinal herb was relatively good within one harvest season, but poor among harvest seasons for the Danshen samples. In addition, the fingerprint-efficacy relationship between the chemical fingerprints and antioxidant activities was investigated utilizing orthogonal projection to latent structures, which provided important medicinal efficacy information for quality control. This work offered an efficient, holistic, and powerful approach to evaluate the quality consistency of Danshen samples.

Capillary electrophoresis fingerprints combined with chemometric methods to evaluate the quality consistency and predict the antioxidant activity of Yinqiaojiedu tablet.

The quality consistency of Yinqiaojiedu tablets (YQJDTs) was monitored by extracting their electrophoretic fingerprint and marker compound data that were obtained using capillary electrophoresis. To select the suitable background electrolyte, wing-shape method was proposed. A background electrolyte composed of 103.1 mM boric acid, 51.6 mM sodium borate, 9.8 mM disodium hydrogen phosphate, and 15.6 mM sodium dihydrogen phosphate was used to separate compounds. Under the optimized conditions, the content of three marker compounds was determined in 25 YQJDT samples. The capillary electrophoresis fingerprints were developed simultaneously, then 25 samples from two manufacturers were clearly divided into two clusters based on the principal component analysis. In fingerprint assessments, systematic quantified fingerprint method was adopted for integrative quality discrimination of YQJDTs from both qualitative and quantitative perspectives, by which the qualities of 25 samples were well differentiated. In addition, partial least squares model was established to explore fingerprint-efficacy relationship between the fingerprints and the antioxidant activities in vitro, providing clinically useful information for quality control. The proposed method was reliable and comprehensive, which could be used for a valuable reference to monitor the quality consistency of traditional Chinese medicines.