Contribution of prostaglandins to the renal responses to magnesium lithospermate B isolated from salviae miltiorrhizae radix

The involvement of prostanoids in the improvement of adenine-induced renal failure in rats by magnesium lithospermate B was studied. After intraperitoneal administration of magnesium lithospermate B to renal failure rats, the levels of glomerular filtration rate, renal plasma flow and renal blood flow were increased. Urinary excretions of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) and 6-keto-prostaglandin F1 alpha (6-keto-PGF1 alpha) in renal failure rats were increased by the administration of magnesium lithospermate B, while that of thromboxane B2 had no effect. Pretreatment with indomethacin abolished the improving effect of magnesium lithospermate B on renal function concomitantly with markedly suppressed urinary excretion of prostanoids. These results suggest that the increased formation of PGE2 and 6-keto-PGF1 alpha might contribute to the improvement of adenine-induced renal failure in rats by magnesium lithospermate B.     

Discovery of cancer cell proliferation inhibitors from Salviae miltiorrhizae radix et rhizoma by a trace peak enrichment approach

Salviae miltiorrhizae radix et rhizoma is a traditional herbal medicine with anti‐cancer activities. In this work, a trace peak enrichment approach combined with a cell proliferation assay was applied for screening cancer cell proliferation inhibitors from the extract of S. miltiorrhiza. A set of 123 peak fractions were prepared, and by comprehensive screening, 21 tanshinones were screened out as cancer cell proliferation inhibitors and their structures were tentatively identified by liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time‐of‐flight tandem mass spectrometry analysis. The inhibitory activities of nine available screened tanshinones were validated, with their IC₅₀ values ranging from 0.63 to 28.40 μM, indicating their activities strongly inhibit the proliferation of cancer cells. This study presents tanshinones that are potential cancer cell proliferation inhibitors and may explain the anti‐cancer activity of S. miltiorrhiza.     

Antioxidant capacity of abietanes from Sphacele salviae

Carnosol 1, rosmanol 2, carnosic acid 3 and 20-deoxocarnosol 4, the main phenolic abietanes present in aerial parts of the Chilean medicinal plant Sphacele salviae were tested for antioxidant activity of measuring the decay of the radical cation diphenyl-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH). All compounds displayed higher antioxidant levels than BHT under the same conditions and carnosic acid was more efficient than vitamin E.     

Quality assessment of fructus psoraleae

Two newly-reported benzofuran glycosides, named psoralenoside and isopsoralenoside, along with two major coumarins, psoralen and isopsoralen, were simultaneously determined in twenty-three samples of Fructus Psoraleae collected from different growth areas in China. The quantitative method was validated, and the mean recovery rates from fortified samples (n=5) of psoralenoside, isopsoralenoside, psoralen and isopsoralen, were 96.5%, 97.1%, 100.7%, and 99.3% with variation coefficient of 3.1%, 3.6%, 2.3%, and 2.2%, respectively. An interesting biotransformation relationship between the glycosides and the coumarins was revealed on the basis of the quality analysis results. It was also suggested that psoralenoside and isopsoralenoside should be used as key quality markers for Fructus Psoraleae, together with the commonly used psoralen and isopsoralen.     

Determination of marker constituents in radix Glycyrrhizae and radix Notoginseng by near infrared spectroscopy

High-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) methods were developed for the determination of glycyrrhizin in radix Glycyrrhizae and ginsenosides Rb₁, Rb₂, Rc, Rd, Re, Rf and Rg₁ in radix Notoginseng. These methods were used as reference methods for near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy. Spectroscopic calibrations were developed for the determination of glycyrrhizin, the total content of ginsenosides and the individual major ginsenosides Rb₁, Rd, Re and Rg₁. Standard errors of cross validation (SECV) were 1.22 mg g^–1 for glycyrrhizin (concentration range 21.3–34.1 mg g^–1) and 0.99 mg g^–1 for the sum of ginsenosides (concentration range 55.3–¶71.1 mg g^–1). The corresponding coefficients of determination (R²) were 0.94 and 0.98, respectively. The SECVs were generally less than a factor of 2.5 of the repeatability standard deviation of the HPLC methods.     

Determination of marker constituents in radix Glycyrrhizae and radix Notoginseng by near infrared spectroscopy

High-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) methods were developed for the determination of glycyrrhizin in radix Glycyrrhizae and ginsenosides Rb1, Rb2, Rc, Rd, Re, Rf and Rg, in radix Notoginseng. These methods were used as reference methods for near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy. Spectroscopic calibrations were developed for the determination of glycyrrhizin, the total content of ginsenosides and the individual major ginsenosides Rb1, Rd, Re and Rg1. Standard errors of cross validation (SECV) were 1.22 mg g(-1) for glycyrrhizin (concentration range 21.3-34.1 mg g(-1)) and 0.99 mg g(-1) for the sum of ginsenosides (concentration range 55.3-71.1 mg g(-1)). The corresponding coefficients of determination (R2) were 0.94 and 0.98, respectively. The SECVs were generally less than a factor of 2.5 of the repeatability standard deviation of the HPLC methods.     

Chemical constituents of radix Ranunculus ternati

3 Beta-acetoxy-(20S, 22E)-dammaran-22-en-25-ol, a new triterpene, was isolated along with five known triterpenes (ursolic acid, oleanolic acid, betulinic acid, 3-epiocotillol acetate, and dimmarenediol II acetate), and alpha-D-glc and sucrose from Radix Ranunculus ternati All of them, except oleanolic acid and alpha-D-glc, were isolated from the family of Ranunculaceae for the very first time, and the NMR data of sucrose was first described. In addition, the absolute configurations of alpha-D-glc and the glucose component of sucrose were determined.     

Quality assessment of liquid pharmaceutical preparations by HSS-GC-FID

A new headspace gas chromatographic method with flame ionization detection (HSS-GC-FID) was developed and validated for the determination of methanol as the main volatile impurity present in ethanolic pharmaceutical preparations. The use of static headspace sampling minimized the interference of other volatile matrix components and provided satisfactory results in purity assessment of different complex samples. The developed procedure revealed to be rapid, sensitive, reproducible and accurate. The detection and quantification limits of methanol were 0.0003 and 0.0011% (v/v), respectively, and were sufficiently low to enable the estimation of organic volatile impurity according to the ICH guideline as well as the examination of methanol limit specified in European Pharmacopoeia for liquid pharmaceutical preparations. The proposed method was successfully applied to the analysis of diverse alcoholic herbal extracts and tinctures as well as ethanolic dermatological lotions.     

Quality assessment of combinatorial pooled libraries using mass spectrometry

Parallel synthesis techniques aim to prepare collections of single compounds which, once tested, can easily be identified by their sole location in the synthesic array. On the other hand, true combinatorial chemistry produces libraries of compounds as mixtures of variable size which require a deconvolution procedure for identification of the active hits or leads. In the latter case, analytical methods are crucial for the success of the strategy and mass spectrometry plays a major role. If the goal is to identify all the library components, including expected products as well as by-products, various mass spectrometric techniques may be necessary. Library components can be separated according to their mass by increasing mass resolution or by their elution time by coupling liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. The efficiency of such separation techniques are discussed as a function of the size and the degeneracy of the library. Library members possess common structural features which impart similar fragmentation patterns after ionization in the gas phase. This feature can be exploited by tandem mass spectrometry to specifically detect subfamilies of products. Examples of precursor ion scans, product ion scans and constant neutral loss scans will be shown that facilitate partial characterization of libraries. To solve the difficult problem of the quantitative analysis of libraries, i.e., to evaluate their equimolarity, the use of an evaporative light scattering detector (ELSD) or a chemiluminescent nitrogen detector (CLND) is suggested as more appropriate.     

薄层扫描法测定板蓝根中精氨酸含量

板蓝根中除含有靛蓝、靛玉红、β－谷甾醇、锌、铜、铁、镁、钾等25种物质之外,还含有14种氨基酸,总氨基酸含量2．75％,其中精氨酸含量最高（1．94％）^[1-7],本文采用薄层扫描法分析了精氨酸含量。     

中药板蓝根的化学振荡指纹图谱研究

采用振荡技术,研究了中草药及中成药板蓝根-丙酮-溴酸钾-硫酸锰-硫酸的振荡反应新体系的振荡指纹图谱.测定了不同浓度,不同温度下板蓝根的振荡反应图谱,得到了不同温度、浓度下的反应诱导期、振荡周期及振荡寿命,得出诱导期表观活化能Ein=135.054kJ/mol,振荡周期平均活化能Ep=71.802kJ/mol;初步研究此...     

Cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitory cerebrosides from phytolaccae radix

A mixture of cerebrosides, called poke-weed cerebrosides, was purified from Phytolaccae Radix (Phytolaccaceae) and characterized as 1-O-beta-D-glucopyranosides of phytosphingosine type ceramides comprised of a common long chain base (2S,3S,4R,8Z)-2-amino-8-octadecene-1,3,4-triol and fatty acids. The fatty acyl chain of ceramide moieties was determined as (2R)-2-hydroxypentacosanoic acid, (2R)-2-hydroxylignoceric acid, (2R)-2-hydroxytricosanoic acid, (2R)-2-hydroxybehenic acid, (2R)-2-hydroxypalmitic acid, and palmitic acid. The pokeweed cerebroside inhibited the cyclooxygenase-2 dependent phase of prostaglandin D2 generation in bone marrow-derived mast cells in a concentration dependent manner with an IC50 of 6.2 microg/ml.     

Quality assessment of Radix Codonopsis by quantitative nuclear magnetic resonance

Radix Codonopsis (Dangshen) is a famous traditional Chinese medicine and has long been used for replenishing energy deficiency, strengthening the immune system, lowering blood pressure and improving appetite in China, Japan and Korea. A highly specific quantification method using ¹H NMR has been developed for the simultaneous determination of novel quaternary ammonium alkaloids codotubulosine A and B, adenosine and 5-(hydroxymethyl)furfural in Radix Codonopsis materials Codonopsis pilosula, C. pilosula var. modesta, C. tangshen, C. tubulosa, C. subglobosa, C. clematidea, C. lanceolota and Campanumoea javanica collected from different regions of China and Taiwan. A solid-phase extraction with C-18 cartridge followed by elution with water can easily remove sugars the major components that may affect the determination of target constituents. In the ¹H NMR spectrum, the signals of N-CH₃ of codotubulosine A (δ 2.75) and B (δ 2.83), H-8 of adenosine (δ 8.15), and CHO signal of 5-(hydroxymethyl)furfural (δ 9.49) are well separated from other signals in [²H₄]methanol. The quantity of the compounds was calculated by the relative ratio of the integral values of the target peaks of each compound to the known amount of internal standard pyrazine. The described NMR method is found to be relatively simple, specific, precise and accurate for the quality control of Radix Codonopsis herbs and no reference compounds are required for calibration curves, in comparison to conventional HPLC methods, for instance.     

Quality assessment for methodological aspects of microplastics analysis in soil

Over the last several years, a number of studies have concentrated on the occurrence, potential sources, and ecological implications of soil systems. However, the studies’ methodological aspects have received little attention. Thus, this study performed a quality assessment for the methodological aspects of soil microplastics studies by adopting the Criteria for Reporting and Evaluating Ecotoxicity Data (CRED) evaluation method. A total of 35 soil microplastic studies have been evaluated in terms of methodological aspects using 13 criteria, namely, sampling methods and strategy, sample processing and storage, sample size, laboratory preparation, clean air conditions, chemical purity, negative control, positive control, sample pre-treatment, microplastics particle data, particle size, particle shape and polymer type identification. The quality assessment findings indicated that no study scored a maximum of two in all criteria, reiterating the urgent need for enhanced quality assurance for future soil microplastics studies. The average quality assessment scores in soil microplastics studies also indicated that the conditions requiring the most improvement involve both the criteria of positive controls and the criteria of clean air conditions. With a value of zero in 13 assessed criterion, the relevance of the study’s findings in environmental risk assessment was restricted, suggesting that future studies should consider strengthening the implementation and reporting of QA/QC protocol. Adoption of proper quality assurance and contamination control measures will guarantee high data quality and establish confidence in the study’s findings, which allow for reproducibility and comparability as well as acceptability to be utilized in risk assessments.