ABSTRACT
During the storage process, Chinese medicinal materials are susceptible to insect infestation due to their own nature and external storage factors. Infestation by insects can have varying impacts on the materials. In mild cases, it affects the appearance and reduces consumer purchasing power, while in severe cases, it affects the quality, reduces medicinal value, and introduces impurities such as insect bodies, excrement, and secretions, resulting in significant contamination of the medicinal materials. This study reviewed the rele-vant factors influencing insect infestation in Chinese medicinal materials and the compositional changes that occur after infestation and summarized maintenance measures for preventing insect infestation. Additionally, it provided an overview of detection techniques applicable to identifying insect infestation during the storage of Chinese medicinal materials. During the storage process, insect infestation is the result of the combined effects of biological factors(source, species, and population density of insects), intrinsic factors(moisture, chemical composition, and metabolism), and environmental factors(temperature, relative humidity, and oxygen content). After infestation, there are significant changes in the content of constituents in the medicinal materials. By implementing strict pre-storage inspections, regular maintenance after storage, and appropriate storage and maintenance methods, the occurrence of insect infestation can be reduced, and the preservation rate of Chinese medicinal materials can be improved. The storage and maintenance of Chinese medicinal materials are critical for ensuring their quality. Through scientifically standardized storage and strict adherence to operational management standards, the risk of insect infestation can be minimized, thus guaranteeing the quality of Chinese medicinal materials.
Subject(s)
Animals , Drug Contamination/prevention & control , Insecta , Preservation, Biological , TemperatureABSTRACT
This study aimed to analyze aflatoxins content and fungal community distribution in the harvesting and processing of Platycladi Semen, and explore the key link that affects aflatoxins contamination. The related Platycladi Semen samples of different maturity periods(cone non-rupture period, early rupture, and complete rupture period) and different processing periods(before drying, during 2-d drying, during 7-d drying, before and after seed scale removal, before and after peeling, 1 d after color sorting, and 7 d after color sorting) were collected for identifying the fungal community composition on sample surface by ITS amplicon sequencing. Then the content of aflatoxins B_1, B_2, G_1 and G_2 was determined by HPLC-MS/MS. The results showed that during the harvesting of Platycladi Semen from cone non-rupture to complete rupture, aflatoxins were only detected in the seed scale and seed coat, with aflatoxin G_2 in the seed scale and aflatoxin B_1 in the seed coat. During the drying, with the prolongation of drying time, aflatoxins B_1 and G_2 were detected simultaneously in the seed scale, aflatoxin B_1 in the seed coat, and low-content aflatoxin B_1 in the seed kernel. During subsequent processing, the aflatoxin content in seed kernel during subsequent processing was slighted increased. As demonstrated by fungal detection, Aspergillus flavus was not present during the harvesting of Platycladi Semen, but present during the drying and processing. Its content in the seed coat during the drying process was relatively higher. In short, Platycladi Semen should be harvested as soon as possible after it becomes fully mature. Drying process is the key link of preventing aflatoxin contamination. It is advised to build a sunlight room or adopt similar settings, standardize the operations in other processes, and keep the surrounding environment clean to minimize aflatoxin contamination.
Subject(s)
Aflatoxins/analysis , Aspergillus flavus , Food Contamination/prevention & control , Mycobiome , Semen/chemistry , Tandem Mass SpectrometryABSTRACT
In the process of harvesting, production and processing, storage, and transportation, the traditional Chinese medicine Platycladi Semen is prone to mildew due to its own and environmental factors, which can nourish the production of toxic or pathogenic fungi, and even produce mycotoxins, which affects the safety of clinical medication. The 2020 edition of Chinese Pharmacopoeia limits the highest standard of aflatoxin content in Platycladi Semen. However, there are few studies on the fungal contamination of Platycladi Semen, and it is difficult to prevent and control it in a targeted manner. Therefore, based on the Illumina NovaSeq6000 platform, this article uses ITS sequence amplicon technology to analyze the distribution and diversity of fungi in 27 batches of commercially available Platycladi Semen in the Chinese market. A total of 10 phyla, 35 classes, 93 orders, 193 families, 336 genera, and 372 species of fungi were identified in China. Among them, Aspergillus, Alternaria spp. were dominant, 20 batches of samples were detected for A. flavus, 10 batches of samples were detected for A. nidulans, and all samples were detected for potential pathogenic fungi such as A. fumigatus and A. niger. According to diversity analysis, the diversity of the fungal communities in the samples from Gansu province was high, the samples in Shandong province contain the largest number of fungal species, and the samples in Guangxi province had the lo-west diversity and the least number of species. In most samples, pathogenic fungi such as A. fumigatus, A. niger, A. flavus, A. parasiticus were detected in varying degrees. This study systematically investigated the fungal contamination of Platycladi Semen from the markets in the last link of the its industrial chain, and clarified the distribution of Platycladi Semen fungi, especially toxin-producing fungi, and provided theoretical basis for the targeted prevention and control of fungal contamination in Platycladi Semen.
Subject(s)
Humans , Aflatoxins , China , Fungi/genetics , Mycobiome , Mycotoxins/analysis , Semen/chemistryABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE@#To study the protective effect of telmisartan on rats with renal failure and its mechanism.@*METHODS@#60 Wistar rats were chosen as study objective, and were divided into 4 groups randomly: 15 in group A (sham operation group), 15 in group B (model group), 15 in group C (telmisartan group) and 15 in group D (telmisartan + GW9962 group). The difference of survival rate, blood-urine biochemical indexes, renal pathological change, and the expression level of PPARγ and nNOS were compared.@*RESULTS@#After 12 weeks, the survival rate of group A was 93.33% (14/15), that of group B was 46.67% (7/15), that of group C was 86.67% (13/15), that of group D was 60.00% (9/15), and the difference among 4 groups had statistical significance (P 0.05); after 3 weeks, 6 weeks and 12 weeks, these difference was statistical significant (P < 0.05). The difference of blood-urine biochemical indexes, that of renal pathological change, and that of the expression level of PPARγ and nNOS was statistical significant (P < 0.05).@*CONCLUSIONS@#Telmisartan has protective effect on renal failure caused by 5/6 nephrectomy, which might be relative to the expression level of PPARγ and nNOS.
ABSTRACT
Objective: To study the protective effect of telmisartan on rats with renal failure and its mechanism. Methods: 60 Wistar rats were chosen as study objective, and were divided into 4 groups randomly: 15 in group A (sham operation group), 15 in group B (model group), 15 in group C (telmisartan group) and 15 in group D (telmisartan+GW9962 group). The difference of survival rate, blood-urine biochemical indexes, renal pathological change, and the expression level of PPARγ and nNOS were compared. Results: After 12 weeks, the survival rate of group A was 93.33% (14/15), that of group B was 46.67% (7/15), that of group C was 86.67% (13/15), that of group D was 60.00% (9/15), and the difference among 4 groups had statistical significance (P0.05); after 3 weeks, 6 weeks and 12 weeks, these difference was statistical significant (P<0.05). The difference of blood-urine biochemical indexes, that of renal pathological change, and that of the expression level of PPARγ and nNOS was statistical significant (P<0.05). Conclusions: Telmisartan has protective effect on renal failure caused by 5/6 nephrectomy, which might be relative to the expression level of PPARγ and nNOS.
ABSTRACT
Objective To explore the changes of pathogens and antibiotic susceptibility in a respiratory ward.Methods All pathogens isolated from patients in a respiratory ward from 2001 to 2005 and the drug susceptibility results were retrospectively analyzed.For patients with more than 1 isolates of the same species, only the first strain of pathogen was included for analysis. The isolation and identification procedure was based on guidelines for national clinical laboratories.The susceptibility test was performed by disk diffusion method.WHONET 5.3 software was used for statistical analysis.Results A total of 876 strains were analyzed.The majority was gram negative bacteria.MRSA prevalence was 72.4% and showed a trend of increase.No vancomycin resistant Staphylococcus aureus or Enterococcus was detected.Streptococcus pneumoniae was highly resistant to macrolides.The non-sensitivity rate to penicillin was 25.5%-66.7% over years.The resistance rate to levofloxacin was 22.2%-27.3%.Enterobacter and Acinetobacter baumannii showed stable susceptibility to imipenem.ESBLs-producing Esche- richia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae accounted for 33.3%-38.9% and 14.3%-19.2% respectively.P.aeruginosa strains were relatively susceptible to ceftazidime, amikaein, cefoperazone-sulbactam, imipenem, piperacillin-tazobactam and cefepime. The sensitivity rate was 87%, 82.6%, 78.3%, 73.9%, 73.9% and 71.4% respectively in 2005.Conclusions The changes of pathogens and antibiotic resistance in the respiratory ward were consistent with the surveillance data in this country, which were influenced by underlying diseases, severity of illness and antibiotic use.Our data are useful for the guidance of rational use of antibiotics.