ABSTRACT
Objective:To investigate the factors affecting the quality of post-harvest Angelicae Dahuricae Radix （Baizhi） and to provide the corresponding suggestions according to these factors. Method:A series of factors affecting the quality of Baizhi were analyzed comprehensively by visiting several origins， medicinal material markets， pharmacies， supermarkets and storehouses combined with plenty of literature reports. Result:The rot of Baizhi was the most common phenomenon after harvest， and mildew， discoloration and moth could occur during the processes of processing， storage and packaging. So the quality of Baizhi should be controlled strictly through the whole process. The roots of Baizhi should be harvested on sunny days to avoid mining damage and dried as soon as possible to prevent rotting. The drying methods included both traditional lime burial and modern ways such as sulfur fumigation， saline dehydration， sun drying method， and oven drying method. However， the water content should be strictly controlled. Furthermore， the storehouses should be disinfected firstly. The temperature and humidity of the storehouses should be controlled strictly. Some suitable ways could be adopted to prevent moth and discoloration during storage， which included airtight fumigation of aluminum phosphide， cold storage， air conditioning maintenance， antagonism storage with other Chinese medicinal materials， dry ice storage at room temperature， etc. Large quantities of Baizhi were generally packaged in woven bags. Otherwise， kraft paper bags， polyvinyl chloride plastic bags， glass bottles， aluminum foil composite film bags， and other packaging materials had been adopted for the retail. However， the packaging specification should be selected according to the situation. Conclusion:The quality of Baizhi can be directly affected by harvesting， drying， processing， storage and packaging. Scientific and reasonable methods should be adopted to ensure the quality of Baizhi.
ABSTRACT
By using the traditional Chinese medicine inheritance support system (TCMISS) in this study, the prescription rules of Baizhi formulae were analyzed and the core herbal pair "Baizhi-Chuanxiong" was obtained. Through the systemic analysis of prescription rules of "Baizhi-Chuanxiong" and combined with the pharmacology thinking of "Baizhi-Chuanxiong" in treating headache, the paper was aimed to find out the combination rules containing Baizhi andits molecular mechanisms for treating headaches, and provide the theory basis for further research and reference of Baizhi and its formula. Totally 3 887 prescriptions were included in this study, involving 2 534 Chinese herbs. With a support degree of 20% in analysis, 16 most commonly used drug combinations were screened, which were mainly used to treat 15 types of diseases. Baizhi was often used to treat headache, and the core combination "Baizhi-Chuanxiong" was also often used to treat, consistent with ancient record. A chemical database was established; then the headache and migraine disease targets were retrieved and added in the database to build up the "compounds-targets-pathways "core network of "Baizhi-Chuanxiong" by the internet-based computation platform for IP of TCM (TCM-IP). TCM-IP was then applied to study the molecular mechanism of "Baizhi-Chuanxiong" treatment of headache. The results suggested that37 chemical compounds in the core combination "Baizhi-Chuanxiong" were closely related with headache treatment by adjusting serotonin levels or applying to inflammation-related targets and energy metabolism pathways such as purine metabolism, pyruvate metabolism, fatty acid degradation, carbon metabolism and gluconeogenesis.
ABSTRACT
Objective To develop a new method for content determination of chlorogenic acid, ferulic acid, and isoimperatorin in Compound Baizhi Zhitong Capsules through quantitative analysis of multi-components by single-marker (QAMS) method by setting imperatorin as internal standard substance. Methods HPLC was adopted. The chromatographic column of Thermo Hypersil GOLD (4.6 mm×250 mm, 5 μm) was used; the mobile phase was composed of acetonitrile and 0.2％ formic acid in gradient elution; the flow speed was 1 m L/min; the detection wavelength were 320 nm (chlorogenic acid, ferulic acid) and 300 nm (imperatorin and isoimperatorin). The relative analysis correction factors of imperatorin to other three components were established by setting imperatorin as internal standard substance. Results The relative analysis correction factors of chlorogenic acid, ferulic acid, and isoimperatorin in Compound Baizhi Zhitong Capsules were 1.16, 2.00, and 1.00, which had a high reproducibility. There was no significant difference between QAMS and external standard method. Conclusion The QAMS method for Compound Baizhi Zhitong Capsules by setting imperatorin as internal standard substance is accurate and feasible, which can be used as a useful quality control method for Compound Baizhi Zhitong Capsules.