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Circadian rhythm disorder (CRD) in space flight can lead to memory impairment, performance decrements and adverse health outcomes, the main manifestations of which are circadian desynchronization, sleep loss and insomnia. Sleep deprivation (SD) provide the means to evaluate these effects and the risks associated with CRD on ground. Gastrodia elata Blume (GEB) has beneficial effects on the treatment of sleep disturbances and memory loss. Fresh GEB (FG), an unprocessed raw tuber of GEB, has been used as functional health food in Asian countries for a long time. However, the research report of FG to ameliorate memory impairment caused by insomnia or lack of sleep is meager. In this study, ICR male mice were sleep-deprived continuously and water extract of FG (WFG) was orally administrated (3 and 9 g/kg/d, i.g) during the SD process lasted for 25 days, except control and model groups gavage administration with water, positive control group with modafinil (MOD, 0.1 g/kg/d, i.g). We studied the effect of WFG on CRD-induced learning and memory impairment using a set of behavioral analyses including the object location recognition test (OLRT), novel object recognition test (NORT), and the passive avoidance test (PAT). In addition, oxidative stress parameters were assessed by measuring the malondialdehyde (MDA) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) reactivity in serum and hippocampus. Our results revealed that SD decreased discrimination index (DI) in OLRT and NORT, with shorter latency into the dark chamber in PAT. Both WFG and MOD treatment can reverse these changes (P0.05). We concluded that WFG treatment improve CRD-induced learning and memory impairment and oxidative stress damage which makes FG a promising candidate as herbal health product of memory decline in CRD.

Roxithromycin (ROX) is widespread in the water environment and has been reported to have ecotoxicological effects on aquatic organisms. To improve our understanding of these effects, we selected

To understand the effects of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) on nitrogen transformation in high-altitude rivers, we investigated the influence of the single and combined exposure of sulfamethoxazole (SMX) and 2-ethylhexyl-4-methoxycinnamate (EHMC) at different concentrations (0.01, 0.1, 1.0, 10, and 100 μg·L

The occurrence of emerging pollutants pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) in aquatic environments has potential adverse effects on aquatic organisms, and the presence of PPCPs in drinking water sources is very likely to cause harm to human health. The PPCPs pollution in five typical drinking water sources in Henan province was investigated. Moreover, the source of pollutants was analyzed and the relevant ecological risks were evaluated. The results showed that the cumulative concentrations of 20 PPCPs at different sampling sites ranged from 24.2 to 317.6 ng·L

Free and conjugated forms of ferulic acid (FA) are generally available in higher plant taxa such as Chinese Angelica (CA, the roots of Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels). These various forms of FA were found readily inter-convertible and the extractable level of each depended on solvent properties and acidity. Extraction efficiency using various pH solutions namely, water, 70% methanol, methanol-formic acid (95:5) and methanol-2% NaHCO3 in water (95:5) was compared. Extractable FA were found varying in samples under neutral solvents extraction, whilst relatively consistent for slightly acidic and alkali solvents which were therefore chosen as the optimal media to extract and determine the reproducible levels of free and total available FA. An accurate and rapid high performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) analysis was conducted using an Alltima C18 column (5μm, 4.6mm i.d.×250mm) with a guard column (C18, 5μm, 4.6mm i.d.×7.5mm) at 30℃, eluted with a mixture of 1.0% acetic acid and acetonitrile in a gradient program at a flow rate of 1.0mL/min and detected at 320nm. Altogether 20 different types of CA samples including whole root, root head, rootlets, whole root slice, Angelica processed by Chinese yellow wine, and charred Angelica were quantified for free and total available FA. Total available FA was found more abundant than free counterpart with an average ratio of 3.15 (n=20) in the range of 1.29 to 8.23 for these CA samples. The extraction protocol was proven reliable to quantitatively convert all conjugated FA into its free forms and thereby accurately determined by HPLC method for quality assessment.

The Niyang River is an important tributary of the Yarlong Zangbo River, which is also an important water source in the Gongbujiangda and Linzhi areas of Tibet. In this study, water and sediment samples from 18 sites in the Niyang River were collected. The physical and chemical properties, concentrations of 12 heavy metals, and the microbial community in the sediments were determined. The microbial community structures in the sediments collected in 2017 and 2018 were highly similar at the phylum and genus levels. The most dominant type of bacteria in the sediment of the Niyang River was Proteobacteria. Other dominant bacteria included Bacteroidetes, Acidbacteria, and Actinobacteria. At the genus level, the abundance of

The occurrence and risk assessment of eight typical pharmaceutical active compounds (PhACs) in a receiving water body of wastewater treatment plant effluent were investigated. The results showed that the total concentrations of eight PhACs in summer and winter ranged from 27.6 to 226.4 ng·L

Owing to the widespread use of bisphenol analogues (BPs) as bisphenol A (BPA) alternatives, they have been recognized to constitute a health risk for aquatic ecosystems. The occurrence and distribution of six BPs were investigated in the truly dissolved phase (< 5 kDa), colloidal phase (5 kDa to 1 µm) and suspended particulate matter (SPM > 1 µm) in a water diversion project of Nanjing, China. With the exception of bisphenol Z, all BPs were detected in at least two phases, the total concentrations of detected BPs were 161-613 ng/L, 5.19-77.2 ng/L and 47.5-353 ng/g for the truly dissolved phase, colloidal phase and SPM, respectively. Among the detected compounds, BPA still the dominant BPs in the truly dissolved phase and colloidal phase, followed by BPS, while BPAF was the major contaminant in SPM, followed by BPA. The mean contribution proportions of colloids were 1-2 orders of magnitude greater than that of SPM, suggesting that colloids play an important role in regulating the environmental behaviors of BPs. In terms of spatial distribution, although the water diversion project could reduce the pollution levels of BPs, which might further affect the ecological security of the Yangtze River.

Colloid media are not only an important "sink" for pollutants in the aquatic environment, but also a crucial regulating unit for the biogeochemical cycle of pollutants. In this study, the distribution and environmental risk levels of ten typical pharmaceutically active compounds (PhACs) in the water phase of effluent-receiving rivers were investigated using cross-flow ultrafiltration, solid-phase extraction, and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry as the pretreatment and analysis methods. The results showed that the total concentrations of the ten PhACs in the dissolved phase and colloidal phase ranged from 27.2 to 168.1 ng·L

To assess the quality of Paeonia lactiflora roots by the multi-bioactive chemical markers.Total of66 Paeonia lactiflora roots samples were collected from Sichuan,Zhejiang and Anhui. An UHPLC-DAD technique was employed to quantify the contents of paeoniflorin,hydroypaeoniflorin,abiflorin,pentagalloyglucose,benzoypaeoni-florin,paeonol,gallic and catechin in these samples. These chemical components in each sample were also calculated by Principal Component Analysis( PCA).The eight bioactive components were good separated in 30 min on the UHPLC chromatogram. The correlation coefficients between peak areas and concentration for these bioactive components were not less than 0. 9990( n = 6). And their recoveries were in the range of95. 94% ~ 100. 92%( n = 6). The contents of paeoniflorin in Paeonia lactiflora roots samples collected from Sichuan,Zhejiang and Anhui were 40. 54 mg / g( n = 23),33. 09 mg / g( n = 22) and 39. 47 mg / g( n = 21),respectively. The values of PCA were 0. 4435( n = 23)for the samples from Sichuan,0. 0122( n = 22) for the samples from Zhejiang and- 4. 9850( n = 21) for the samples from Anhui. The content of paeoniflorin in biennial,triennial,four-year,five-year and six-year old Paeonia lactiflora roots were 24. 76( n = 2),37. 17( n= 16),37. 83( n = 23),39. 71( n = 16) and 37. 45 mg / g( n = 7),respectively.The developed method can accurately quantify the content of principal bioactive compounds in Paeonia lactiflora roots. The quality is various among Paeonia lactiflora roots cultivated in Sichuan, Zhejiang and Anhui on the basis of paeoniflorin content or the value of PCA,but the quality of Paeonia lactiflora roots cultivated in Sichuan is the best. Moreover, it is suggested Paeonia lactiflora roots should be harvested in third or fourth year based on the output and quality.

Five herbs named as Chinese Danggui (CDG), Japanese Danggui (JDG), Korea Danggui (KDG), Lovage root (LR) and Angelica root (AR) are widely and confusedly used in eastern and western countries owing to their homonym. These herbs come from different plant species resulting in the variety of bioactive components and medical efficacy. A method combing tri-step IR macro-fingerprinting techniques with statistical pattern recognition was therefore employed discriminate the five herbs in order to assure their genuineness. A total of 26 samples were collected and identified by conventional Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, second derivative infrared (SD–IR) spectroscopy and two-dimensional correlation infrared (2D-COS IR) spectroscopy. CDG and KDG were easily differentiated from others herbs by FTIR and SD–IR spectra. The characteristic peaks of CDG were located at 1068, 1051, 990, 909 and 867 cm −1 , whilst KDG contained the peaks located at 1628, 1565, 1392, 1232 and 1136 cm −1 . By 2D-COS IR spectra, the bands in the range of 950–1110 cm −1 could be a characteristic range to identify the five herbs. There were six auto-peaks located at 978, 991, 1028 (strongest), 1061, 1071 and 1097 cm −1 for CDG, six auto-peaks at 975, 991, 1026, 1053, 1070 (strongest) and 1096 cm −1 for KDG, five auto-peaks at 970, 1009, 1037, 1070 and 1096 (strongest) cm −1 for JDG, five auto-peaks at 973 (strongest), 1009, 1033, 1072 and 1099 cm −1 for LR, and five auto-peaks at 974 (strongest), 1010, 1033, 1072 and 1099 cm −1 for AR. Classification analysis of FTIR showed that these species located in different clusters. The results indicate the tri-step infrared macro-fingerprinting combines with principle component analysis (PCA) is suitable to rapidly and nondestructively differentiate these herbs.

The high resolution and better recovery performance with distributed MIMO radar would be significantly degraded when the target moves at an unknown velocity. In this paper, we propose an adaptive sparse recovery algorithm for moving target imaging to estimate the velocity and image jointly with high computation efficiency. With an iteration mechanism, the proposed method updates the image and estimates the velocity alternately by sequentially minimizing the norm and the recovery error. Numerical simulations are carried out to demonstrate that the proposed algorithm can retrieve high-resolution image and accurate velocity simultaneously even in low SNR.

The combined photocatalysis and ozonation (UV/Ag-TiO2+O3) process has been investigated for its potential use for ballast water treatment by usingDunaliella salina(D. salina) as an indicator microorganism. Inactivation curves were obtained, and the mechanism was studied. Compared to individual unit processes, the combined UV/Ag-TiO2+O3tests yield enhanced inactivation efficiency. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) measurements showed that presence of O3during UV/Ag-TiO2exposure expedited the destruction of cell structure, which was further confirmed by the formation of malondialdehyde (MDA) and decrease in chlorophyll-a (chl-a) concentration. The results suggest that UV/Ag-TiO2+O3was efficient for inactivation ofD. salinain simulated ballast water, and the accelerated destruction of cell structure was an important reason for the enhanced inactivation efficiency.

Objective: To explore the peripheral leucocytic messenger RNA (mRNA) expression of glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β) gene in Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients. Methods: Using TaqMan relative quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, we analyzed leucocytic gene expression of GSK-3β in 48 AD patients and 49 healthy controls. Clinical data of AD patients were also collected. Results: The mRNA expression level of the GSK-3β gene was significantly higher in the AD group (3.13 ± 0.62) than in the normal group (2.77 ± 0.77). Correlational analyses showed that the mRNA expression level of GSK-3β gene in AD patients was associated with the age of onset (P= 0.047), age (P= 0.055), and Behavioral Pathology in Alzheimer's Disease Rating Scale total score (P= 0.062) and subscores: aggressiveness score (P= 0.073) and anxieties and phobias score (P= 0.067). Through multivariate regression model, older age, higher anxieties and phobias score and aggressiveness score were associated with higher mRNA expression level of GSK-3β gene. Conclusion: In AD patients, the mRNA expression level of the GSK-3β gene is increased and may be related to age and behavioural pathology in AD.

In natural product research, it is a common experience that fractionation of biologically-active crude extracts can lead to the loss of their original activity. This is attributed to synergistic effects, where two or more components are required to be present together for full activity of the sample. Our previous study showed that a volatile oil of Angelica sinensis radix (VOAS) inhibited endothelial cell proliferation in culture. Here we have used a bioactivity-guided fractionation method to preserve any synergistic effects of VOAS combining countercurrent chromatography (CCC), the MTS cell viability assay and gas chromatography (GC). Using a two-phase CCC solvent system (heptane–ethyl acetate–methanol–water at a volume ratio of 27:23:27:23%), forty-five fractions were isolated, nine of which exhibited anti-endothelial properties. GC analysis showed two bioactive alkylphthalides, Z-ligustilide and n-butylidenephthalide (BP) were the major compounds detected in the bioactive fractions, and were absent in non-bioactive fractions. Our results indicate that Z-ligustilide and BP are the main constituents responsible for the anti-endothelial properties of VOAS. This rapid and reliable approach in preserving sample activity while isolating and identifying its active compounds suggests that this protocol can be a powerful tool for drug discovery from natural products.

Various processed types of FUZI (the daughter roots of the highly toxic plant Aconitum carmichaeli Debx, FZ) decoction pieces (the herbal materials processed according to the specifications of Chinese medicine manuals; " YINPIAN" in Chinese transliteration) are widely used in traditional medicine to treat various diseases, but their toxicities are not known. Nine types of FZ decoction pieces, including one raw slice and eight processed forms, were therefore prepared, each in 7 to 10 batches, to assess for their toxicity. Altogether 84 FZ samples were quantified on the amount of highly toxic diester diterpenoid alkaloids, i.e., aconitine, mesaconitine and hypaconitine by a newly developed HPLC method with HPLC-DAD and LC-MS techniques. The comparison of the processed FZ to raw slices of the root showed that the amount of each analyte in the processed FZ was drastically decreased. The sum of the three toxic compounds in the 8 types of processed FZ was only 3.91-34.80 % of this value in the FZ raw slice. This implies that the toxicity of processed FZ was decreased significantly. The amounts of toxic components in the 8 types of processed FZ varied significantly, often by a power of ten, indicating that the dosage of these herbs, when prescribed for clinical uses, should be cautiously set in order to avoid poisoning incidents.

Objective To isolate, incubate, and identify 4-chlorophenol-degrading complex bacteria, determine the tolerance of these bacteria to phenolic derivatives and study their synergetic metabolism as well as the aboriginal microbes and co-metabolic degradation of mixed chlorophenols in river water. Methods Microbial community of complex bacteria was identified by plate culture observation techniques and Gram stain method. Bacterial growth inhibition test was used to determine the tolerance of complex bacteria to toxicants. Biodegradability of phenolic derivatives was determined by adding 4-chlorophenol-degrading bacteria in river water. Results The complex bacteria were identified as Mycopiana, Alcaligenes, Pseudomonas, and Flavobacterium. The domesticated complex bacteria were more tolerant to phenolic derivatives than the aboriginal bacteria from Qinhuai River. The biodegradability of chlorophenols, dihydroxybenzenes and nitrophenols under various aquatic conditions was determined and compared. The complex bacteria exhibited a higher metabolic efficiency on chemicals than the aboriginal microbes, and the final removal rate of phenolic derivatives was increased at least by 55% when the complex bacteria were added into river water. The metabolic relationship between dominant mixed bacteria and river bacteria was studied. Conclusion The complex bacteria domesticated by 4-chlorophenol can grow and be metabolized to take other chlorophenols, dihydroxybenzenes and nitrophenols as the sole carbon and energy source. There is a synergetic metabolism of most compounds between the aboriginal microbes in river water and the domesticated complex bacteria. 4chlorophenol-degrading bacteria can co-metabolize various chlorophenols in river water.

The herbal materials of Asian ginseng (the root of Panax ginseng ), American ginseng (the root of Panax quinquefolius ) and Notoginseng (the root of Panax notoginseng ) were differentiated by conventional Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (1D-FTIR) and two-dimensional (2D) correlation FTIR applying a thermal perturbation. Altogether 30 samples were collected and analyzed. Their entire 1D-FTIR spectra in the range of 4000–400 cm −1 and 2D-FTIR spectra in the region of 850–1530 cm −1 were generally similar based on the peaks position and intensities. This indicated the chemical constituents in these species of herbs were not distinctively different. However, variation in peak intensity were observed at about 1640 cm −1 , 1416 cm −1 , 1372 cm −1 and 1048 cm −1 in the 1D-FTIR spectra among these species for their ease differentiation. Clustering analysis of 1D-FTIR showed that these species located in different clusters. Much difference in their second derivative FTIR pattern among the three species also provided information for easy differentiation. These species of herbs were further identified based on the positions and intensities of relatively strong auto-peaks, positive or negative cross-peaks in their 2D-FTIR spectra. The findings provide a rapid and new operational procedure for the differentiation of these notable herbs. The visual and colorful 2D-FTIR spectra can provide dynamic structural information of chemical components in analyte and demonstrated as a powerful and useful approach for herbs identification.

A reverse-phase HPLC method was developed for simultaneous quantification of six bioactive compounds in Rhizoma et Radix Polygoni Cuspidati. These compounds — polydatin (1), resveratrol (2), rhein (3), emodin (4), chrysophanol (5) and physcion (6) — were analysed from 24 authentic samples of the herb using UV HPLC. Based on the UV absorption characteristics of the six compounds, absorption wavelengths of 306 nm were chosen to quantify compounds 1 and 2, and 290 nm for compounds 3–6. A reliable and reproducible quantitative HPLC method for analysing authentic samples of Rhizoma et Radix Polygoni Cuspidati from different cultivation regions was developed. The results showed that the concentration of compound 1 in samples from Sichuan was almost 2-fold higher than that of samples acquired in Guangxi. Furthermore, compounds 3 and 5 were not found in all the samples tested. Thus, instead of using polydatin (1) and emodin (4) as markers for quality assessment, as in conventional practice, these findings show that compounds 2 and 6 are more suited to act as marker compounds for a more specific assessment of the quality of this herb.

A highly precise and accurate method, based on high performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-MS), was developed for the qualitative and quantitative comparison of the main constituents in the rhizome of Ligusticum chuanxiong (LC) and three related umbelliferous medicinal plants. A comprehensive validation of the developed method was conducted, and the method was highly sensitive, reproducible and accurate. The unique properties of the present method were validated by analyzing 20 related herbal samples including 5 LC samples, 5 Cnidium officinale samples (CO), 5 Angelica sinensis samples (AS) and 5 Angelica acutiloba samples (AA). Twelve compounds including phenolic constituents, alkylphthalides and phthalide dimers were identified by online ESI-MS and by comparison with literature data and standard compounds, and six of them were quantified by HPLC-DAD simultaneously. The results demonstrated that identical compound types were identified as the main constituents of LC, CO, AS and AA herbs. The results also support the alternative application of these medicinal plants in Chinese and Japanese folk medicines. In the present study, it was found that the variation in the abundance of senkyunolide A was significant in these related herbs; it is therefore feasible to choose senkyunolide A as a characteristic compound for quality evaluation and chemical authentication of these herbs.

Hydrophobic Fe3O4@SiO2@C18 magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) composites were synthesized. Then it was characterized by TEM, SEM and FT-IR. In combination with HPLC-FLD/VWD, it was applied to extract extract 8 typical PAHs in water. The impact of extraction and analytical conditions on the extraction efficiency were studied in detail. The result shows that Fe3O4@SiO2@C18 MNPs has good extraction effect on the target PAHs. On optimum conditions, the limits of detection, linearity range and relative standard deviation for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons were satisfactory.

To quantity the amount of tetramethylpyrazine in Szechwan Lovage Rhizome (Chuanxiong, the rhizome of Ligusticum chuanxiong Hort., CX) and Cnidium Rhizome(Japanese Chuanxiong, the rhizome of Cnidium officinale Makino, JCX) for quality assessment.An HPLC-DAD-MS technique was employed to detect tetramethylpyrazine in 27 CX and 10 JCX samples. Tetramethylpyrazine was separated on a Waters Symmetry C,, column (250 mm x 4. 6 mm, 5 µm). The mobile phase was methanol-acetonitrile-water(27: 1: 72) at a flow rate of 1. 0 mL/min. The column temperature was 35 °C. DAD detection wavelength was 280 nm, while electrospray ionization detector was set at positive mode to collect MS spectrum.In the total of 37 herb samples, 11 samples were found to contain tetramethylpyrazine with the mean amount of 2. 19 µg/g(n = 11). 6 of 27 CX samples and 5 of 10 JCX sample were found the existence of tetramethylpyrazine with the amount of 0. 60 - 11. 75 µg and 0. 61 - 3. 05 µg/g,respectively. The correlation was not found between tetramethylpyrazine and the cultivation area, morphological character, processing or storage method for CX and JCX samples. It was possible that tetramethylpyrazine resulted from the microbes in soil.The developed method is accurate to quantify tetramethylpyrazine in CX and JCX herbs. Both the two herbs indeed contain tetramethylpyrazine, but it is not suitable to be a chemical marker to assess the quality of CX and JCX owing to low content.

A chemical or DNA fingerprint can be treated as a multi-dimensional vector. Correlation coefficient between two fingerprints which is easy to understand and simple to compute has been widely used to assess the similarity of fingerprints in chemical and Chinese Medicine. In the process of fingerprint examination, we are often confronted with such question on how to assess whether a new tested fingerprint is qualified or not. Usually, the mean or median fingerprint of a group of representative fingerprints measured accurately is regarded as a standard fingerprint, then correlation coefficient between the standard fingerprint and a new tested fingerprint is calculated. The critical value for the correlation coefficient is for assessment of a new tested fingerprint whether it is qualified or not. In this study, a bootstrap method is used to estimate the sampling distribution of the correlation coefficient between the standard fingerprint and a new tested fingerprint under the hypothesis that the new tested fingerprint belongs to the same group with the fingerprints used to construct standard fingerprint. Furthermore, using the simulated distribution we obtain the corresponding critical value as the criteria for fingerprint examination. This method is illustrated using Chinese Angelica (CA) fingerprint data.

An HPLC-DAD-MS method was developed for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of the major constituents in Chuanxiong (the dried rhizome of Ligusticum chuanxiong Hort). Twenty compounds including phenolic constituents, alkylphthalides and phthalide dimers were identified using online ESI-MS and comparisons with literature data and standard compounds, and six of them were quantified by HPLC-DAD simultaneously. A comprehensive validation of the method including sensitivity, linearity, repeatability and recovery was conducted. The linear regressions were acquired with R(2) > 0.99 and limit of detection (LOD, S/N = 3) values were between 1.5 and 2.5 ng. The repeatability was evaluated by intra- and inter-day assays, and relative standard deviation (RSD) values were reported within 1.87%. The recovery studies for the quantified compounds were observed in the range of 96.36-102.37% with RSD values less than 2.63%. These phenolic constituents and alkylphthalides, the major constituents in Chuanxiong, are generally regarded as the index for the quality assessment of this herb. The overall procedure is accurate and reproducible, which is considered suitable for the qualitative and quantitative analyses of a large number of Chuanxiong samples.

The total ash and acid-insoluble ash contents of Chinese materia medica (CMM) have been widely used as one of the indices to illustrate the quality as well as purity of herbal medicines. Such an approach has also been adopted by many official organizations in writing monographs for pharmacopoeia worldwide. In the present study, a full validation on the methodology was conducted with the inclusion of various commonly encountered matrices in herbs, namely, leaf, flower, fruit, stem and root. The practice ensures method suitability for a wider scope of matrix variation in CMM. Moreover, in order to comply with the technical requirement of International Organization of Standardization 17025 quality assurance system, the concept of measurement uncertainty has also been incorporated in the present study. Measurement uncertainties for total ash and acid-insoluble ash contents have been estimated.

A high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) fingerprint of Chinese Angelica (CA) was developed basing on the consistent chromatograms of 40 CA samples (Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels). The unique properties of this HPLC fingerprints were validated by analyzing 13 related herbs including 4 Japanese Angelicae Root samples (JA, A. acutiloba Kitagawa and A. acutiloba Kitagawa var. sugiyame Hikino), 6 Szechwan Lovage Rhizome samples (SL, Ligusticum chuanxiong Hort.) and 3 Cnidium Rhizome samples (CR, Cnidium officinale Makino). Both correlation coefficients of similarity in chromatograms and relative peak areas of characteristic compounds were calculated for quantitative expression of the HPLC fingerprints. The amount of senkyunolide A in CA was less than 30-fold of that in SL and CR samples, which was used as a chemical marker to distinguish them. JA was easily distinguished from CA, SL and CR based on either chromatographic patterns or the amount of coniferyl ferulate. No obvious difference between SL and CR chromatograms except the relative amount of some compounds, suggesting that SL and CR might have very close relationship in terms of chemotaxonomy. Ferulic acid and Z-ligustilide were unequivocally determined whilst senkyunolide I, senkyunolide H, coniferyl ferulate, senkyunolide A, butylphthalide, E-ligustilide, E-butylidenephthalide, Z-butylidenephthalide and levistolide A were tentatively identified in chromatograms based on their atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) MS data and the comparison of their UV spectra with those published in literatures.

Activity of Chinese Danggui (DG), the processed root of Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels, is linked to the ferulic acid content but the stability of ferulic acid during extraction for medicinal use is not known. The stabilities of ferulic acid and coniferyl ferulate were evaluated in the extracts of DG using a variety of extraction solvents. These included various combinations and proportions of methanol, water, formic acid, 1 M aqueous hydrochloric acid and 2% sodium hydrogen carbonate (NaHCO3) in water. Coniferyl ferulate was found liable to hydrolyze into ferulic acid in neutral, strongly acidic and basic solvents, where heat and water could facilitate this hydrolysis. However, the hydrolysis was relatively resisted in weakly organic acid. Based on the stability evaluation, two new terms, namely: free ferulic acid and total ferulic acid, were suggested and defined. Free ferulic acid refers to the natural content of ferulic acid in herbs. Total ferulic acid means the sum of free ferulic acid plus the amount of related hydrolyzed components. Meanwhile, the high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method was developed to assay free ferulic acid and total ferulic acid in DG using methanol-formic acid (95:5) and methanol-2% NaHCO3 in water (95:5) as extraction solvents, respectively. Ten DG samples were investigated on their contents of free and total ferulic acid. The results indicated that the amount variety of free ferulic acid was larger than that of their counterparts, and the ratio of total ferulic acid to free ferulic acid was 4.07 +/- 2.73 (mean +/- SD, n = 10). The chemical assay of DG using total ferulic acid content would be a better choice to assess the herbal quality and was recommended.

A systematic evaluation on the levels of organochlorine pesticide residues (OCP) was conducted on four selected, authentic Chinese materia medica, namely: Radix Angelicae Sinensis, Radix Notoginseng, Radix Salviae Miltiorrhizae and Radix Ginseng. Altogether ten representative batches of samples were analysed for each herb. Six batches were collected in the major cultivation areas of the Mainland whilst the remaining four batches were procured in the Hong Kong herbal market. All except Radix Angelicae Sinensis have been identified as containing quintozene and hexachlorocyclohexane in various levels. Hexachlorobenzene and lindane were also reported in samples of Radix Ginseng. The banned pesticide, DDT and its derivatives, was also observed in one of the Radix Notoginseng samples. The investigation will be continued for a target list of common used herbs in Hong Kong. All the results will be gathered and analysed for setting up regulatory permissible limits of OCP residues in Chinese materia medica used in Hong Kong.

To evaluate the chemical changes in Chuanxiong raw material (CX), the rhizome of Ligusticum chuanxiong Hort., during CX storage and further assess its quality variety.Four CX samples were sealed and stored at ambient temperature in room for two years. These samples were quantified on the amounts of characteristic chemical compounds by HPLC-DAD-(APCI) MS techniques.Eight characteristic peaks in HPLC fingerprint were found to be good separation and assigned as vanillin (1), ferulic acid (2), senkyunolide I (3), senkyunolide H (4), coniferyl ferulate (5), senkyunolide A (6), Z-ligustilide (7) and levistolide A(8), respectively based on their on-line APCI-MS data and UV spectra. After CX being stored, compounds 1 - 4, and 8 were decreased by 44.4%, 52.1%, 37.6%, 52.8% and 47.5% (n = 4), respectively, whilst compounds 5 - 7 were increased by 59.1%, 40.1% and 47.5% (n = 4), respectively.Multiple chemical compounds are found to be changed during CX storage, which results in the variety of quality and therapeutic effect because most of the tested compounds have been demonstrated to be bioactive by pharmacological study and clinical trials. It is suggested that CX should be stored under dark, cool and dry condition.

To explore the peripheral leucocytic messenger RNA (mRNA) expression of glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β) gene in Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients.Using TaqMan relative quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, we analyzed leucocytic gene expression of GSK-3β in 48 AD patients and 49 healthy controls. Clinical data of AD patients were also collected.The mRNA expression level of the GSK-3β gene was significantly higher in the AD group (3.13±0.62) than in the normal group (2.77±0.77). Correlational analyses showed that the mRNA expression level of GSK-3β gene in AD patients was associated with the age of onset (P=0.047), age (P=0.055), and Behavioral Pathology in Alzheimer's Disease Rating Scale total score (P=0.062) and subscores: aggressiveness score (P=0.073) and anxieties and phobias score (P=0.067). Through multivariate regression model, older age, higher anxieties and phobias score and aggressiveness score were associated with higher mRNA expression level of GSK-3β gene.In AD patients, the mRNA expression level of the GSK-3β gene is increased and may be related to age and behavioural pathology in AD.

Semistatic 96h LC50 values of 19 nitroaromatics were determined for the Carp (Cyprinus carpio), and the toxic symptoms were described. QSAR were developed using the LC50 values and six descriptors, 1XV, 1Kα, Σσ−, ELUMO; log P and I. Through muItiplicate regression analysis, one best equation was yielded: −logLC50=3.522+0.926Σσ−-+0. 1731,n= 19, r=0. 907,s=0. 271.The equation was used to estimate LC50 for 16 analogues. Inferred from the remarkable correlation between ELUMO and 1, the indicator variable (1) relates to electron effect or electron affinity of molecular essentially in the series of compounds. According to from the equations, for the compounds studied here,the dinitro compounds (their I, Σσ− and −ELUMO are all high) may be reactive, and the mononitro compounds may be less reactive or nonreactive.

To assess the single and combined effects of estrone (E1) and 17β-estradiol (E2) on goldfish (Carassius auratus).Batch tests were conducted. Serum levels of vitellogenin (VTG) and E2, gonadosomatic indices (GSI), gonadal DNA damage and liver 7-ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) activity were measured after exposure for 14 days.The VTG level increased significantly in a concentration-dependent manner. The serum E2 level was significantly higher and the GSI level was significantly lower in goldfish after exposed to the 3 drugs. DNA damage occurred in treated samples and EROD activity was significantly suppressed 7 days after exposure. The joint effect of E1 and E2 was additive with regard to VTG induction.The results of our study highlight a series of effects of steroidal estrogens on goldfish. Further study is needed to confirm their effect as a whole.

Processing of Chinese Materia Medica (CMM) is a pharmaceutical technique to fulfill the different requirements of therapy, dispensing and making preparations according to traditional Chinese medicine theory. The aims of processing are to enhance the efficacy and/or reduce the toxicity of crude drugs. Those processed products are named as decoction pieces, which are used in clinics. Therefore, there is a close relationship between processing, safety, and efficacy of Chinese medicines. Some toxicity or side effects are caused by improper processing methods and some are due to improper combination of herbal mixtures. Standardization of processing methods for Chinese herbs is as important as authentication to maintain their quality and ensure their safe use. The objective of this paper is to review the literature covering the current situation and problems of CMM processing as well as recent progress in research in this area. A summary of the most urgent work needed is proposed.

Chinese herbal medicines are often referred to as Chinese materia medica (CMM). Composite formulae containing mixtures of CMM are prescribed for treatment and prevention of diseases in the practice of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Some of the well-known CMM formulae (Fufang in Chinese) are manufactured and marketed as proprietary Chinese medicines (PCM). Quality assessment and assurance of these products are difficult; they are a challenging task. Mid-infrared spectroscopy, a classic molecular structure analysis method, has been innovatively applied in the quality control of TCM, and has gained significant impact and advancement in analytical fields. Infrared fingerprinting features appear particularly suitable for the identification of multicomponent matrices in samples whose chemical integrity has not been altered or destroyed because no extraction procedure is needed. This review summarizes and gives an overall view on the application of mid-infrared and two-dimensional correlation infrared (2D-IR) spectroscopy as well as chemometric techniques in the identification of CMM, investigation of TCM processing procedures, and analysis of herb extracts and preparations.

The present study was conducted to assess the effects of effluent from a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) on goldfish in early life stage. Fertilized eggs of the goldfish were exposed to a serial of graded concentrations of the effluent for 30 d. The hatching and survival rates of goldfish were decreased and the freaky rate was elevated with increased effluent concentrations. Additionally, the growth of fry was inhibited, and both body length and body weight were significantly decreased ator =20% of effluent (p0.05). vitellogenin (Vtg) in fry was induced by all exposure concentrations. However, concentration dependence was not apparent. The highest Vtg induction was observed at the exposure of 20% effluent, whereas the induction effects of Vtg were decreased at20% of effluent. After a period of culture in clean water, both body length and body weight of fish were significantly increased, and Vtg levels were significantly decreased (p0.05). The result demonstrates that the exposure of WWTP effluents in early life stage can cause a risk of fish feminization. Goldfish seem to be suitable in assessing environmental impact of endocrine-disrupting chemicals due to their sensitivity in early life stage.

To study the changes of cognitive attention-related brain function in the heroin addicts before and after electro-acupuncture (EA) intervention for exploring the concerned neuro-mechanism of addictive relapse and the central action role of EA intervention.Adopting event-related potential (ERP) technique, the ERP at 64 electrode spots in 10 heroin addicts (test group) were recorded before and after EA intervention with dot-probe experimental form during implementing cognitive task on positive emotional clue (PEC), negative emotional clues (NEC), and heroin-related clue (HRC). The P200 amplitude components on the selected observation points (Fz, Cz, and Pz) were analyzed and compared with those obtained from 10 healthy subjects as the control.Before EA, the ERP of attention on HRC in the test group was higher than that on PEC and NEC (P0.05) and significantly higher than that in the control group (P0.05); after EA, the P200 amplitude of attention on HRC at Cz and Pz was significantly lowered (P0.05) and that on PEC at Fz was significantly elevated (P0.05). After EA, the P200 amplitude at Pz was ranked as NECPECHRC, but in the control group, it showed PECHRC at all three observation points and PECNEC at Pz.Heroin addicts show attention bias to HRC, which could be significantly reduced by EA intervention, illustrating that EA could effectively inhibit the attention bias to heroin and so might have potential for lowering the relapse rate.

Acute toxicity of substituted aromatic hydrocarbons and their mixtures to river bacteria was determined by the bacterial growth inhibition test. The median inhibition concentration IC50 values for 17 single compounds and IC50mix values for 22 mixtures were obtained. The joint toxic effects of mixtures were estimated by using toxic unit and mixture toxicity index method, the mixtures of 3,4-dichloroaniline and anilines mainly exhibited simple addition or partial addition effects, whereas the mixtures of 3,4-dichloroaniline and phenols showed synergism effects. The quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) models for single chemical toxicity and joint toxicity were developed by using the lgarithm of n-octanol/water partition coefficient and the energy of the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital as structural descriptors. The QSAR models contain polar narcotics and reactive compounds, and can be used successfully to predict joint toxicity of a mixture containing 3,4-dichloroaniline, whether binary mixtures in variant toxic ratios or multiple mixtures of three or four chemicals are used as predictors.

This paper addresses a comprehensive and comparative study of six phytochemical extraction methods for triterpenes from the fruiting body of Ganoderma spp. Quantitative analysis of extracts was performed by HPLC with photodiode array detection. In general, pressurized liquid extraction and microwave-assisted extraction under optimized conditions produce better yields, and the former also significantly reduces the total time of extraction and manipulation of a sample, as well as the amount of solvent used in comparison with conventional soxhlet, reflux, ultrasonic, and methanol-CO(2) supercritical fluid extractions. Based on the improved extraction protocol, the fingerprinting profiles for two species of Lingzhi were established using the consistent chromatographic features of 12 authentic samples. Eleven common peaks of ganoderic/ganoderenic acids were identified using LC-ESI-MS-MS. These specific triterpene groups were adopted as chemical markers for Lingzhi. Using chemometric analysis, the developed fingerprinting was successfully applied to differentiate between the two species under the Ganoderma genus and is applicable as a method for quality evaluation of this valuable medicinal fungus and its related proprietary products.

Objective: To observe heroin abstainers’ cerebral functional changes of cognitive attention on the heroinrelated cue, positive and negative emotional cues before and after electroacupuncture intervention, and to explore the possibly involved neural mechanism in relapse and central principles of electroacupuncture intervention. Methods: Magnetic resonance imaging technique as well as Block and Dot-probe event-related stimulating modes were used to compare and analyze images obtained from fMRI-BOLD technique before and after electroacupuncture intervention. Results: In the attention shift task, significantly stronger activation intensity was shown in the dorsolateral frontal cortexes, inferior frontal gyri, anterior cingulate cortexes and left corpus striatum after electroacupuncture treatment. In the attentional bias task, after electroacupuncture treatment, the activation volume of the dorsolateral areas of the left frontal lobe decreased significantly, and the activation intensity of the right superior parietal lobule increased. Conclusions: Heroin abstainers showed significantly higher attentional bias to visual drug-related cue than to positive and negative emotional cues, and they had higher attentional bias to the processing of negative emotion than to the positive emotional cue. Electroacupuncture intervention could obviously lower the attention level of heroin abstainers to the drug-related cue, inhibit the susceptibility of heroin abstainers to negative emotion and promote the rehabilitation of cognitive function of emotion of the brain.

Ethnopharmacological relevance An ethnobotanical survey was conducted to collect information on the use of medicinal plants by the Hakka living in Guangdong. Aim of the study This investigation was to document valuable knowledge represented by Hakka herbal medicine. Materials and methods Information was obtained from semi-structured interviews, personal conversations with practitioners, direct observations, and by reviewing studies of Hakka and Cantonese reported in the literature. Results Our data covered 94 species belonging to 77 genera in 40 families. We found that most species used for medical purposes were for hepatitis (14 species) and skin diseases (12 species). These disorders are prevalent and are primarily treated with medicinal plants. For treatment, the plants were mainly used as teas (Luica, Bugingca and Lopedca), medicinal baths and soups. The Hakka and non-Hakka people living in Guangdong use different medicinal plants and, in some cases, use the same medicinal plants differently. Conclusions The fast disappearance of traditional culture and natural resources due to urbanization and industrialization suggests that unrecorded information may be lost forever. Thus, there is an urgent need both to record this valuable Hakka medicinal knowledge and to encourage its transfer to the next generation.

To identify the bacteria tolerating chlorinated anilines and to study the biodegradability of o-chloroaniline and its coexistent compounds.Microbial community of complex bacteria was identified by plate culture observation techniques and Gram stain method. Bacterial growth inhibition test was used to determine t he tolerance of complex bacteria to toxicant. Biodegradability of chlorinated anilines was determined using domesticated complex bacteria as an inoculum by shaking-flask test.The complex bacteria were identified, consisting of Xanthomonas, Bacillus alcaligenes, Acinetobacter Pseudomonas, and Actinomycetaceae nocardia. The obtained complex bacteria were more tolerant to o-chloroaniline than mixture bacteria in natural river waters. The effects of exposure concentration and inoculum size on the biodegradability of o-chloroaniline were analyzed, and the biodegradation characteristics of single o-chloroaniline and 2, 4-dichloroaniline were compared with the coexistent compounds.The biodegradation rates can be improved by decreasing concentration of compounds and increasing inoculum size of complex bacteria. When o-chloroaniline coexists with aniline, the latter is biodegraded prior to the former, and as a consequence the metabolic efficiency of o-chloroaniline is improved with the increase of aniline concentration. Meanwhile, when o-chloroaniline coexists with 2,4-dichloroaniline, the metabolic efficiency of 2,4-dichloroaniline is markedly improved.