Identification of Tibetan medicinal plants of Aconitum genus by ITS2 sequences / 中草药

Objective The complex morphological variation and sources of Tibetan medicinal plants from Aconitum genus make it difficult to identify the medicinal materials correctly. In addition, the toxicity of these materials could be a huge challenge for the safety of drug use. A rapid and accurate method for the identification and classification of Tibetan medicinal herbs of Aconitum genus was built by using ITS2 sequences as DNA barcodes. Methods A total of 50 samples of Aconitum chasmanthum, A. liangshanicum, A. kongboense, A. gymnandrum, A. pendulum, A. tanguticum, A. phyllostegium, A. campylorrhynchum, A. Polyschistum, and A. sessiliflorum were collected from the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. PCR amplification and sequencing of ITS2 sequences were conducted after the extraction of DNA. Genetic distance, neighbor joining (NJ) phylogenetic tree and secondary structures of ITS2 sequences were analyzed using MEGA 6.0. Results The maximum distance between species was greater than the minimum distance within each species, NJ tree showed that the samples went to 12 separate branches, differences among the secondary structures of ITS2 sequences also made it clear to identify these species. Conclusion Using ITS2 sequence as DNA barcode can be an accurate and rapid method for identification and recognition for Tibetan medicinal plants of Aconitum genus, which provides a reliable technical means to ensure safety use of these Tibetan medicines.

Study on the Identification of Ferulic Medicinal Plants Based on DNA Barcode ITS2 Sequence / 中国药房

OBJECTIVE:To establish a rapid,accurate and standardized DNA barcode identification method for the ferulic me-dicinal plants. METHODS:Genomic DNA was extracted from Ferula sinkiangensis K. M. Shen and Ferula fukanensis K. M. Shen,ITS2 sequences were amplified and sequenced,analytical similarity search method was conducted,13 species 26 samples gene ITS2 sequences of ferulic medicinal plants in GenBank database were downloaded and comparatively analyzed;interspecies and intraspecies genetic distances were calculated,and phylogenetic tree was developed for cluster analysis. RESULTS:According to calculation,species genetic distances of the 15 species ranged 0.009-0.230,average genetic distance was 0.018;results of clus-ter analysis showed DNA barcode ITS2 sequences can cluster the 32 kinds of ferulic medicinal plants into different classes. CON-CLUSIONS:The established DNA barcode ITS2 sequences identification method can accurately and rapidly identify the genuine and false samples of ferulic species.