Ethnobotanical survey of herbal tea plants from the traditional markets in Chaoshan, China.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Herbal tea, which refers to "cooling tea", "cool beverage", or "liáng chá" in China, includes a range of drinks with heat-clearing and detoxification qualities. Herbal tea plants are great contributive to the health and prosperity of Chaoshan people. The aim of the study was to document herbal tea plant species used and commercialized as "liáng chá" in Chaoshan area, to facilitate the use and development of herbal tea enterprises, and to promote the further development of national herbal tea. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Information and data were obtained from all 83 stall holders in 12 traditional markets, semi-structured informant interviews were carried out individually with the stall holders, 10 questions were asked. RESULTS: In this study, 186 species of herbal tea plants belonging to 65 families and 156 genera were indicated by 83 stall holders, with Asteraceae being the most prevalent family with 22 species. Herbs are main sources of herbal tea plants in Chaoshan area, with whole plants (97 species) being the most used parts. Herbal drinks are mostly consumed for heat-clearing and detoxification, and a large number of plant species were reported to treat coughs, colds, dysentery, dampness and sore throats. The most cited species were Hedyotis corymbosa (L.) Lam. (47 times mentioned), Hedyotis diffusa Willd. (46), Plantago asiatica L. (43), Houttuynia cordata Thunb (42), Centella asiatica (L.) Urban (36), Desmodium styracifolium (Osbeck) Merr. (35) and Morus alba L. (31), and 5 protected species were recorded in the list of the nationally protected species of China: Dendrobium officinale Kimura et Migo, Dendrobium nobile Lindl., Anoectochilus formosanus Hayata, Bulbophyllum odoratissimum (J. E. Smith) Lindl. and Pholidota chinensis Lindl. The selling price of most fresh herbal tea plants in the market varied fromï¿¥10-16/kg, with the profit margin of sales ranging from 12.5% to 20%. The consumption of herbal tea for one family costs about ï¿¥3-5/day. CONCLUSION: Chaoshan herbal teas, prepared by diverse plant species, are regarded as a long tradition inseparable part in daily life of local people. Although they can effectively prevent and treat different kinds of diseases, they are not suitable for everyone (e.g. the elderly, children, and pregnant or breastfeeding women), even in healthy people, improper use of herbal tea can lead to physical discomfort. Furthermore, in order to appropriately understand the function, efficacy, and safety of herbal tea plants, additional research of traditional practices and phytochemistry, nutrient, physiological and toxicity properties should be analyzed.

Ethnobotanical study on medicinal plants used by local Hoklos people on Hainan Island, China.

AIMS OF THE STUDY: The aim of this study is to collect information on the use of medicinal plants by the local Hoklos people on Hainan Island, and compare medicinal traditions in the study area with Li medicines (LM) and traditional Chinese medicines (TCM). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ethnobotanical data were collected by 3 means: semi-structured interviews, personal conversation and guided field trips. There were 27 informants from 9 towns and 14 villages who were visited. Quantitative indices (Informant Consensus Factor - FIC, Use Value - UV, and Fidelity Level - FL) were calculated. RESULTS: In the present study, 264 species from 92 families and 233 genera were recorded, with Compositae (20 species), Leguminosae (19 species), Rubiaceae (12 species) and Gramineae (11 species) as predominate families. Leaves were the most frequently used parts in the preparation of local medicines. The most common preparation method was decoction (452 mentions). The plant with the highest values was Eclipta prostrata (0.46). The 6 plant species with the maximum FL (100%) were Atalantia buxifolia (Poir.) Oliv., Garcinia oblongifolia Champ. ex Benth., Hypericum japonicum Thunb. ex Murray, Imperata cylindrica (L.) Beauv., Microcos paniculata L., and Psidium guajava L. In addition, 120 investigated human ailments were grouped into 10 categories, within which symptoms and signs (184 mentions), diseases of the skin and subcutaneous tissue (139 mentions) and diseases of the digestive system (94 mentions) were the most mentioned in our investigation. The informant consensus about using medicinal plants ranged from 0.27 to 0.48, which showed a high level of agreement among the informants on symptoms and signs (0.48) and certain infectious and parasitic diseases (0.43). In comparison with TCM and LM, the results reflected a closer connection between local medicine and TCM. CONCLUSION: The information reported by Hoklos people is of great value to ethnic medicinal culture. However, this precious medicinal knowledge is at risk of being lost due to rapid degradation of the environment. It is essential that more people engage in in-depth studies on local medicinal plants and relevant organizations address this serious problem before the damage is irreversible.

Intraoperative blood salvage and leukocyte depletion during liver transplantation with bacterial contamination.

BACKGROUND: Bacterial contamination is considered to be a contraindication for intraoperative blood salvage (IBS) during OLT. The aims of this study were to evaluate the efficiency of the autotransfusion device with an additional leukocyte depletion filter (LDF) for eliminating bacterial contaminations, and its clinical outcomes in terms of post-operative infections during OLT. METHODS: Forty-five patients with end-stage liver disease and cirrhotic ascites were enrolled in this study. The blood from the surgical field was collected and processed by an autotransfusion device (Cell Saver 5) and a LDF for bacteriological analysis. Among them, 12 patients with chronic severe hepatitis B received autologous transfusion for analysis of the effect on post-operative infections. RESULTS: Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) (p < 0.05, OR = 20.1) and a long duration of operation (p < 0.01, OR = 8.3) were found to be critical risk factors for contamination. Autotransfusion devices with an additional LDF significantly eliminated bacterial contaminants from shed blood (p < 0.05). About 33% (4/12) of the patients who received autologous transfusion with salvaged and filtered erythrocytes got post-operative bacterial infection. CONCLUSIONS: Autotransfusion devices with an additional LDF could significantly eliminate bacterial contaminants of shed blood during OLT. The new mode of IBS might be a good option in reducing post-operative infections, and deserves a large-scale clinical trial.

Intraoperative blood salvage during liver transplantation in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: efficiency of leukocyte depletion filters in the removal of tumor cells.

BACKGROUND: Intraoperative blood salvage (IBS) reduces homologous transfusion in orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT), but may carry with it the risk of reinfusing tumor cells in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The use of leukocyte depletion filters (LDFs) for the removal of tumor cells is rarely reported in clinical OLT. The aims of this study were to evaluate the frequency of tumor cell contamination in surgical field during OLT for HCC recipients and to investigate the efficiency of additional LDFs for eliminating tumor cells from IBS. METHODS: Thirty-two HCC patients with preoperatively elevated serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) underwent OLT. The blood from the surgical field was collected and processed by an autotransfusion device (Cell Saver 5), followed by 2 consecutive LDF filtrations. The HCC cells in IBS samples and filtered samples were determined using a nested RT-PCR technique to detect the AFP mRNA. RESULTS: The shed blood samples from 20 (62.5%) of the 32 HCC patients were contaminated with HCC cells and 15 of them remained positive after Cell Saver processing. Patients within the Milan or UCSF criteria were less likely to have HCC cell contamination and the contaminated HCC cells were more likely to be removed by the Cell Saver in these patients as compared to other patients (P<0.01). After filtration through an additional LDF, most cases (13/15) became negative except for those with ruptured tumors (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that blood filtration with the LDF can efficiently remove tumor cells and the use of an additional LDF after use of the Cell Saver could markedly reduce the risk of tumor cell reintroduction during the OLT in HCC recipients with nonruptured tumors.