ABSTRACT
Objective: For the adulteration phenomenon of Farfarae Flos, the chemical composition of the flower buds and the rachis, rhizome, and the roots were compared, to provide the basis for the quality control of Farfarae Flos. Methods: The content of tussilagone was determined by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) according to the Chinese Pharmacopeia. The HPLC based fingerprint was also generated, and the similarity and the relative contents of the common peaks between the flower buds and adulteration parts were calculated. The pearson correlation between the relative content of the major compounds and the flower buds ratio, as well as principal component analysis and clustering analysis were also performed. Results: The content of tussilagone and the peak areas of 13 common peaks in the HPLC fingerprint were significantly higher than those in the rachis, rhizome, and the roots, and positively correlated with the flower buds ratio. The results of the principal component analysis and clustering analysis showed that the flower buds showed distinct separation with those adulteration parts. In addition, the compounds within the caffeoyl quinic acids and flavonoids showed positive correlations with each other, and the correlations were also observed between different kinds of components. Conclusion: The major compounds of Farfarae Flos were mainly present in the flower buds, and the quality of Farfarae Flos will be greatly affected when there are more impurities such as pedicel, taproot and rhizome in the crude drugs. Currently, there is no impurity in the Chinese pharmacopeia for Farfarae Flos, and the limit of the impurities should be added to guarantee the quality of Farfarae Flos.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To analyze the effect of different drying methods on the major compounds in Farfarae Flos(FF). METHODS: The content of moisture and tussilagone were determined, and the common peaks in the HPLC fingerprint were calculated and subjected to the principal component analysis. RESULTS: The results showed that the moisture content was the highest when the FF was dried in the shade, and the drying method showed little effect on the content of tussilagone. The results of the principal component analysis showed that the FF dried in the shade was different from those of FF being dried under heat. The relative content of major compounds were the highest for the FF dried in the shade. In addition, the caffeoyl quinic acids and flavonoids were greatly affected after heating, however the heat drying showed little effect on the sesquiterpenoids. Among the different drying temperature, 55 ℃ showed smallest effect on the main components in the FF. CONCLUSION: The components in FF can be protected when drying in the shade, which reveals the scientific basis for the traditional experience of drying. However, in order to facilitate the drying process on a large scale, and minimizing the effect of drying on the compounds in the FF, drying temperature of 55 ℃ is recommended.
ABSTRACT
Objective: To predict the targets of the main ingredients in Naozhenning Granule and explore its molecular mechanism of multi-components, multi-targets, and multi-pathways. Methods: Reverse molecular docking (DRAR-CPI) and CooLGeN database were used to predict and screen the targets of Naozhenning Granule; GO enrichment was performed in ClueGO of Cytoscape; KEGG pathway analysis was conducted in DAVID database; The herbs-ingredients-targets-pathways-disease network was constructed in the Cytoscape software. Results: A total of 33 candidate compounds were screened out, and a total of 34 potential targets were revealed for Naozhenning Granule, such as MAPK1, CASP3, and GSK3B. The results of GO enrichment and KEGG pathway analysis indicated that Naozhenning Granule was involved in a series of biological process, such as reactive oxygen species biosynthetic process and positive regulation of smooth muscle cell proliferation as well as some signaling pathways, including PI3K/Akt, MAPK, JAK/STAT, and mTOR. The herbs-ingredients-targets-pathways-disease network suggested that the mechanism of Naozhenning Granule was involved with the regulation of oxidative stress, inhibiting the inflammatory response and the apoptosis of neural cells, regulation of the formation of H2S and the activity of PLG, improving the cognitive function and post traumatic depression. Conclusion: The study suggested that the molecular mechanism of Naozhenning Granule was related with the multi-components, multi-targets, and multi-pathways, which provided a scientific basis for further elucidation of the active ingredients and pharmacological action of Naozhenning Granule.