ABSTRACT
Objective:To investigate the quality regionalization and environmental impact factors of Stephaniae Tetrandrae Radix based on main active ingredients，and provide a reference for the determination of high-quality production areas and the dominant environmental factors affecting the content of Stephaniae Tetrandrae Radix. Method:Partial least squares regression analysis (PLS) and principal component analysis (PCA) were used to study the quality regionalization and environmental impact factors based on the main active ingredients of tetrandrine and fangchinoline, and investigate the environmental factors of the producing areas. Result:The content of fangchinoline was positively correlated with soil pH and annual average temperature，negatively correlated with latitude. The content of tetrandrine was positively correlated with soil pH，negatively correlated with annual rainfall and longitude. The total content was positively correlated with soil pH and annual average temperature，but negatively correlated with annual rainfall，latitude and longitude. Principal component analysis showed that the 50 production areas could be divided into four groups of quality formation. The groups with the highest scores were Shixing county in Guangdong，Shexian county in Anhui，Songxi county in Fujian，Nanxiong city in Guangdong and Xiangxiang city in Hunan，all of which were best areas for accumulation of the two main active ingredients. Conclusion:Soil pH，annual average temperature，annual rainfall，latitude and longitude are the main environmental factors affecting the main active ingredients of Stephaniae Tetrandrae Radix. The best areas for accumulation of tetrandrine and fangchinoline are Shixing county in Guangdong，Shexian county in Anhui，Songxi county in Fujian，Nanxiong city in Guangdong and Xiangxiang city in Hunan.