Chemical-activity-based quality marker screening strategy for Viscum articulatum.

Viscum articulatum Burm. f. is a parasitic plant rich in flavonoids, triterpenoids, and catechins and has a high nutritional value. It has been reported that consuming V. articulatum can prevent cardiac diseases. In this study, six bioactive compounds, including catechins, triterpenoids, and phenylpropanoid glycosides, were determined in alcohol extracts of the plant using HPLC. The anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities of three catechins, two triterpenoids, and three combination drugs were measured in cardiomyocytes, and the results showed that the anti-inflammatory activity was significantly enhanced while retaining strong antioxidant activity when epicatechin and ursolic acid were used in combination. The main quality markers epicatechin and ursolic acid were screened based on the specificity of the genuine herb and a potent synergistic effect, and the lowest limitation contents of V. articulatum which could discriminate it from some other taxonomically similar materials were accordingly determined. This self-built lowest limitation content of the two screened quality markers could quickly and accurately reflect the efficacy in terms of chemical composition and reverse the disorderly market use of nongenuine herbs or confusing species for adulteration. This study is of some significance for market regulation, drug development, and clinical medication.

Quality Assessment and Antioxidant Activities of the Blossoms of Inula Nervosa Wall.

BACKGROUND: Currently, although Inula nervosa Wall is substantially investigated, little is understood about blossoms of Inula nervosa Wall (BINW). OBJECTIVE: In this work, we systematically investigated the antioxidant activity of the extract from BINW by various standard assays including 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical ability, 2,2'-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) di-ammonium salt radical cation (ABTS), and ferric reducing antioxidant potential (FRAP). METHODS: Chemical compounds were tentatively identified through an UHPLC-QTOF-MS system. Furthermore, the contents of nine compounds were detected with UHPLC method coupled with photodiode array (PDA) detector. By carefully analyzing the quantitative data via clusters analysis and principal component analysis (PCA). RESULTS: Forty-six compounds were tentatively identified, and our results showed that nine compound samples in 21 batches of BINW collected from different areas could be differentiated and analyzed by a heatmap visualization. In addition, the contents of nine compounds (flavonoids, phenolic acids) exhibited a total of higher amounts and better antioxidant activities from Yunnan than those from the other three origins. CONCLUSIONS: Our study not only developed a powerful platform to explain the difference between traditional Chinese medicines species that are closely related through the chemometric and chemical profiling, but also presented a useful method to establish quality criteria of BINW with multiple origins. HIGHLIGHTS: To characterize the BINW in detail, we not only performed DPPH, FRAP, and ABTS assays to investigate its antioxidant activity, but also established UHPLC-QTOF-MS/MS- and UHPLC-PDA-based methods to comprehensively identify and qualitatively analyze its components.

[Study on names of Wenyujin Rhizoma Curcumae and Rhizoma Curcumae Longae Concisa and their origins].

To study the name of Wenyujin Rhizoma Concisum and Film Turmeric by literature research methods provide the basis for correct application of Cuba in modern clinical application. Wenyujin Rhizoma Concisum and Film Turmeric often called each other mutual generation and used as the same kind of medicine in the ancient prescriptions books. They were often recorded and stated as the same species of Curcumae Longae Rhizoma. Wenyujin Rhizoma Concisum and Curcumae Longae Rhizoma also often called each other mutual generation in the ancient prescriptions books and used as the same kind of medicine. Wenyujin Rhizoma Concisum was often recorded and stated under the Curcumae Longae Rhizoma articles in the ancient materia medica literatures. Ancient literatures on Wenyujin Rhizoma Concisum records were almost the same, the modern literatures on the records of the sources of Wenyujin Rhizoma Concisum were inconsistency. Inconsistency of Wenyujin Rhizoma Concisum source records in modern literatures was related to the changes of the modern records on source records about Curcumae Longae Rhizoma, Root-tuber of Aromatic Curcumae Longae Rhizoma and Zedoray. The author thinks that Wenyujin Rhizoma Concisum is the ancient Film Turmeric which referes to the same medicine as Curcumae Longae Rhizoma. The source of it just as the Curcumae Longae Rhizoma is not only one kind. Wenyujin Rhizoma Concisum and Curcumae Longae Rhizoma have been recorded as two medicines at the present, and the source of them simply referes to the original plant Curcuma wenyujin. When using ancient prescriptions, we need to understand the changes that Curcumae Longae Rhizoma and Wenyujin Rhizoma Concisum are the same in ancient but different today in order to choose medicine correctly in the clinical.

Effects of simvastain combined with omega-3 fatty acids on high sensitive C-reactive protein, lipidemia, and fibrinolysis in patients with mixed dyslipidemia.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effects of simvastatin combined with omega-3 fatty acids on high sensitive C-reactive protein (HsCRP), lipidemia, and fibrinolysis in coronary heart disease (CHD) and CHD risk equivalent patients with mixed dyslipidemia. METHODS: A randomized, double-blind placebo controlled and parallel group trial was conducted. Patients with CHD and CHD risk equivalents with mixed dyslipidemia were treated with 10 or 20 mg simvastatin for 6-12 weeks. Following with the treatment of patients whose low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-ch) reaching goal level (< 100 mg/dL) or close to the goal (< 130 mg/dL), while triglyceride (TG) > or = 200 mg/dL and < 500 mg/dL, was combined with omega-3 fatty acids (3 g/d) or a placebo for 2 months. The effects of the treatment on HsCRP, total cholesterol (TC), LDL-ch, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-ch), TG, lipoprotein (a) [LP (a)], apolipoprotein A1 (apoA1), apolipoprotein B (apoB), plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), and tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) were investigated. Forty patients finished the study with each group consisting of twenty patients. RESULTS: (1) There were significant reductions of HsCRP, TG, TC, and TC/HDL-ch, which decreased by 2.16 +/- 2.77 mg/L (38.5%), 94.0 +/- 65.4 mg/dL (31.1%), 13.3 +/- 22.3 mg/dL (6.3%), 0.78 +/- 1.60 respectively in the omega-3 fatty acids group (P < 0.01, < 0.001, < 0.05, < 0.05) compared to the baseline. HsCRP and triglyceride reduction were more significant in omega-3 fatty acids group compared to the placebo group (P = 0.021 and 0.011 respectively). (2) In the omega-3 fatty acids group, the values and percentage of TG reduction had a significantly positive relation with HsCRP reduction (r = 0.51 and 0.45, P = 0.021 and 0.047 respectively). CONCLUSION: In CHD and CHD risk equivalent patients with mixed dyslipidemia, dyslipidemia's therapeutic effect using simvastatin and omega-3 fatty acids may result from not only the combination of lipid adjustment, but also enhancement of their own nonlipid influences.