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By consulting ancient Chinese herbal medicines and medical books， the textual research of Armeniacae Semen Amarum has been conducted to verify the name， origin， producing area， quality evaluation， harvesting and processing changes. Through textual research， Shennong Bencaojing began to contain Xinghe. After Xinxiu Bencao， Xingheren were gradually taken as the mainstream name， Xingren was first used as the correct name since Leigong Paozhilun， and gradually became the mainstream rectifying in the Ming and Qing dynasties. Before the Qing dynasty， there was no distinction between Armeniacae Semen Amarum and Armeniacae Semen Dulcis in the materia medica works， while the differences between them were clearly defined in some works of the Qing dynasty， but did not record them separately. In order to make them more accurate in clinical application， Armeniacae Semen Amarum was recorded as the correct name in the 1953 edition of Chinese Pharmacopoeia， and Armeniacae Semen Dulcis was included in the provincial standards. The original plants of Armeniacae Semen Amarum from Prunus armeniaca （Armeniaca vulgaris in Flora of China） and its cultivated varieties with bitter seeds were taken as the mainstream， which are reflected in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia. Its yellow ripe fruit was generally harvested in May， the seed kernel was taken out for drying or baking， finally the seed coat was removed to use. It is recorded that the production area of Armeniacae Semen Amarum is Taihang Mountain area of Shanxi province in ancient times. At present， its producing area is mainly concentrated in Shanxi， Shandong， Hebei and other places in north China. Historical literature pointed out that Armeniacae Semen Amarum had small toxicity， and heat treatment could reduce toxicity and increase efficiency， its main processing method was blanching and stir-frying. In addition， it is generally believed that raw products with seed coat can enhance its sweating effect since the Ming and Qing dynasties. Until now， three processed products are stipulated in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia， namely raw products， boiled and fried products. Based on textual research， it is recommended that A. vulgaris should be used as the original plant of Armeniacae Semen Amarum in famous classical formulas， and the use of processed products should follow the processing requirements marked in the formulas.
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In order to establish a rapid and non-destructive evaluation method for the identification of Armeniacae Semen Amarum and Persicae Semen from different origins, the spectral information of Armeniacae Semen Amarum and Persicae Semen in the range of 898-1 751 nm was collected based on hyperspectral imaging technology. Armeniacae Semen Amarum and Persicae Semen from different origins were collected as research objects, and a total of 720 Armeniacae Semen Amarum samples and 600 Persicae Semen samples were used for authenticity discrimination. The region of interest(ROI) and the average reflection spectrum in the ROI were obtained, followed by comparing five pre-processing methods. Then, partial least squares discriminant analysis(PLS-DA), support vector machine(SVM), and random forest(RF) method were established for classification models, which were evaluated by the confusion matrix of prediction results and receiver operating characteristic curve(ROC). The results showed that in the three sample sets, the se-cond derivative pre-processing method and PLS-DA were the best model combinations. The classification accuracy of the test set under the 5-fold cross-va-lidation was 93.27%, 96.19%, and 100.0%, respectively. It was consistent with the confusion matrix of the predicted results. The area under the ROC curve obtained the highest values of 0.992 3, 0.999 6, and 1.000, respectively. The study revealed that the near-infrared hyperspectral imaging technology could accurately identify the medicinal materials of Armeniacae Semen Amarum and Persicae Semen from different origins and distinguish the authentication of these two varieties.
Subject(s)
Drugs, Chinese Herbal , Hyperspectral Imaging , Least-Squares Analysis , Semen , Support Vector Machine , TechnologyABSTRACT
Objective:Due to the limitation of traditional identification methods of Chinese medicinal materials， the study established a rapid method to identify Persicae Semen mixed with Armeniacae Semen Amarum by allele-specific polymerase chain reaction （PCR）. Method:By comparing the ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer （ITS） gene sequences of Persicae Semen and Armeniacae Semen Amarum， single nucleotide polymorphism （SNP） sites were searched and specific primers were designed. Different Persicae Semen and Armeniacae Semen Amarum samples were amplified by PCR， the effects of annealing temperature， primer concentration and cycle number on the PCR reaction system were optimized， and the specificity and detection limit of this method were investigated. In addition， the established PCR method was used to detect the samples of Persicae Semen mixed with different proportion of Armeniacae Semen Amarum from different sources and producing areas. Result:A specific PCR method for identifying Persicae Semen mixed with Armeniacae Semen Amarum was established. When the annealing temperature was 63 ℃ and the number of primer cycles was 30， only Armeniacae Semen Amarum could be amplified with 432 bp specific band， while Persicae Semen samples did not have this band. The minimum detection limit of this method for Armeniacae Semen Amarum was 0.2 ng， and the detection limit for Armeniacae Semen Amarum adulterated in Persicae Semen was 1%. Conclusion:The established allele-specific PCR method can accurately detect whether there is Armeniacae Semen Amarum in Persicae Semen， which can provide experimental basis for the quality control of Persicae Semen and guarantee the safety of its clinical use.
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Objective:To explore the mechanism of rancidity during storage by researching the changes of water content， relative permeability of cell membrane and rancidity levels of Armeniacae Semen Amarum in deterioration process. Method:Armeniacae Semen Amarum samples under different storage conditions were evaluated and classified by sensory assessors， and samples with different levels of rancidity were obtained. Water content was measured by toluene method， and water activity was obtained by water activity meter. Malondialdehyde （MDA） and relative conductivity were measured using thiobarbituric acid colorimetry and conductivity meter， respectively. The content of fatty oil was obtained by Soxhlet extraction. The acid value and peroxide value were measured in accordance with the general rules 0713 and 2303 of the 2020 edition of <italic>Chinese Pharmacopoeia</italic> （part Ⅳ）， respectively. Based on the above experimental data， chemometric methods （cluster analysis， principal component analysis） were selected to establish classification and discriminant models of Armeniacae Semen Amarum with different rancidity levels， in order to verify the accuracy of the classification results. Result:According to the results of sensory evaluation， Armeniacae Semen Amarum samples were divided into three classes， including no rancidity， slight rancidity and rancidity. Compared with the no rancid samples， the color of surface and cotyledon were deepened in rancid samples， and the oil was appeared on surface with rancid taste. The values of water content， water activity， MDA content and relative conductivity were all significantly increased in deterioration process （<italic>P</italic><0.01）. The content of fatty oil was significantly decreased with the occurrence of rancidness （<italic>P</italic><0.01）， while the acid value and peroxide value increased significantly （<italic>P</italic><0.01）. The results of cluster analysis and principal component analysis showed that the rancid samples could be distinguished from the no rancid and slightly rancid samples. Conclusion:The storage conditions under high temperature and high humidity can accelerate the rancidness of Armeniacae Semen Amarum， which is accompanied by the increase of internal water content， the increase of cell membrane permeability and the occurrence of fatty acid rancidity. It is suggested that Armeniacae Semen Amarum should be stored in low temperature， dry environment， as well as short storage time.
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Armeniacae Semen Amarum is one of the most commonly used Chinese medicinal materials， with the homology of medicine and food. It is mild toxicity， in addition to raw product， there are blazed and fried Armeniacae Semen Amarum and other processed products. The prescription， process and quality standard of Chinese herbal preparations containing Armeniacae Semen Amarum in the 2020 edition of Chinese Pharmacopoeia （volume Ⅰ）， were studied and analyzed in this paper. The quality control and safety problems of them were discussed， and the proposals were put forward：①To strengthen the quality control of medicinal materials from the origin， including processing， storage， producing area and so on. ②Production technology is the key factor affecting the safety and effectiveness of preparations， so it is necessary to strengthen the control of production process. ③To strengthen the quality research of Armeniacae Semen Amarum preparations， to develop safety quality control projects， and to further improve the quality standards of Armeniacae Semen Amarum preparations. ④To improve the safety tips of Armeniacae Semen Amarum preparations and standardize the instructions. These suggestions can provide reference for scientific understanding and evaluation of traditional Chinese medicine preparations containing Armeniacae Semen Amarum， in order to promote the quality control level of Chinese medicine preparation containing Armeniacae Semen Amarum and its processed products.
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Medicinal and edible Armeniacae Semen Amarum (ASA) is susceptible to fungal contamination because it is rich in oil and other nutrients. In this study, the fungal community diversity in ASA samples was analyzed based on a DNA metabarcoding technique to provide evidence for its safe use. Twelve batches of ASA samples samples from four medicinal material markets and three processing approaches were collected. Total DNA was extracted, the ITS2 sequences were amplified, and high-throughput sequencing was performed using the Illumina MiSeq PE300 platform. The results show that Ascomycota was the most dominant fungus in ASA samples. The predominant genus in sample SW1_P was Diutina, whereas the most predominant genus in the other samples was Aspergillus. Three harmful fungi were identified, namely, Aspergillus flavus, Wallemia sebi, and Rhizopus arrhizus. In addition, significant differences were observed in the relative abundance of Botryosphaeriales and Alternaria in ASA samples from different collection sites. Meanwhile, there were significant differences in the relative abundance of Hypocreales and Cladosporium in ASA samples from different processing approaches. In summary, the DNA metabarcoding technique can effectively clarify the fungal community diversity and quickly detect potential toxigenic fungi in ASA samples, thus providing a warning for mycotoxin contamination.
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To discuss the effect of deterioration on the quality of Armeniacae Semen Amarum by observing the changes of macroscopic characteristics, active components and rancidness degrees of Armeniacae Semen Amarum in deterioration process. The traditional macroscopic identification was used to observe, identify and classify the morphologic and organleptic characteristics of Armeniacae Semen Amarum. The contents of amygdalin and fatty oil(two representatives of active components) were detected by HPLC and general rule 0713 in Chinese Pharmacopoeia, respectively. Acid value and peroxide value of the samples were selected as the representative indices of different rancidness degrees, and the general rule 2303 was adopted as the method for quantitative analysis. Then principal component analysis(PCA), partial least square analysis discrimination analysis(PLS-DA) were further utilized to establish the discriminative models of samples with different rancidness degrees, and also to screen out the largest contribution factors. In sensory evaluation, Armeniacae Semen Amarum samples were divided into three groups: non-rancid, slightly-rancid, and noticeably-rancid. The color of seed coat, cotyledon and surface of noticeably-rancid samples was deepened, and the odor differed much from non-rancid samples. Average content of amygdalin and fatty oil in non-rancid samples was 4.12% and 67.77%, respectively, both meeting the requirements of Chinese Pharmacopoeia; and decreased to some extent in slightly-rancid samples. However, the content of amygdalin sharply dropped to 0.074% in noticeably-rancid samples. The acid value and peroxide value were increased significantly with the intensifying of the rancidness degree, from only 1.363 and 0.016 74 in non-rancid samples to 1.865 and 0.023 70 in slightly-rancid samples, even doubled in noticeably-rancid samples(2.167 and 0.033 82). The discriminative models established by PCA and PLS-DA could complete the task of distinguishing the non-rancid samples from noticeably-rancid ones. The contribution degree of amygdalin content as one of the input attributes of discriminative model was higher than 1. Rancidness affected the quality of Armeniacae Semen Amarum, resulting in appearance changes, decrease in content of active components, and increase in acid value and peroxide value. Obviously, noticeably-rancid samples were non-conforming to Chinese Pharmacopoeia and no longer suitable for medicinal use. Rancidness can significantly reduce the quality of Armeniacae Semen Amarum, and even could possibly produce toxicity, which should attach more attention.
Subject(s)
Amygdalin , Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid , Drugs, Chinese Herbal , SemenABSTRACT
This study was aimed to develop a simple, rapid and reliable method for identifying Armeniacae Semen Amarum from different processed products and various rancidness degrees. The objective odor information of Armeniacae Semen Amarum was obtained by electronic nose. 105 batches of Armeniacae Semen Amarum samples were studied, including three processed products of Armeniacae Semen Amarum, fried Armeniacae Semen Amarum and peeled Armeniacae Semen Amarum, as well as the samples with various rancidness degrees: without rancidness, slight rancidness, and rancidness. The discriminant models of different processed products and rancidness degrees of Armeniacae Semen Amarum were established by Support Vector Machine(SVM), respectively, and the models were verified based on back estimation of blind samples. The results showed that there were differences in the characteristic response radar patterns of the sensor array of different processed products and the samples with different rancidness degrees. The initial identification rate was 95.90% and 92.45%, whilst validation recognition rate was 95.38% and 91.08% in SVM identification models. In conclusion, differentiation in odor of different processed and rancidness degree Armeniacae Semen Amarum was performed by the electronic nose technology, and different processed and rancidness degrees Armeniacae Semen Amarum were successfully discriminated by combining with SVM. This research provides ideas and methods for objective identification of odor of traditional Chinese medicine, conducive to the inheritance and development of traditional experience in odor identification.
Subject(s)
Drugs, Chinese Herbal , Electronic Nose , Medicine, Chinese Traditional , Semen , Support Vector MachineABSTRACT
Objective:To screen out the active components of Platycodonis Radix-Armeniacae Semen Amarum, predict the targets and signaling pathways, construct the "multi-components, multi-targets and multi-pathways" interaction network and further investigate their molecular mechanism for the treatment of lung carcinoma based on network pharmacology. Method:Active components and corresponding targets of Platycodonis Radix-Armeniacae Semen Amarum were obtained through Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform (TCMSP) and literature consultation. Therapeutic targeted genes of Platycodonis Radix-Armeniacae Semen Amarum in the treatment of lung carcinoma were obtained from UniProt database and Genecards database. The "components-targets" network was constructed by using Cytoscape 3.6.0 software, and the protein-protein interactions network was constructed by String database and "Generate Style From Statistics" tool in Cytoscape software. Its molecular docking with active components of Platycodonis Radix-Armeniacae Semen Amarum was carried out by using Systems Dock Web Site network server. The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) and Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analysis on the therapeutic targets of Platycodonis Radix-Armeniacae Semen Amarum were performed with the Database for Annotation, Visualization Andintegrated Discovery (DAVID). Result:Fourteen active components of Platycodonis Radix-Armeniacae Semen Amarum were screened out, including acacetin, cis-dihydroquercetin, spinasterol, licochalcone B, and luteolin, et al. One hundred and three therapeutic targets were screened out, including nitric oxide synthase 2 (NOS2), prostaglandin endoperoxide synthase 1 (PTGS1), androgen receptor (AR), prostaglandin endoperoxide synthase 2 (PTGS2), and dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP4), et al. Identified signaling pathways mainly involved prostate cancer signaling pathway, small cell lung cancer signaling pathway, hepatitis B signaling pathway and T cell receptor signaling pathway. Conclusion:The possible molecular mechanism of Platycodonis Radix-Armeniacae Semen Amarum for the treatment of lung carcinoma was explored in this study based on network pharmacology, providing the direction for subsequent research.
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Persicae semen has been used for years as a traditional Chinese medicine to treat diseases. Because of their similar morphologies, Persicae semen was commonly inadvertently mixed with Armeniacae semen amarum (a toxic herbal seed). Development of a reliable method for discriminating Persicae semen from its adulterant is necessary to reduce confusion for the drug safety in clinical practices. This study evaluates the efficiency of high-resolution melting (HRM) combined with internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) to analyze Persicae semen. Our findings show that HRM allows not only the identification of adulteration but also the quantification of the most common admixture. HRM sensitivity in adulterant detection was assessed through the analysis of mixing samples with different proportions of Prunus persica and Prunus armeniaca control. The results are presented as a linear regression with r of 0.96 and imply the capability of the method to detect adulteration. In particular, HRM detected seeds of Prunus persica in Prunus armeniaca at concentrations as low as 1%, and commercial products labeled as ‘Persicae semen’ were purchased from markets and could rapid authenticated by HRM analyses. This study is significant in the verification of the authenticity in the quality control of herbal medicine. In the near future, it is promising to be the main trend for identifying traditional Chinese medicinal materials.
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This article aims to compare the qualities of Armeniacae Semen Amarum before and after rancidness, in order to study the rancidness of Armeniacae Semen Amarum. In the experiment, content of fatty oil, acid value and peroxide value were determined before and after rancidness,respectively. Meanwhile, HPLC, GC-MS were utilized to analyze laetrile and fatty acid components. Besides, colorimeter and e-nose were introduced to quantify and compare "color and odor". A correlation analysis was conducted on the above results. The results showed that color of post-rancidness Armeniacae Semen Amarum changed from yellow to brown, with sour and lower content of laetrile. On the contrary, acid and peroxide values increased significantly, with changes in fatty acid component. There was a considerable correlation between appearance characteristics and changes in internal quality. The "sensory analysis-quality identification system" can provide a certain scientific basis for prediction of the content of chemical components in traditional Chinese medicine, preliminary judgment of quality of traditional Chinese medicine and real-time quality monitoring, which offers us novel ideas and reference for storage principles of traditional Chinese medicines of "pre-event prediction, during-event intervention and post-event identification".