Effect of drying processing methods on different specifications of Sophorae Flos based on comprehensive statistical analysis / 中国中药杂志

To investigate the effects of six common drying methods on the quality of different specifications of Sophorae Flos, in order to select their suitable drying methods. According to appearance and morphology, Sophorae Flos was divided into the following three specifications: flower bud type(HL), half-open type(BK) and blooming type(SK). All specifications of samples were treated with shade-drying method(25 ℃, natural temperature), sun-drying method, hot-air-drying method(60, 105 ℃), and drying method(60 ℃) after steaming. The contents of total flavonoids, rutin, narcissus, quercetin, isorhamnetin, and Fe~(3+) reducing ability, DPPH free radical scavenging ability, ABTS free radical scavenging ability and fluorescence recovery after photobleaching(FRAP) were detected by UV, HPLC and colorimetry, respectively. Principal component analysis(PCA), cluster analysis(CA) and correlation analysis were used to comprehensively evaluate the quality of samples. According to the results, there were significant differences in the effect of drying methods on different specifications of samples. The drying method(60 ℃) after steaming was suitable for HL and BK, while the hot-air-drying method(60 ℃) was suitable for SK. When the fresh medicinal materials could not be treated in time, they should be spread out in a cool and ventilated place. Under high and low temperature conditions, the quality of three specifications of Sophorae Flos would be reduced. The hot-air-drying method(105 ℃) and shade-drying method(25 ℃) were not suitable for the treatment of fresh flowers and flower buds of Sophora japonicus. There were obviously differences of chemical compositions and antioxidant activities among the three specifications of samples. Therefore, the specifications of medicinal materials should be controlled to ensure the uniform quality. The study provided the abundant data reference for the selection of appropriate drying methods for the three specifications of Sophorae Flos, and useful exploration for the classification and processing of medicinal materials of flowers.

Multi-component and antioxidant activities analysis in different parts of Sophora japonica / 中草药

Objective: To provide a basis for the rational use of Sophora japonica resources through comprehensive evaluation of different tissues and organs. Methods: The contents of rutin, narcissin, quercetin, isorhamnetin and heavy metals in the samples were detected by HPLC and ICP-OES. The Fe3+ reducing ability, DPPH free radical (DPPH•), ABTS free radical (ABTS•+) scavenging ability and total antioxidant capacity (FRAP) were detected by colorimetry. Then, cluster analysis (CA) and principal component analysis (PCA) were conducted by software of SPSS 20.0. Results: The total contents of four flavonoids in different tissues and organs of S. japonica were arranged as follows: flower buds > flowers > flower axis > leaves > branches. The order of antioxidant capacities was as follows: flower buds > flowers > flower axis > leaves > branches, which were positively correlated with the total contents of four flavonoids. The contents of five heavy metal elements in flowers and flower buds were within the limitation of the Green standards of medicinal plants and preparations for foreign trade and economy, while the Cd element in some leaves, flower axis and branches was beyond the standard. Flowers and flower buds were clustered into one type by CA, while flower axis, leaves and branches were clustered into another category. The two principal components (PC1 and PC2) were extracted from the eight variables by PCA, PC1 showed significant differences among different tissues and organs, and PC2 values showed large differences among batches. Conclusion: The flowers and flower buds of S. japonica showed an excellent qualities, including safe doses of heavy metals, rich flavonoids and outstanding antioxidant activities. In addition, the flower axis and leaves also contained high flavonoids and exhibited strong antioxidant activities, which had the value of further development and utilization.

Effects of different preparation technologies on concentrations of puerarin and catalpol in plasma and brain of rats after oral administration / 中国中药杂志

To compare the effects of different preparation technologies on the concentrations of puerarin and catalpol in plasma and brain of rats after oral administration, in order to lay an experimental basis for developing new oral Zige preparations. The nanocrystal, self-microemulsions (tween-80 and Cremophor RH-40 as emulsifiers) and inclusion complex of HP-β-CD containing puerarin and catalpol were prepared. The concentrations of puerarin and catalpol in plasma and brain of rats after oral administration were determined by HPLC-MS/MS method. The pharmacokinetic parameters and brain target index were compared. The results showed that preparation technologies had different influences on the concentrations of puerarin and catalpol in plasma and brain. The self-microemulsion (tween-80) could significantly increase the oral absorption of puerarin than other technologies(P<0.05), and inclusion complex could remarkably increase the oral absorption of catalpol than nanocrystal(P<0.01). For puerarin, the brain targeting index of inclusion complex was the highest (P<0.05); but for catalpol, the brain targeting index of inclusion complex and self-microemulsions were both higher than nanocrystal (P<0.05). The self-microemulsion(tween-80) had the highest AUCbrain of puerarin than other groups (P<0.01); the inclusion complex had the highest AUCbrain for catalpol, but there was no significant difference compared with self-microemulsions. In conclusion, the self-microemulsion (tween-80) technology could increase the amount of puerarin and catalpol in brain, and was expected to be used in new oral Zige preparations.

Borneol promotes oral absorption and penetration into brain of puerarin and catalpol / 中国中药杂志

To investigate the effect of borneol on the oral absorption and penetration into brain of puerarin and catalpol from cell level and animal level, and screen the concentration of borneol that is suitable for Zige compound oral preparation. Blood-brain barrier(BBB) model was established by co-culture of primary brain microvessel endothelial cells(BMEC) and astrocytes(As) in rats, and it was used to investigate the effect of borneol(concentration from 6.25 to 100 mg•L⁻¹) on the transport of puerarin and catalpol. The pharmacokinetics of puerarin and catalpol in plasma and brain of rats were compared after intragastric administration of borneol solution (0, 25, 50 and 100 mg•kg⁻¹) immediately followed by puerarin(200 mg•kg⁻¹) and catalpol(45 mg•kg⁻¹) nanocrystal suspension. Barrier function was basically formed after co-culturing of brain microvascular endothelial cells and astrocytes for 7 d. The permeability of puerarin and catalpol across blood-brain barrier was increased significantly(P<0.05) and transendothelial electrical resistance(TEER) values at 2 h were decreased significantly(P<0.01) when the concentration of borneol was between 12.5 to 100 mg•L⁻¹ as compared with the control group. Borneol at the dose of 50 mg•kg⁻¹ and 100 mg•kg⁻¹ could significantly increase the oral absorption of puerarin(P<0.05), but there was no obvious effect for catalpol. AUCbrain/AUCblood for puerarin was highest with borneol at dose of 100 mg•kg⁻¹ (P<0.05), while AUCbrain/AUCblood for catalpol was highest with borneol at dose of 50 mg•kg⁻¹ (P<0.05). AUCbrain was highest at 100 mg•kg⁻¹ for puerarin(P<0.05); while for catapol, it was highest at 50 mg•kg⁻¹, but it was not significantly different from 100 mg•kg⁻¹. In conclusion, borneol could increase the amount of puerarin and catalpol in brain after oral administration and the optimized dose shall be 100 mg•kg⁻¹.

Sequence analysis of alpha-amylase inhibitors genes with resistance to insects in wheat and Aegilops / 生物工程学报

The alpha-amylase inhibitors have been proposed as possibly important weapons against pests. Thus, it is of importance to identify the specificity of them. Based on the EST data of alpha-amylase inhibitor genes that were retrieved from NCBI, BBSRC and GrainGenes, two PCR primers were designed. The coding sequences of 24 kD dimeric alpha-amylase inhibitors with resistance to insects in 17 wheat and Aegilops accessions were investigated and 17 new genes were obtained. Only one 24 kD alpha-amylase inhibitor gene was found in each diploid wheat and Aegilops accession, whereas 8 genes were characterized from one hexaploid wheat variety, indicating that the 24 kD alpha-amylase inhibitors in hexaploid wheat were encoded by multi-gene. The deduced amino acid sequences of 2 genes from common wheat and 1 gene from Ae. tauschii were the same as the sequence of the inhibitor 0.19, and the deduced amino acid sequence of another gene from common wheat was similar to the inhibitor 0.53 with only one amino acid difference. The amino acid sequences of 24 kD dimeric alpha-amylase inhibitors shared very high coherence (91.2%). These results suggest that the alpha-amylase inhibitors in 24 kD family were derived from common ancestral genes by phylogenesis.