Study on quality analysis of different species of Coptidis rhizome based on fingerprint-effect relationship.

INTRODUCTION: The quality evaluation of Coptidis rhizome (CR) is attributed to the origin and processing method, and this strategy of ignoring the bioactive components usually leads to biased quality analysis, which is difficult to indicate the clinical efficacy. OBJECTIVES: In order to evaluate the quality level of different species of CR, we collected 20 batches of CR and investigated the fingerprint-effect relationship. METHODS: High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) fingerprints of CR were established, and the fingerprint-effect relationship was explored using cluster analysis, principal component analysis, Pearson correlation analysis, grey relation analysis, and partial least squares regression. RESULTS: We have identified a total of 10 common peaks (1-10) with similarity scores above 0.96. The study on the relationship between spectra and potency further showed that the contents of peaks 8, 9, and 10 are potential key components. And based on a previous study, a method of one measurement and multiple evaluations of CR was established to achieve the goal of simplifying the analytical process and reducing costs. CONCLUSION: Through a combination of fingerprint analysis, antioxidant activity evaluation, fingerprint-efficacy relationship analysis, and simultaneous quantification of multiple components, a CR quality control index and method have been selected and established, which can also provide a more comprehensive quality evaluation for traditional Chinese medicine.

Global metabolic profile and multiple phytometabolites in the different varieties of Gastrodia elata Blume.

Gastrodia elata Blume (Tianma in Chinese), a myco-heterotrophic orchid, is widely distributed in China. Tubers derived from this orchid are traditionally used as both medicinal and edible materials. At present, five primary varieties of G. elata are recorded in the "Flora of China." Among them, the three main varieties currently in artificial cultivation are G. elata f. elata (GR, red stem), G. elata f. glauca (GB, black stem), and G. elata f. viridis (GG, green stem). In our study, the metabolic profiles and chemical composition of these three varieties were determined via UPLC-MS/MS and HPLC-UV. In total, 11,132 metabolites were detected, from which multiple phytometabolites were identified as aromatic compounds, heteroatomic compounds, furans, carbohydrates, organic acids, and their derivatives. A number of differentially expressed metabolites (DEMs) were annotated as bioactive ingredients. Overall, parishins, vanilloloside, and gastrodin A/B in the GB group were markedly higher, whereas gastrodin, gastrol, and syringic acid were more enriched in the GG or GR groups. Moreover, HPLC fingerprint analysis also found six metabolites used as markers for the identification of Gastrodiae Rhizoma in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia, which were also typical DEMs in metabolomics. Of these, gastrodin, 4-hydroxybenzyl alcohol, citric acid, and adenosine were quantitatively detected, showing a similar result with the metabolomic data. In summary, our findings provide novel insights into the phytochemical ingredients of different G. elata varieties, highlighting diverse biological activities and healthcare value.

Characteristic Components and Authenticity Evaluation of Chinese Honeys from Three Different Botanical Sources.

We aimed to identify the characteristic phytochemicals of safflower, Chinese sumac, and bauhinia honeys to assess their authenticity. We discovered syringaldehyde, riboflavin, lumiflavin, lumichrome, rhusin [(1E,4E)-1,5-diphenylpenta-1,4-dien-3-one-O-cinnamoyl oxime], bitterin {4-hydroxy-4-[3-(1-hydroxyethyl) oxiran-2-yl]-3,5,5-trimethylcyclohex-2-en-1-one}, and unedone as characteristic phytochemicals of these three types of honeys. The average contents of syringaldehyde, riboflavin, lumiflavin, or lumichrome in safflower honey were 41.20, 5.24, 24.72, and 36.72 mg/kg; lumiflavin, lumichrome, and rhusin in Chinese sumac honey were 39.66, 40.55, and 2.65 mg/kg; bitterin, unedone, and lumichrome in bauhinia honey were 8.42, 26.33, and 8.68 mg/kg, respectively. To our knowledge, the simultaneous presence of riboflavin, lumichrome, and lumiflavin in honey is a novel finding responsible for the bright-yellow color of honey. Also, it is the first time that lumiflavin, rhusin, and bitterin have been reported in honey. We effectively distinguish pure honeys from adulterations, based on characteristic components and high-performance liquid chromatography fingerprints; thus, we seem to provide intrinsic markers and reliable assessment criteria to assess honey authenticity.

Assessing the quality consistency of red yeast medicinal material by five-wavelength fusion fingerprint and ultraviolet quantum fingerprint corresponding with antioxidant activity analysis.

In this study, a five-wavelength fusion fingerprint (FWFFT) combined with all-ultraviolet(UV) and antioxidant methods was used to explore the quality consistency of red yeast (RYT) samples. 1,1-Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl Free Radical (DPPH) was used for antioxidant experiments, combined with high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and grey correlation analysis (GCA) was performed with chromatographic peak area. The results showed that multi-wavelength fusion technology compensates for the shortcomings of single-wavelength technology, and the combination with UV avoids of the one-sidedness of single technology. Simultaneously, the fingerprint peak of the sample and the antioxidant activity had a high correlation, and the antioxidant activity had a corresponding relationship with the content of the two controls. This study provides a comprehensive and reliable method for the quality consistency evaluation of traditional Chinese medicines (TCM).

Study of Active Phytochemicals and Mechanisms of Cnidii Fructus in Treating Osteoporosis Based on HPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS and Network Pharmacology.

INTRODUCTION: This study aimed to clarify the anti-osteoporosis mechanism of Cnidii Fructus (CF) via network pharmacology and experimental verification.\ Methods: HPLC fingerprints combined with HPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS analysis confirmed common components (CCS) of CF. Then, network pharmacology was used to investigate the anti-OP mechanism of CF, including potential anti-OP phytochemicals, potential targets, and related signalling pathway. Molecular docking analysis was carried on investigating the protein-ligand interactions. Finally, in vitro experiments were performed to verify anti-OP mechanism of CF. RESULTS: In this study, 17 compounds from CF were identified by HPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS and HPLC fingerprints and then were further screened key compounds and potential targets by PPI analysis, ingredient-target network and hub network. The key compounds were SCZ10 (Diosmin), SCZ16 (Pabulenol), SCZ6 (Osthenol), SCZ8 (Bergaptol) and SCZ4 (Xanthotoxol). The potential targets were SRC, MAPK1, PIK3CA, AKT1 and HSP90AA1. Molecular docking further analysis indicated that the five key compounds have a good binding affinity with related proteins. CCK8 assays, TRAP staining experiments, and ALP activity assays concluded that osthenol and bergaptol inhibited osteoclast formation and promoted osteoblast bone formation to improve osteoporosis. CONCLUSION: Based on network pharmacology and in vitro experiments analysis, this study revealed that CF possessed an anti-OP effect, and its potential therapeutic effect may be involved with osthenol and bergaptol from CF.

[Quality evaluation of Galli Gigerii Endothelium Corneum based on HPLC fingerprints and content determination of nucleosides].

Galli Gigerii Endothelium Corneum(GGEC), the dried gizzard membrane of Gallus gallus domesticus is a Chinese medicinal material commonly used for digestion. However, due to the particularity of texture and composition, its active ingre-dients have not been clarified so far, and there is also a lack of quality evaluation indicators. In this study, UPLC-Q-TOF-MS was used to analyze the chemical components from the water extract of GGEC, and ten nucleosides were identified for the first time. HPLC fingerprints of the water extracts of GGEC were established and the content of seven nucleosides was determined. The fingerprint similarities of 40 batches of GGEC samples ranged from 0.765 to 0.959, indicating that there were great differences among the GGEC products processed with different methods. In addition, SPSS 22.0 and SIMCA 14.1 were used for hierarchical cluster analysis(HCA) and principal component analysis(PCA) on the 19 common peaks of the HPLC fingerprints of GGEC, and the 40 batches of samples were divided into three categories: raw GGEC, fried GGEC and vinegar-processed GGEC. Eight differential components in GGEC were marked by orthogonal partial least squares discrimination analysis(OPLS-DA), two of which were adenine and thymine. The results of content determination showed that the total content of the seven nucleosides in raw GGEC, fried GGEC and vinegar-processed GGEC were 182.5-416.8, 205.3-368.7, and 194.2-283.0 µg·g~(-1), respectively. There were significant differences in the content of hypoxanthine, thymine and thymidine among the GGEC products processed with different methods(P<0.05), which were graded in the order of fried GGEC>vinegar-processed GGEC>raw GGEC. This suggested that the content of hypoxanthine, thymine and thymidine tended to increase during the frying process, and the variation range might be related to the degree of heat exposure. The established methods in this study were simple and reproducible, and could be used for qualitative and quantitative analysis of GGEC and its processed pro-ducts. This study also provided reference for the establishment of quality standards of GGEC with chemical components as control index.

Quality evaluation of Galli Gigerii Endothelium Corneum based on HPLC fingerprints and content determination of nucleosides / 中国中药杂志

Galli Gigerii Endothelium Corneum(GGEC), the dried gizzard membrane of Gallus gallus domesticus is a Chinese medicinal material commonly used for digestion. However, due to the particularity of texture and composition, its active ingre-dients have not been clarified so far, and there is also a lack of quality evaluation indicators. In this study, UPLC-Q-TOF-MS was used to analyze the chemical components from the water extract of GGEC, and ten nucleosides were identified for the first time. HPLC fingerprints of the water extracts of GGEC were established and the content of seven nucleosides was determined. The fingerprint similarities of 40 batches of GGEC samples ranged from 0.765 to 0.959, indicating that there were great differences among the GGEC products processed with different methods. In addition, SPSS 22.0 and SIMCA 14.1 were used for hierarchical cluster analysis(HCA) and principal component analysis(PCA) on the 19 common peaks of the HPLC fingerprints of GGEC, and the 40 batches of samples were divided into three categories: raw GGEC, fried GGEC and vinegar-processed GGEC. Eight differential components in GGEC were marked by orthogonal partial least squares discrimination analysis(OPLS-DA), two of which were adenine and thymine. The results of content determination showed that the total content of the seven nucleosides in raw GGEC, fried GGEC and vinegar-processed GGEC were 182.5-416.8, 205.3-368.7, and 194.2-283.0 μg·g~(-1), respectively. There were significant differences in the content of hypoxanthine, thymine and thymidine among the GGEC products processed with different methods(P<0.05), which were graded in the order of fried GGEC>vinegar-processed GGEC>raw GGEC. This suggested that the content of hypoxanthine, thymine and thymidine tended to increase during the frying process, and the variation range might be related to the degree of heat exposure. The established methods in this study were simple and reproducible, and could be used for qualitative and quantitative analysis of GGEC and its processed pro-ducts. This study also provided reference for the establishment of quality standards of GGEC with chemical components as control index.

Spectrum-effect relationship study between HPLC fingerprints and antioxidant activity of Sabia parviflora.

Nowadays, the increased prevalence of sub-health significantly affects human health worldwide. Suppressed sub-healthy by dietotherapy/herbal remedy which showed excellent safety profile, low cost and effectiveness, is an effective way. In this research, the fingerprint and antioxidant activity of Sabia parviflora were obtained by HPLC instrument and DPPH, ABTS, FRAP heatmap assays. And the antioxidant active substances were selected by spectrum-effect relationship. The results showed that significant differences in chemical compositions of samples from different sources, and EW, EE extracts had strong antioxidant activity. The antioxidant activity of Sabia parviflora was mainly determined by the complex interaction of various flavonoids (promoting, competing or antagonizing). These findings revealed that the abundant flavonoids in Sabia parviflora had significant antioxidant activity and could be potential antioxidants. With therapeutic potential for sub-health, this special tea might provide dietotherapy/herbal to remedy sub-healthy population.

Comparation of HPLC fingerprints of Lagotis integra and Lagotis brevituba between different origins / 中草药

Objective: To establish HPLC fingerprints of Lagotis integra and Lagotis brevituba which were contained in National Drug Standard and compared to Lagotis ramalana, Lagotis alutacea and Lagotis brachystachya by the established method. Methods: The similarity of HPLC fingerprints of L. integra and L. brevituba was low, so the HPLC fingerprint methods were established for both. The HPLC analysis was performed on Waters X-Bridge C18 (250 mm × 4.6 mm, 5 μm), using acetonitrile and 0.2% formic acid solution as the mobile phase at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min, the detection wave-length was 328 nm and column temperature was 35 ℃ (L. integra) and 25 ℃ (L. brevituba). Results: There were 14 common peaks in the fingerprint of L. integra, and plantamajoside, hemiphroside B, 10-O-trans-p-methoxycinnamoyl-catalpol and 10-O-[(E)-3,4-dimethoxycinna moyl]-catalpol were standardized. There were 13 common peaks in the fingerprint of L. brevituba, and echinacoside, plantamajoside and acteoside were standardized. The similarity of HPLC fingerprint was more than 0.9 between L. integra and L. alutacea, but the others had low similarity with them. The similarity of HPLC fingerprint was more than 0.9 between L. brevituba from different batches and L. ramalana, while the others had low similarity with them. Conclusion: The established method could effectively identify L. brevituba, L. integra and L. alutacea were advised to be recorded in Medical Standards of the Ministry of Health. Lagotis ramalana could be used as a new base for "Honglian" (origin: Lagotis brevituba).

Evaluation of the quality of compound liquorice tablets by DSC and HPLC fingerprints assisted with dissolution.

A systematic quantitative fingerprint method (SQFM) was applied to evaluate the quality of compound liquorice tablets (CPLTs) in this paper. The method contained three main parameters: macroscopic qualitative similarity (Sm), macro quantitative similarity (Pm) and a leveling variance coefficient (α), which were used to analyze the similarity of curves and evaluate the fingerprints of CPLTs. Firstly, Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) was applied to analyze CPLTs and the active raw materials (RMs). At the same time, the change of appearance and weight during DSC testing revealed that the two main thermal processes of CPLTs were between 240-320 °C and 400-500 °C. The DSC fingerprint (DSC-FP) of 49 batches of CPLTs was collected and the enthalpy values were calculated. Then, we studied the dissolution of CPLTs, collected ultraviolet fingerprints (UV-FP) and the Pm was used to plot the dissolution curve. The results showed that the dissolution and enthalpy had a negative correlation, and the formula was y= -32.38x+3207.49 with r= -0.83. Finally, the High Performance Liquid Chromatography fingerprint (HPLC-FP) of 49 batches of CPLTs was collected and assessed by SQFM. The results of quality evaluation of CPLTs by HPLC-FP combined with DSC-FP showed that 49 batches were divided into 4 levels, which could evaluate the quality of the drug more comprehensively and objectively.

Vitellaria paradoxa nutshells from seven sub-Saharan countries as potential herbal medicines for treating diabetes based on chemical compositions, HPLC fingerprints and bioactivity evaluation.

The aim of the study was to determine the feasibility of the Vitellaria paradoxa nutshell as a new medicinal resource for treating diabetes. A total of forty-one compounds were identified by HPLC-DAD-Q-TOF-MS and phytochemical methods in V. paradoxa nutshell methanol extract. Based on HPLC fingerprints, four characteristic constituents were quantified and the origin of twenty-eight V. paradoxa nutshells from seven sub-Saharan countries was compared, which were classified into three groups with chemometric method. Twenty-eight samples contained high total phenolic content, and exhibited moderate-higher antioxidant activity and strong α-glucosidase inhibitory activity. Furthermore, all fractions and isolated compounds were evaluated for their antioxidant and α-glucosidase inhibitory activities, and α-glucosidase inhibitory action mechanism of four characteristic constituents including protocatechuic acid, 3, 5, 7-trihydroxycoumarin, (2R, 3R)-(+)-taxifolin and quercetin was investigated via molecular docking method, which were all stabilized by hydrogen bonds with α-glucosidase. The study provided an effective approach to waste utilization of V. paradoxa nutshell, which would help to resolve waste environmental pollution and provide a basis for developing potential herbal resource for treating diabetes.

Spectrum-effect relationship study between HPLC fingerprints and antioxidant of honeysuckle extract.

Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica flos) is a well-known agent of edible and medicinal value in China and its antioxidative activity makes a major contribution to its dual use. However, the compounds responsible for its antioxidative activity are still unknown. In this study, 10 batches of honeysuckle were collected from different origins in China. The fingerprints were established by HPLC technique to investigate the compounds and a 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity assay was carried out to evaluate their antioxidant activity. partial least squares regression analysis was applied to set up the regression equation between DPPH radical scavenging activity and average peak area of common peaks of fingerprints. The results showed that peaks 10 (isochlorogenic acid B), 12 (isochlorogenic acid C), 11 (isochlorogenic acid A) and 9 (cynaroside) in the fingerprints were closely related to the antioxidant activity of 50% methanol extracts of honeysuckle. This study successfully established the spectrum-effect relationship between HPLC fingerprints and DPPH radical scavenging activity and provided a general model for exploring active components with a combination of chromatography and efficacy.

Vitellaria paradoxa nutshells from seven sub-Saharan countries as potential herbal medicines for treating diabetes based on chemical compositions, HPLC fingerprints and bioactivity evaluation / 中国天然药物

The aim of the study was to determine the feasibility of the Vitellaria paradoxa nutshell as a new medicinal resource for treating diabetes. A total of forty-one compounds were identified by HPLC-DAD-Q-TOF-MS and phytochemical methods in V. paradoxa nutshell methanol extract. Based on HPLC fingerprints, four characteristic constituents were quantified and the origin of twenty-eight V. paradoxa nutshells from seven sub-Saharan countries was compared, which were classified into three groups with chemometric method. Twenty-eight samples contained high total phenolic content, and exhibited moderate-higher antioxidant activity and strong α-glucosidase inhibitory activity. Furthermore, all fractions and isolated compounds were evaluated for their antioxidant and α-glucosidase inhibitory activities, and α-glucosidase inhibitory action mechanism of four characteristic constituents including protocatechuic acid, 3, 5, 7-trihydroxycoumarin, (2R, 3R)-(+)-taxifolin and quercetin was investigated via molecular docking method, which were all stabilized by hydrogen bonds with α-glucosidase. The study provided an effective approach to waste utilization of V. paradoxa nutshell, which would help to resolve waste environmental pollution and provide a basis for developing potential herbal resource for treating diabetes.

Quantification and efficient discovery of quality control markers for Emilia prenanthoidea DC. by Fingerprint-Efficacy Relationship Modelling.

An effective and comprehensive evaluation method for identifying the origin and assessing the quality of Emilia prenanthoidea DC. was established, based on analysis of high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) fingerprint combined with the similarity analysis (SA), the hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) and principal component analysis (PCA). Different data analysis methods drew a similar conclusion that 12 E. prenanthoidea (EP) samples were categorized into two groups. Evaluated the anti-inflammatory effects of different EP samples by analyzing paw edema (PE), serum superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, concentrations of serum malondialdehyde (MDA), prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) in the carrageenin-induced acute inflammation mouse model. With the help of Gray Correlation Analysis (GRA), partial least squares regression (PLSR) and artificial neural network (ANN), the relationship between the fingerprints and efficacy of EP was elucidated. As the results, chlorogenic acid, hyperoside and quercitrin could be selected as chemical markers to evaluate the quality of EP from different regions. Thus, a method was established to quantify 7 major bioactive ingredients in the samples under the condition of fingerprint. These results indicated that the HPLC fingerprint coupleing with Profile-Efficacy analysis would have great has potential to identify the medicinal effective components and evaluating the quality of E. prenanthoidea.

Spectrum-effect relationship between HPLC fingerprints and hypolipidemic effect of Curcuma aromatica.

Curcuma aromatica is used as a traditional Chinese medicine, and it is mainly distributed in Guangxi, China. In this study, 10 batches of C. aromatica were collected from different origins in Guangxi. The fingerprints were established by HPLC technique to investigate the quality stability of C. aromatica. The spectrum-effect relationship between HPLC fingerprints and hypolipidemic effect of C. aromatica was assessed by similarity analysis, gray relational analysis and multiple linear regression analysis. From the results, the similarity values between each batch of C. aromatica and reference fingerprint were >0.880, indicating the good quality stability of the 10 batches of C. aromatica. Twenty common peaks were selected as the fingerprints to evaluate the quality and hypolipidemic effect of C. aromatica. The results of spectrum-effect relationship showed that peaks 10, 18, 13, 15 and 17 in the fingerprints were closely related to hypolipidemic effect. This study successfully established the spectrum-effect relationship between HPLC fingerprints and hypolipidemic effect of C. aromatica, which provided methods for quality control and more effectively studies on bioactive compounds of C. aromatica. It could also provide a new simple and effective method for utilizing the fingerprints to optimize the Chinese prescription and develop traditional Chinese medicine.

Analysis and comparison of HPLC fingerprints of wanai and Artemisiae argyi from thirty-one growing areas by multistatistical / 中成药

AIM To analyze and compare HPLC fingerprints of wanai and Artemisiae argyi Levi.et Vant from thirty-one growing areas by multistatistical.METHODS The analysis of 80％ methanol extract of A.argyi was developed on a 30 ℃ thermostatic Agilent TC-C18 column (4.6 mm × 250 mm,5 μm),with the mobile phase comprising of acetonitrile-water (containing 0.2％ methanoic acid) flowing at 1 mL/min in a gradient elution manner,and the detection wavelength was set at 330 nm.RESULTS There were eighteen,twenty-five common peaks in the fingerprints of thirty-one batches of A.argyi,fifteen batches of wanai,respectively,with the similarities all more than 0.900.The similarities of thirty-one batches of samples from different growing area were good and together as a category except samples from Dengzhou city,Luohe city and Anhui province.Fifteen batches of wanai samples got together with Qiai among them.The cumulative contribution rate of the four principal components from A.argyi was 86.049％.Twelve batches of wanai samples had higher scores than Qiai.CONCLUSION This stable and reliable method can be used for the quality control of A.argyi.

Establishment of HPLC fingerprints of Kangfuxin Liquid and determintion of six constituents / 中成药

AIM To establish the HPLC fingerprints of Kangfuxin Liquid (extract of Periplaneta americana L.) and to determine the contents of six constituents.METHODS The analysis of this drug was performed on a TOSOH TSK-GEL ODS column (250 mm × 4.6 mm,5 μm),with the mobile phase comprising of acetonitrile-water (containing 0.07％ acetic acid) flowing at 1.0 mL/min in a gradient elution manner,and the detection wavelength was set at 280 nm.RESULTS There were twenty-four common peaks in the fingerprints of ten batches of samples (Ⅰ-Ⅹ) with the similarities of 0.932-0.993 (except for sample Ⅰ).Uracil,hypoxanthine,xanthine,inosine,protocatechuic acid and Cyclo (Gly-Tyr) showed good linear relationships within the ranges of 3.460-173.0,3.960-198.0,3.596-179.8,1.338-66.9,3.672-183.6 and 3.552-177.6 μg/mL,whose average recoveries (RSDS) were99.8％ (2.65％),98.0％ (2.55％),99.7％ (1.59％),100.7％ (2.80％),102.0％ (2.09％) and 99.6％ (1.88％),respectively.CONCLUSION This accurate,stable and simple method can be used for the quality control of Kangfuxin Liquid.

Establishment of HPLC fingerprints of Geranium strictipes and pattern recognition / 中成药

AIM To establish HPLC fingerprints of Geranium strictipes R.Kunthand to perform pattern recognition.METHODS The analysis of 70％ methanol extract of G.strictipes was performed on a 25℃ thermostatic ZORBAX SB-C18 column(250 mm× 4.6 mm,5 μm),with the mobile phase comprising of acetonitrile-water in a gradient elution manner,and the detection wavelength was set at 254 nm.The results were analyzed by cluster analysis and principal component analysis.RESULTS There were thirteen common peaks in the HPLC fingerprints of twenty-one batches of samples with the similarities of more than 0.894.Twenty-one batches of samples were divided into two categories.The cumulative contribution rate of the first principal component was 31.067％.CONCLUSION This accurate,stable and reproducible method can be used for the quality control of G.strictipes.

[Comparison of chemical quality characteristics between radial striations and non-radial striations in tuberous root of Rehmannia glutinosa].

An HPLC method was established to determine the contents of catalpol, acteoside, rehmaionoside A, rehmaionoside D, leonuride in three part of Rehmanni glutinosa in Beijing No.1 variety R. glutinosa during the growth period, This method, in combination with its HPLC fingerprint was used to evaluate its overall quality characteristics.The results showed that：① the content of main components of R. glutinosa varied in different growth stages ;② there was a great difference of the content of main components between theradial striations and the non-radial striations; ③ the two sections almost have the same content distribution of catalpol, acteoside and rehmaionoside D; ④the content of rehmaionoside A in non-radial striations was higher than that in radial striations,while the content of leonuride in radial striations was higher than that in non-radial striations.; ⑤the HPLC fingerprint of radial striations, non-radial striations and whole root tuber were basically identical, except for the big difference in the content of chemical components. The result of clustering displayed that the radial striations, non-radial striations, and whole root were divided into two groups. In conclusion, there was a significant difference in the quality characteristics of radial striations and non-radial striations of R. glutinosa. This research provides a reference for quality evaluation and geoherbalism of R. glutinosa.

Investigation of the Effect of the Degree of Processing of Radix Rehmanniae Preparata (Shu Dihuang) on Shu Dihuangtan Carbonization Preparation Technology.

Carbonization of Radix Rehmanniae Preparata (Shu Dihuangtan) via stir-frying could increase its homeostasis maintaining and antidiarrheal effects. To ensure these pharmacological functions, the quality of the raw material (processed Rehmanniae Radix) must be well controlled. Therefore, we analyzed the effects of different degrees of processing and adjuvants on processed Rehmanniae Radix (Shu Dihuang) by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) chromatographic fingerprints, thermal gravimetric analysis and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Based on the results from HPLC fingerprints combined with similarity analysis (SA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) the optimum processing method for Shu Dihuang was five cycles of steaming and polishing, which follows the ancient processing theory. The intensity of thermal weight loss rate peaked near 210.33 ± 4.32 °C or 211.33 ± 2.62 °C, which was an important indicator for the degree of processing of Shu Dihuang. A temperature near 290.89 ± 2.51 °C was the upper limit for carbonizing Shu Dihuangtan. FTIR spectroscopy analysis showed that the overall chemical composition of Shu Dihuangtan was affected by both the degree of processing and adjuvant, which are very important for its quality.