Dryopteris crassirhizoma Nakai.: A review of its botany, traditional use, phytochemistry, pharmacological activity, toxicology and pharmacokinetics.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: The Dryopteris crassirhizoma Nakai., a commonly used herb, is known as "Guan Zhong" in China, "Oshida" in Japan and "Gwanjung" in Korea. It has long been used for parasitic infestation, hemorrhages and epidemic influenza. AIM OF THE REVIEW: The present paper aims to provide an up-to-date review at the advancements of the investigations on the traditional use, phytochemistry, pharmacological activity, toxicology and pharmacokinetics of D. crassirhizoma. Besides, possible trends, therapeutic potentials, and perspectives for future research of this plant are also briefly discussed. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Relevant information on traditional use, phytochemistry, pharmacological activity, toxicology and pharmacokinetics of D. crassirhizoma was collected through published materials and electronic databases, including the Chinese Pharmacopoeia, Flora of China, Web of Science, PubMed, Baidu Scholar, Google Scholar, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure. 109 papers included in the article and we determined that no major information was missing after many checks. All authors participated in the review process for this article and all research paper are from authoritative published materials and electronic databases. RESULTS: 130 chemical components, among which phloroglucinols are the predominant groups, have been isolated and identified from D. crassirhizoma. D. crassirhizoma with its bioactive compounds is possessed of extensive biological activities, including anti-parasite, anti-microbial, anti-viral, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, anti-diabetic, bone protective, immunomodulatory, anti-platelet and anti-hyperuricemia activity. Besides, D. crassirhizoma has special toxicology and pharmacokinetics characterization. CONCLUSIONS: D. crassirhizoma is a traditional Chinese medicine having a long history of application. This review mainly summarized the different chemical components extract from D. crassirhizoma and various reported pharmacological effects. Besides, the toxicology and pharmacokinetics of D. crassirhizoma also be analysed in this review. However, the chemical components of D. crassirhizoma are understudied and require further research to expand its medicinal potential, and it is urgent to design a new extraction scheme, so that the active ingredients can be obtained at a lower cost.

Dichroa febrifuga Lour.: A review of its botany, traditional use, phytochemistry, pharmacological activities, toxicology, and progress in reducing toxicity.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Dichroa febrifuga Lour., a toxic but extensively used traditional Chinese medicine with a remarkable effect, is commonly called "Changshan" in China. It has been used to treat malaria and many other parasitic diseases. AIM OF THE REVIEW: The study aims to provide a current overview of the progress in the research on traditional use, phytochemistry, pharmacological activities, toxicology, and methods of toxicity reduction of D. febrifuga. Additionally, further research directions and development prospects for the plant were put forward. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The article uses "Dichroa febrifuga Lour." "D. febrifuga" as the keyword and all relevant information on D. febrifuga was collected from electronic searches (Elsevier, PubMed, ACS, CNKI, Google Scholar, and Baidu Scholar), doctoral and master's dissertations and classic books about Chinese herbs. RESULTS: 30 chemical compounds, including alkaloids, terpenoids, flavonoids and other kinds, were isolated and identified from D. febrifuga. Modern pharmacological studies have shown that these components have a variety of pharmacological activities, including anti-malarial activities, anti-inflammatory activities, anti-tumor activities, anti-parasitic activities and anti-oomycete activities. Meanwhile, alkaloids, as the material basis of its efficacy, are also the source of its toxicity. It can cause multiple organ damage, including liver, kidney and heart, and cause adverse reactions such as nausea and vomiting, abdominal pain and diarrhea. In the current study, the toxicity can be reduced by modifying the structure of the compound, processing and changing the dosage forms. CONCLUSIONS: There are few studies on the chemical constituents of D. febrifuga, so the components and their structure characterization contained in it can become the focus of future research. In view of the toxicity of D. febrifuga, there are many methods to reduce it, but the safety and rationality of these methods need further study.

Analysis of Differences of Volatile Components in Atractylodis Rhizoma Before and After Processing with Rice-washed Water by HS-GC-MS / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ObjectiveBy comparing the composition and content changes of the volatile components in Atractylodis Rhizoma before and after processing with rice-washed water， the effect of rice-washed water processing on volatile components in Atractylodis Rhizoma was investigated. MethodHeadspace-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry （HS-GC-MS） was used to detect the volatile components in rhizomes of Atractylodes chinensis and A. lancea， and their processed products of rice-washed water. Chromatographic conditions were programmed temperature （starting temperature of 50 ℃ for 2 min， rising to 120 ℃ with the speed of 10 ℃·min-1， then rising to 170 ℃ at 2.5 ℃·min-1， and rising to 240 ℃ at 10 ℃·min-1 for 3 min）， the inlet temperature was 280 ℃， the split ratio was 10∶1， and the solvent delay time was 3 min. The conditions of mass spectrometry were electron bombardment ionization （EI） with ionization temperature at 230 ℃ and detection range of m/z 20-650. Then the relative content of each component was determined by the peak area normalization method. SIMCA 14.1 software was used to perform unsupervised principal component analysis （PCA） and supervised orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis （OPLS-DA） on each sample data， the differential components of Atractylodis Rhizoma and its processed products were screened by the principle of variable importance in the projection （VIP） value>1. ResultA total of 60 components were identified， among which 40 were rhizomes of A. chinensis and 38 were its processed products， 46 were rhizomes of A. lancea and 47 were its processed products. PCA and OPLS-DA showed that the 4 kinds of Atractylodis Rhizoma samples were clustered into one category respectively， indicating that the volatile components of the two kinds of Atractylodis Rhizoma were significantly changed after processing with rice-washed water， and there were also significant differences in the volatile components of rhizomes of A. lancea and A. chinensis. The compound composition of Atractylodis Rhizoma and its processed products was basically the same， but the content of the compounds was significantly different. The differential components were mainly concentrated in monoterpenoids and sesquiterpenoids， and the content of monoterpenoids mostly showed a decreasing trend. ConclusionAfter processing with rice-washed water， the contents of volatile components in rhizomes of A. lancea and A. chinensis are significantly changed， and pinene， 3-carene， p-cymene， ocimene， terpinolene， atractylon， acetic acid and furfural can be used as difference markers before and after processing.

Analysis of Terpenoids in Alismatis Rhizoma Before and After Processing with Salt-water Based on UPLC-Q-TOF-MS / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ObjectiveTo identify the chemical constituents of Alismatis Rhizoma before and after processing with salt-water by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry （UPLC-Q-TOF-MS）， and to investigate the changes of terpenoids in Alismatis Rhizoma before and after processing with salt-water. MethodUPLC-Q-TOF-MS was used to detect with 0.1% formic acid aqueous solution （A）-acetonitrile （B）as mobile phase for gradient elution （0-0.01 min， 20%B； 0.01-5 min， 20%-40%B； 5-40 min， 40%-95%B； 40-42 min， 95%B； 42-42.1 min， 95%-20%B； 42.1-45 min， 20%B）， electrospray ionization （ESI） was selected for collection and detection in positive ion mode with the scanning range of m/z 100-1 250 and ion source temperature at 500 ℃. The data were analyzed by PeakView 1.2.0.3， the components were identified according to the primary and secondary MS data， and combined with the reference substance and literature. After normalized treatment by MarkerView 1.2.1， the MS data were analyzed by principal component analysis （PCA） and orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis （OPLS-DA）， and then the differential components before and after processing were screened. The content changes of differential components were analyzed according to the relative peak area. ResultA total of 30 components were identified under positive ion mode， including 28 prototerpene triterpenes and 2 sesquiterpenes. The results of PCA and OPLS-DA showed that there were significant differences in components from Alismatis Rhizoma before and after processing with salt-water， and 10 differential components （alisol B 23-acetate， alisol I， alismol， 11-deoxy-alisol B 23-acetate， alisol B， alisol C， 11-deoxy-alisol B， alisol G， 11-deoxy-alisol C and alisol A） were screened， and the contents of alisol G and alisol A decreased significantly after processing. ConclusionUPLC-Q-TOF-MS can comprehensively and accurately identify the chemical constituents in raw and salt-processed products of Alismatis Rhizoma. It takes a great difference in the contents of chemical constituents before and after processing， and the difference of substituents is the main reason for this differences， which can provide reference for determining the material basis of efficacy changes of Alismatis Rhizoma before and after processing with salt-water.

Analysis of Terpenoids in Alismatis Rhizoma Before and After Processing with Salt-water Based on UPLC-Q-TOF-MS / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ObjectiveTo identify the chemical constituents of Alismatis Rhizoma before and after processing with salt-water by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry （UPLC-Q-TOF-MS）， and to investigate the changes of terpenoids in Alismatis Rhizoma before and after processing with salt-water. MethodUPLC-Q-TOF-MS was used to detect with 0.1% formic acid aqueous solution （A）-acetonitrile （B）as mobile phase for gradient elution （0-0.01 min， 20%B； 0.01-5 min， 20%-40%B； 5-40 min， 40%-95%B； 40-42 min， 95%B； 42-42.1 min， 95%-20%B； 42.1-45 min， 20%B）， electrospray ionization （ESI） was selected for collection and detection in positive ion mode with the scanning range of m/z 100-1 250 and ion source temperature at 500 ℃. The data were analyzed by PeakView 1.2.0.3， the components were identified according to the primary and secondary MS data， and combined with the reference substance and literature. After normalized treatment by MarkerView 1.2.1， the MS data were analyzed by principal component analysis （PCA） and orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis （OPLS-DA）， and then the differential components before and after processing were screened. The content changes of differential components were analyzed according to the relative peak area. ResultA total of 30 components were identified under positive ion mode， including 28 prototerpene triterpenes and 2 sesquiterpenes. The results of PCA and OPLS-DA showed that there were significant differences in components from Alismatis Rhizoma before and after processing with salt-water， and 10 differential components （alisol B 23-acetate， alisol I， alismol， 11-deoxy-alisol B 23-acetate， alisol B， alisol C， 11-deoxy-alisol B， alisol G， 11-deoxy-alisol C and alisol A） were screened， and the contents of alisol G and alisol A decreased significantly after processing. ConclusionUPLC-Q-TOF-MS can comprehensively and accurately identify the chemical constituents in raw and salt-processed products of Alismatis Rhizoma. It takes a great difference in the contents of chemical constituents before and after processing， and the difference of substituents is the main reason for this differences， which can provide reference for determining the material basis of efficacy changes of Alismatis Rhizoma before and after processing with salt-water.

Analysis of Differences of Volatile Components in Atractylodis Rhizoma Before and After Processing with Rice-washed Water by HS-GC-MS / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ObjectiveBy comparing the composition and content changes of the volatile components in Atractylodis Rhizoma before and after processing with rice-washed water， the effect of rice-washed water processing on volatile components in Atractylodis Rhizoma was investigated. MethodHeadspace-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry （HS-GC-MS） was used to detect the volatile components in rhizomes of Atractylodes chinensis and A. lancea， and their processed products of rice-washed water. Chromatographic conditions were programmed temperature （starting temperature of 50 ℃ for 2 min， rising to 120 ℃ with the speed of 10 ℃·min-1， then rising to 170 ℃ at 2.5 ℃·min-1， and rising to 240 ℃ at 10 ℃·min-1 for 3 min）， the inlet temperature was 280 ℃， the split ratio was 10∶1， and the solvent delay time was 3 min. The conditions of mass spectrometry were electron bombardment ionization （EI） with ionization temperature at 230 ℃ and detection range of m/z 20-650. Then the relative content of each component was determined by the peak area normalization method. SIMCA 14.1 software was used to perform unsupervised principal component analysis （PCA） and supervised orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis （OPLS-DA） on each sample data， the differential components of Atractylodis Rhizoma and its processed products were screened by the principle of variable importance in the projection （VIP） value>1. ResultA total of 60 components were identified， among which 40 were rhizomes of A. chinensis and 38 were its processed products， 46 were rhizomes of A. lancea and 47 were its processed products. PCA and OPLS-DA showed that the 4 kinds of Atractylodis Rhizoma samples were clustered into one category respectively， indicating that the volatile components of the two kinds of Atractylodis Rhizoma were significantly changed after processing with rice-washed water， and there were also significant differences in the volatile components of rhizomes of A. lancea and A. chinensis. The compound composition of Atractylodis Rhizoma and its processed products was basically the same， but the content of the compounds was significantly different. The differential components were mainly concentrated in monoterpenoids and sesquiterpenoids， and the content of monoterpenoids mostly showed a decreasing trend. ConclusionAfter processing with rice-washed water， the contents of volatile components in rhizomes of A. lancea and A. chinensis are significantly changed， and pinene， 3-carene， p-cymene， ocimene， terpinolene， atractylon， acetic acid and furfural can be used as difference markers before and after processing.

Explanation of Scientific Connotation of Euodiae Fructus Stir-fried with Coptidis Rhizoma Based on UPLC-Q-TOF/MS and Pattern Recognition Technology / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ObjectiveTo analyze changes of the chemical composition in Euodiae Fructus before and after processing with Coptidis Rhizoma decoction， so as to provide scientific basis for elucidating the processing mechanism of this decoction pieces. MethodUltra-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry （UPLC-Q-TOF/MS） was performed on a Titank C18 column （2.1 mm×100 mm， 1.8 μm）， the mobile phase was 0.1% formic acid aqueous solution-acetonitrile for gradient elution， the column temperature was set at 40 ℃， the flow rate was 0.25 mL·min-1. Electrospray ionization （ESI） was used to scan in positive and negative ion modes， and the scanning range was m/z 50-1 250. The chemical constituents in Euodiae Fructus were identified before and after processing by reference substance comparison， database matching and literature reference， and MarkerView™ 1.2.1 software was used to normalize the obtained data， SIMCA-P 14.1 software was employed to perform principal component analysis （PCA） and orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis （OPLS-DA） on MS data of raw and processed products to screen the differential components before and after processing. ResultA total of 50 compounds were identified， including 48 kinds of stir-fried products with Coptidis Rhizoma decoction and 44 kinds of raw products. After processing， six compounds were added， including danshensu， noroxyhydrastinine， oxyberberine， 13-methylberberrubine， protopine and canadine. However， two kinds of compounds， including （S）-7-hydroxysecorutaecarpine and wuchuyuamide Ⅱ， were not detected after processing. In general， after processing， the overall contents of phenolic acids and flavonoids decreased significantly， the overall content of limonoids increased， and the overall content of alkaloids did not decrease insignificantly. The results of PCA and OPLS-DA showed that there were significant differences in the composition and content of the chemical components of Euodiae Fructus before and after processing， and a total of 12 variables such as quercetin， dihydrorutaecarpine and dehydroevodiamine were obtained by screening. ConclusionEuodiae Fructus stir-fried with Coptidis Rhizoma decoction mainly contains phenolic acids， flavonoids， limonoids and alkaloids. The composition and content of the chemical components have some changes before and after processing. The addition of processing excipients and hot water immersion are the main reasons for the difference， which can provide experimental basis for interpretation of the processing mechanism of this characteristic processed products of Euodiae Fructus.

Subchronic Oral Toxicity of Silica Nanoparticles and Silica Microparticles in Rats / 生物医学与环境科学（英文）

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the subchronic oral toxicity of silica nanoparticles (NPs) and silica microparticles (MPs) in rats and to compare the difference in toxicity between two particle sizes.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into seven groups: the control group; the silica NPs low-, middle-, and high-dose groups; and the silica MPs low-, middle-, and high-dose groups [166.7, 500, and 1,500 mg/(kg•bw•day)]. All rats were gavaged daily for 90 days, and deionized water was administered to the control group. Clinical observations were made daily, and body weights and food consumption were determined weekly. Blood samples were collected on day 91 for measurement of hematology and clinical biochemistry. Animals were euthanized for necropsy, and selected organs were weighed and fixed for histological examination. The tissue distribution of silicon in the blood, liver, kidneys, and testis were determined.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>There were no toxicologically significant changes in mortality, clinical signs, body weight, food consumption, necropsy findings, and organ weights. Differences between the silica groups and the control group in some hematological and clinical biochemical values and histopathological findings were not considered treatment related. The tissue distribution of silicon was comparable across all groups.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Our study demonstrated that neither silica NPs nor silica MPs induced toxicological effects after subchronic oral exposure in rats.</p>

Evaluation of the in vitro and in vivo genotoxicity of almond skins / 生物医学与环境科学（英文）

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>It aims to study potential genotoxicity of almond skins.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A bacterial reverse mutation assay was performed on S. typhimurium strains TA97, TA98, TA100, TA102, and TA1535 in the absence or presence of S-9 mixture at a dose range of 312.5 to 5 000 μg/plate. A micronucleus test and a mammalian bone marrow chromosome aberration tests were performed in Swiss Albino (CD-1) mice at doses of 625, 1 250, and 2 500 mg/kg bw used.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Almond skins exerted no mutagenic activity in various bacterial strains of Salmonella typhimurium in either the absence or the presence of metabolic activation at all doses tested. Various doses of almond skins did not affect the proportions of immature to total erythrocytes, the number of micronuclei in the immature erythrocytes, or the number of structural and numerical chromosomal aberrations of Swiss albino mice.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Almond skins are not genotoxic under the conditions of the in vitro bacterial reverse mutation assay and two in vivo tests - micronucleus test and mammalian bone marrow chromosome aberration test, which supports the safety of almond skins for dietary consumption.</p>