[Discussion on traditional Chinese medicine properties of Myrtus communis leaves based on literature analysis and Chinese medicine theory].

Myrtus communis is a traditional medicinal aromatic plant in the Mediterranean. At present, the plant has been introduced and cultivated in the southern part of China, and it is mostly used for ornamental or cosmetic purposes. Based on literature analysis and the theory of Chinese medicine, we discussed the medicinal parts and properties of M. communis in this paper to provide a theoretical basis for exploring the medicinal value of M. communis and its compatibility with traditional Chinese medicines. Literatures were searched from Web of Science(core collection), PubMed, CNKI, VIP and Wanfang by using the set conditions as key words. Then the obtained literatures were screened and classified. Finally, a total of 376 articles were included, consisting of 44 reviews, 54 germplasm resources, 78 chemical researches, 48 studies on application, extraction, or quality, 18 human trials, 132 pharmacological studies, and 2 safety studies. Based on literature analysis and theories of Chinese medicine, the leaves of M. communis were finally selected as the medicinal part of Chinese medicine, and the traditional Chinese medicine properties of M. communis leaves were deduced as pungent, bitter, and cool. The channel tropisms of M. communis leaves included lung, liver, and large intestine, with functions of detoxifying, resolving a mass, and insecticide. It was used for mouth sores, vaginal itching, hemorrhoids and warts, etc.; appropriate amount shall be applied for external use, and the decoction form shall be used for washing the affected parts; 3-12 g equivalent product shall be used in decoction, and this herb shall be put into the decoction in a later stage. The clarification of the medicinal parts of M. communis, and the determination of the Chinese medicine properties of M. communis leaves would lay a theoretical foundation for its compatibility and application with Chinese medicines, and can do more contribution to the medical and healthcare industry in our country.

[Research progress and discussion on traditional Chinese medicine properties of Kaempferia parviflora].

Kaempferiae Parviflorae Rhizoma is the dried rhizome of Kaempferia parviflora in Zingiberaceae. It is originated and widely distributed in Thailand and other tropical and subtropical regions, where it has been used as food and medicine for thousands of years. K. parviflora is also planted in Yunnan and other places of China, but its traditional Chinese medicine properties are not clear, which greatly limits its compatibility with traditional Chinese medicines. In this article, the English and Chinese literatures of K. parviflora were searched from Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, CNKI, Wanfang, and VIP databases for research and analysis. The medicinal properties of K. parviflora were preliminarily discussed based on the theory of traditional Chinese medicine under the guidance of clinical application and research literatures. The traditional Chinese medicine properties of K. parviflora were inferred as follows: flat, acrid, sweet. The channel tropisms of K. parviflora included kidney, spleen, stomach, and liver. The function of K. parviflora included tonifying kidney to strengthen essence, tonifying Qi and invigorating spleen, soothing liver and relieving depression. K. parviflora was clinically applied for the diseases such as syndrome of kidney essence deficiency, sex apathy, deficiency of spleen Qi, lassitude and asthenia, a weary spirit, obesity, diabetes, liver Qi stagnation, depression, and restless. The equivalent of dry power is 1.5 g·d~(-1) and the equivalent of decoction is 1.5-6 g·d~(-1). The determination of traditional Chinese medicine properties of K. parviflora has indeed laid a theoretical foundation for its application in the field of traditional Chinese medicine and enriched traditional Chinese medicine resources.

Antioxidant Activity and Hepatoprotective Potential of Quercetin 7-Rhamnoside In Vitro and In Vivo.

Hypericum japonicum is traditionally used as a folk medicine to treat cholestasis and hepatitis. Quercetin 7-rhamnoside (Q7R) is one of the main flavonoid components of Hypericum japonicum and has been rarely studied. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the antioxidant activity and hepatoprotective potential of Q7R. In the in vitro experiments, DPPH, ABTS and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays were first performed to assess the antioxidant properties of Q7R, and then a H2O2-induced oxidative damage cellular model was used to determine the cytoprotective and antioxidant properties of Q7R in human liver L-02 cells. In the in vivo experiment, the hepatoprotective activity of Q7R was evaluated by carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)-induced liver damage model in mice. The results of the three in vitro assays (DPPH, ABTS and FRAP) demonstrated that Q7R significantly exhibited antioxidant activity. The cell experiment results showed that Q7R possessed cytoprotective and antioxidant effects on H2O2-treated L-02 cells. In the in vivo experiments, Q7R suppressed the up-regulation of serum activities of ALT, AST, LDH and triglyceride (TG) levels with dose-dependency. Q7R down-regulated the production of MDA and increased the hepatic GSH content and antioxidant enzymes CAT activities. Hepatic morphological analysis was also performed to confirm the biochemical changes. In summary, these results suggested that Q7R could be considered as a potential source of natural antioxidants, and may become a promising candidate for the treatment of liver injury in the future.

A new method to evaluate the dose-effect relationship of a TCM formula Gegen Qinlian Decoction: "Focus" mode of integrated biomarkers.

It is difficult to accurately evaluate the efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), which leads to the uncertainty and complexity of dose-effect analysis. In this study we established the "Focus" mode of biomarkers to characterize the dose-effect relationship of Gegen Qinlian Decoction (GQD), a TCM formula for treating type 2 diabetes mellitus (2-DM). A rat model of 2-DM was established through high fat diet feeding combined with low-dose STZ injection. Rats with 2-DM were administered high, middle or low doses (6.785, 4.071, 1.357 mg·kg-1·d-1, respectively) of GQD extract for 60 d. Metformin (300 mg·kg-1·d-1) was taken as the positive control. Blood samples were collected to assess serum biochemical indexes and metabolic profiling. After "Focus" analysis, the biochemical index triglycerides (TG) and insulin sensitivity (ISI) were identified as focused integrated biomarkers (FIBs), while arachidonic acid and docosatetraenoic acid were the metabolic FIBs. Dose-effect relationship curves of GQD were built based on these types of FIBs. Furthermore, the two dose-effect relationship curves showed similar trends with the middle dosage displaying the greatest efficacy, suggesting that insulin function and arachidonic acid metabolism played important roles in 2-DM and the responses to GQD. The metabolic FIB docosatetraenoic should be further explored for understanding its involvement in the process of 2-DM occurrence and the treatment. This "Focus" mode provides a novel strategy to evaluate the dose-effect relationship of a TCM. The system and concepts established here may also be applicable for assessing the dose-effect relationships of Western medicines.

Determination of gardenia yellow colorants in soft drink, pastry, instant noodles with ultrasound-assisted extraction by high performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrum.

A novel, rapid and simple analytical method was developed for the quantitative determination of crocin, crocetin and geniposide in soft drink, pastry and instant noodles. The solid samples were relatively homogenized into powders and fragments. The gardenia yellow colorants were successively extracted with methanol using ultrasound-assisted extraction. The analytes were quantitatively measured in the extracts by liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry. High correlation coefficients (r(2)>0.995) of crocin, crocetin and geniposide were obtained within their linear ranges respectively (50-1000ng/mL, 50-1000ng/mL, 15-240ng/mL) by external standard method. The limits of detection (LODs) were 0.02µg/g for crocin, 0.01µg/g for crocetin and 0.002µg/g for geniposide. And the limits of quantitation (LOQs) were in the ranges of 0.05-0.45µg/g for crocin, and in the ranges of 0.042-0.32µg/g for crocetin, and in the ranges of 0.02-0.15µg/g for geniposide in soft drink, pastry and instant noodles samples. The average recoveries of crocin, crocetin and geniposide ranged from 81.3% to 117.6% in soft drink, pastry and instant noodles. The intra- and inter-day precisions were respectively in the range of 1.3-4.8% and 1.7-11.8% in soft drink, pastry and instant noodle. The developed methods were successfully validated and applied to the soft drink, pastry, and instant noodles collected from the located market in Beijing from China. Crocin, crocetin and geniposide were detected in the collected samples. The average concentrations ranged from 0.84 to 4.20mg/g for crocin, and from 0.62 to 3.11mg/g for crocetin, and from 0.18 to 0.79mg/g for gardenia in various food samples. The method can provide evidences for government to determine gardenia yellow pigments and geniposide in food.

[A study of recompression treatment schedule for treating type I decompression illness with medical hyperbaric chamber pressurized].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the therapic effects of the recompression treatment schedule D2 (breathing 100% oxygen at 0.12 MPa gauge pressure) on the type I decompression illness (DCI) by hyperbaric chamber pressurized with air. METHODS: The recompression treatment schedule D2 was from the decompression treatment tables of in Germany BGI690. Seven cases on work site group (work site group) and five cases in hospital (hospital group) were treated using recompression treatment. All cases suffered from type I DCI after normal decompression procedures from working in compressed air in tunnel construction. These patients were treated with basic schedule D2 or extended schedule D2 according to the symptoms of the cases responded to recompression therapy. RESULTS: In the work site group, the pains of joints, arms and legs were released quickly, the therapic effects appeared at (8.1 +/- 8.1) min, the cases were cured with a recompression therapy of basic schedule D2, the total mean time of treatment was (150 +/- 0.0) min. In the hospital group, the pains of joints, arms and legs disappeared slowly, the therapic effects appeared at (115.0 +/- 60.0) min, the cases were cured with a recompression therapy of extended schedule D2, the total mean time of treatment was (270.0 +/- 0.0) min, which was significantly longer than that in the work site group (P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: The treatment pressure is 0.12 MPa(gauge pressure) in schedule D2 with medical hyperbaric chamber pressurized with air,which can be used for treatment of type I DCI, the curative effects in the work site group are better than those in the hospital group.