[Grade classification of Scutellariae Radix slices based on determination of section color and lustre].

By determination the section color and lustre indexes as well as the content of baicalin in 30 batches of Scutellariae Radix slices, calculate the correlation of these two, screen the color and lustre indexes which could represent their intrinsic quality, and establish a new grade classification method based on the results. The results showed that samples met the conditions of △L≥－37, △b≥45 simultaneously were picked grade and the content of baicalin was of ≥200 mg•g⁻¹ definitely; Samples inconsistent with any one of above conditions were general grade. This research indicated that indexes of △L and △b could characterize both the color and luster of slice and intrinsic quality, so that could be used as the indexes to classify the grades of Scutellariae Radix slices accurately, easily and objectively. The research results would provide new ideas and references for grade classification of traditional Chinese medicine slices.

2,4-Dihydr-oxy-N'-(4-methoxy-benzyl-idene)benzohydrazide.

The mol-ecule of the title compound, C(15)H(14)N(2)O(4), displays a trans configuration with respect to the hydrazide C=N bond. The dihedral angle between the two benzene rings is 15.0 (2)°. In the crystal structure, mol-ecules are linked through inter-molecular O-H⋯N and O-H⋯O hydrogen bonds, forming layers parallel to the ab plane; an intramolecular N-H⋯O hydrogen bond is also present.

[Genetic mapping of the intergenomic translocated "taigu" genic sterility gene (Ms2)].

The "Taigu" genic sterility gene Ms2 located on the short arm of the 4D chromosome of common wheat (AABBDD) originally incorporated into hexoploid triticale (AABBRR) and durum wheat (AABB) through intergenomic translocation in distant hybridization was introduced back into the genomes of common wheat. The dominant male sterility was expressed normally in the new "Taigu" genic sterile wheat carrying the intergenomically translocated Ms2, and the female fertility mechanism in its male sterile plants was normal as well. Observation of the chromosome configuration at meiosis of pollen mother cells (PMC) of the young ears of the sterile plants showed that they were euploid plants (2n = 42). No configurations different from those of the "Taigu" genic sterility gene located at the original locus were noticed of the Ms2 intergenomically translocated back into the common wheat. In systematic test crosses with marker genes the intergenomically translocated gene Ms2 was found to be linked with the dominant dwarf marker in common wheat Rht3 and, consequently, remapped and located on the short arm of the 4B chromosome of common wheat with a distance of 9.7 cM from Rht3. The new locus was designated as Ms2 (4BS). Discussions are given of the fate of Ms2 during translocation in the hexoploid triticale, the exchange of the names for 4A and 4B chromosomes in common wheat and the possible exploitation of the new locus Ms2 (4BS), and the following speculations are made: (a) In genic genes of allopolyploid organisms the donor chromosomes tend to be intergenomically translocated to their physiologically and evolutionarily close chromosomes with the same order number and the same arm; (b) it is confirmed that the 7th International Conference of Wheat Genetics was right to exchange the names between chromosomes 4A and 4B of common wheat in 1988; and (c) as a new genetic marker and a breeding tool for all the chromosome B-carrying species in the tribe of Triticeae, Ms2(4BS) may have wide application in building and expanding the gene pool of germplasm resources of various species of wheat.

The ginsenosides and carbohydrate profiles of ginseng cultivated under mountainous forest.

BACKGROUND: Ginseng cultivated under mountainous forest, called "Lin-Xia-Shan-Shen" (LXSS) in China's Pharmacopoeia. In recent years, it has been quickly propelled to plant at a large scale. OBJECTIVE: To study the profiles of ginsenosides and carbohydrate profiles of LXSS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The contents of ginsenosides and carbohydrates, such as soluble sugar, polysaccharide, pectin, and starch in LXSS, were determined. All the above components were profiled, and the correlations between them were analyzed. RESULTS: The results indicated that the contents of total ginsenoside, protopanaxadiol, protopanaxatriol, Rg1, Re, Rb1, Rc, Rb2, Rd, starch, and pectin were negatively correlated with the growing years within 17 years. Among them, the content of starch was positively correlated with that of pectin. The total ginsenosides was positively correlated with starch and pectin, which cannot be found in garden ginseng, maybe resulting of fertilizer and other manual intervention in process of cultivation of garden ginseng. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: The accumulation of ginsenosides and carbohydrate, especially starch and pectin, was different in garden ginseng and LXSS. This research may provide the scientific basis for germplasm evaluation, the cultivation and utilization of ginseng cultivated under mountainous forest.

Antioxidant activity of ginseng cultivated under mountainous forest with different growing years.

Ginseng cultivated and grown naturally under mountainous forest is formally called "Lin-Xia-Shan-Shen" (LXSS) and grown in manual condition is called garden ginseng (GG) according to Chinese pharmacopoeia (2010 edition). Usually the growing condition of LXSS is similar to wild ginseng and mostly used in Chinese folks in ancient times. The antioxidant properties of LXSS with different growing years were evaluated by their inhibitions of thiobarbituric acid-reactive substance (TBA-RS) formation in liver homogenate and 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH)-radical scavenging activity comparing with those of GG. The inhibitions of different polar extracts (n-butanol and water) of LXSS and GG on TBA-RS formation were also evaluated. The results showed that the antioxidant effects of LXSS were higher than those of GG and the TBARS formation inhibition of LXSS with longer growing years were stronger than those with shorter growing years, while the DPPH-radical scavenging activity of LXSS did not show significant difference with the change of the growing year. The results indicated that the inhibitory effect of TBA-RS formation and the DPPH-radical scavenging of LXSS were correlated with the contents of ginsenosides. In adddition, the starch contents of LXSS and GG were determined by micro-amount method with spectrophotometer. It showed that the starch content in GG was higher than that of LXSS whose starch decreased gradually with the growing year.