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A pot experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of UV-B radiation on sensitive index (SI) synthetically formed by the height, leaf area and biomass, and on the accumulation of rosmarinic acid (RA) and salvianolic acid B (SAB) of Salvia miltiorrhiza in two growth periods. The results showed the SI in the shoot vigorous growth and harvesting periods both decreased with the increasing UV-B radiation, but the SI in the latter period was even less. The RA and SAB contents in the leaves increased with the increasing UV-B radiation, and the increment was greater in the harvesting period than in the shoot vigorous growth period. The RA and SAB contents decreased in the roots, and decreased with the increasing UV-B intensity and duration. Total contents of RA and SAB in roots decreased to 10.0% and 6.3% of the control under the high UV-B intensity in the harvesting period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drought is one of the most important abiotic factors limiting plant growth, development and survival. Due to global warming, the drought episodes in the future will become more frequent and severe. Therefore, the plant responses to drought stress, especially the drought-resistant mechanisms, have been a focus of the studies. This paper summarized the plant growth and physiological responses to drought stress, and proposed a staged response strategy of plants for the adaptation to natural drought stress. Overall, from drought initiation to drought-induced death, plants experienced five stress stages with increasing drought intensity, i. e. , drought initiation-mild drought-moderate drought-severe drought-extreme drought, and the plant responsive and adaptive process in this whole event could be acute response-active adaptation to mild and severe drought stressespassive adaptation to extreme drought stress. The essential function of the plant drought-resistant mechanisms varied with drought stress stages. Some key scientific problems and research directions about the staged response characteristics of plants to drought stress needed to be solved urgently in the future were pointed out. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Taking two-year old Periploca sepium seedlings as test materials, an experiment with controlled soil water contents was conducted to study the effects of repeated drying and re-watering on the leaf photosynthetic characteristics and the lipid peroxidation and antioxidant system in young leaves , mature leaves, old leaves , new stems , and fine roots. The seedlings were subjected to three cycles of drying and re-watering, with regular irrigation to maintain the soil water content at around 80% of field capacity as the control (CK). Under drying, the leaf relative water content ( RWC) and net photosynthesis rate (Pn) decreased significantly, while the leaf photosynthetic pigments content increased. When the seedlings were re-watered, their leaf RWC recovered to the CK level, showing a strong repair capacity after drying. Both the leaf chlorophyll content and the Pn after repeated drying and re-watering presented a higher level than those of the CK, indicating a compensatory effect appeared and an appropriate drought stress being able to induce the adaptability of P. sepium to drought stress. Stomatal closure was the main factor limiting P. sepium photosynthesis under drought stress, while non-stomatal limitation only worked at noon. Under drying, the superoxide anion radical ( O2... ) production rate in young leaves, new stems, and fine roots increased while the malondialdehyde ( MDA) contents decreased, suggesting that these young tissues were not suffered from the oxidative stress. The activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) , catalase (CAT) and per-oxidase ( POD) in different organs had different variation trends, with those in fine roots changed actively, suggesting the important role of fine roots in the acclimation of P. sepium to drought environment. It was the cooperation and coordination among plant organs that made P. sepium more adaptive to the repeated drying and wetting conditions in drought-prone regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To reveal the law of the proportion consistency of the active components in Chinese medicine and explore a new way to evaluate the quality of Chinese medicine, the present study investigated the content of tanshinone Ⅱ_A, cryptotanshinone, tanshinone Ⅰ, salvianolic acid B, rosmarinic acid, caffeic acid, and lithospermic acid in 895 samples of Salvia miltiorrhiza from 87 literature articles. The samples with salvianolic acid B and tanshinones(total content of tanshinone Ⅱ_A, tanshinone Ⅰ, and cryptotanshinone) meeting the requirements of Chinese Pharmacopoeia were analyzed for proportion consistency of components, and the proportion distribution of components was compared. The results showed that the proportions in and between tanshinones and salvianolic acids were stable. The content ratios of cryptotanshinone to tanshinone Ⅱ_A, rosmarinic acid to salvianolic acid B, and salvianolic acid B to tanshinone Ⅱ_A fluctuated from 0.1 to 1.7, from 0.02 to 0.14, and from 10 to 60, respectively. It indicated that the content proportions of different components were not fixed, but fluctuated in a certain range. The fluctuation range of components in the same group was small, but that in different groups was large. The content proportions of active components were stable for Chinese medicinal materials with fixed varieties or origins. The samples whose content proportions were out of the fluctuation ranges were generally unqualified medicinal materials. We proposed a "three-dimensional multi-component" quality evaluation model of Chinese medicine based on the above findings. Specifically, "three-dimensional" means to accurately evaluate the quality of Chinese medicine from varieties, proportions, and content of active components, and "multi-component" means to highlight the information of multiple components in Chinese medicine, especially the quality markers and equivalent component groups. The proportion of components in Chinese medicine can be used as an important index for the quality evaluation of Chinese medicine. The proportions of active components are stable in Chinese medicinal materials with fixed varieties or places of origin.

Salvia miltiorrhiza(Sm) and Salvia castanea f. tomentosa(Sc) hairy roots were used as experimental materials to study the effects of six different carbon sources, galactose, fructose, lactose, glucose, arabinose and sucrose(control), on fresh weight, dry weight, contents and yields of salvianolic acids and tanshinones. The results showed that galactose was most beneficial to the growth of two kinds of hairy roots, while lactose and arabinose were not conducive to their growth. As for Sm hairy roots, fructose significantly promoted the accumulation of salvianolic acid B, and the content increased by 5.801 times and 10.151 times compared with the control group, respectively. Glucose significantly promoted the accumulation of salvianolic acids. The content and yield of rosmarinic acid were 7.674 times and 9.260 times of that of the control group, and the content and yield of salvianolic acid B were 5.532 times and 6.675 times of the control group. For the hairy roots of Sc, galactose significantly increased the content and yield of rosmarinic acid, reaching 7.820 times and 9.944 times of the control group, respectively. Fructose promoted the increase of the content and yield of cryptotanshinone, reaching 9.242 times and 6.609 times of the control group, respectively. The study confirmed the optimal carbon source for the hairy root culture of Sm and Sc, and provided theoretical guidance for large-scale production of Sm drug-derived components and the utilization of Sc.

The interaction of endophytes and host plant is an effective mean to regulate the growth and secondary metabolism of medicinal plants. Here we want to elucidate the effects and mechanism of Phoma herbarum D603 on the root development and tanshinone synthesis in root of Salvia miltiorrhiza by endophyte-plant coculture system. The mycelium of P. herbarum D603 was colonized in the root tissue space, and formed a stable symbiotic relationship with host plant. The in vitro activities analysis showed that the concentration of IAA produced by D603 can reach(6.45±0.23) μg·mL~(-1), and this strain had some abilities of phosphorus solubilization and siderophore production activities. The coculture experiment showed that strain D603 can significantly promote the synthesis and accumulation of tanshinones in the root of S. miltiorrhiza, in which after 8 weeks of treatment with D603, the content of tanshinone Ⅱ_A in the roots reached up to(1.42±0.59) mg·g~(-1). By the qRT-PCR analysis results, we found that D603 could improve the expression levels of some key genes(DXR, DXS, GGPP, HMGR, CPS) of tanshinone biosynthesis pathway in host plant S. miltiorrhiza, but the promoting effect mainly occurred in the early stage of the interaction, and the enzyme activity level decreased in varying degrees of the later stage. In summary, seed-associated endophyte P. herbarum D603 can promote the growth and root development of S. miltiorrhiza by producing hormones, promoting nutrient absorption and siderophore production, and promote the synthesis and accumulation of tanshinones by regulating the expression level of key genes in the synthetic pathway in S. miltiorrhiza.

GRAS transcription factors play important roles in the regulation of plant root growth and GA signaling. In this study,SmGRAS3 gene was cloned,which open reading frame was 2 247 bp,and encoding 748 amino acids. The physicochemical properties and structure of SmGRAS3 and its encoded protein were analyzed by bioinformatics software. This gene belongs to the SCL9 subfamily of the GRAS family,and its promoter sequence mainly contains the light response,stress response,and hormone response elements. It may interact with the GA signal pathway and anti-stress related proteins. The subcellular localization showed that SmGRAS3 protein was mainly located in the nucleus. The expression pattern analysis showed that the expression of Sm GRAS3 was the highest in the root and the lowest in the stem,and both light and low temperature could induce the high expression level of SmGRAS3. This study provides a foundation for further study on the roles of SmGRAS3 gene in the root growth and stress tolerance of Salvia miltiorrhiza.

Polyporus umbellatus,a traditional Chinese precious medicine as long been used for eliminating dampness,diuresis and have effect on cancer,getting more and more popularly in China recently. And the developmental metabolic process of the medicinal fungus,P. umbellatus,has been gotten more attention. This study is for the first time to explore the three sclerotial growth stages in P. umbellatus,named " white Polyporus"( initial phase), " grey Polyporus"( developmental phase) and " black Polyporus"( mature phase),by utilizing the de novo transcriptome assembly analysis technology. Finally,we obtained 88. 12 Gb sequence containing85 235 unigenes( ≥200 bp) assembled and 100% were annotated. We identified genes differentially expressed among the three stages of the sclerotia and screened out MFSgst,ERG4/ERG24,WD40,Rho A,CYP450,PKS,GSase and CHS1,which may contribute to the production of medicinal secondary metabolites and the defense mechanism against the environmental stress and biological invasion. We did the qRT-PCR trial to verify our results,which is in line with expectations. Our results are purposed to unearth the molecular mechanism of the accumulation of active constituents in different stages of Polyporus sclerotia which can be applied in the production and protection of Polyporus effectively.

In order to study the correlation between the traits of Andrographis paniculata. The main agronomic traits and the content of four kinds of diterpene lactons were measured by the seedlings and the unmutagenized seeds carried by the spacecraft,and multiple comparisons,correlations and principal component analysis were carried out. The results showed that the agronomic traits of A. paniculata have different degrees of difference after being carried by space. The contents of diterpene lactones were quite different. The variation coefficients of deoxyandrographolide content,fresh weight,leaf dry weight,dehydrated andrographolide content,dry weight,neoandrographolide content and andrographolide content were all over 35%. There was a significant correlation between multiple traits,and the leaf weight ratio was significantly positively correlated with the number of primary tillers,leaf dry weight and dry weight,and was significantly negatively correlated with the content of deoxyandrographolide. Andrographolide content was a significantly negatively correlated with the number of leaves and the number of primary tillers,and positively correlated with the other three lactones. Five principal components were extracted from principal component analysis,and the cumulative contribution rate was 83. 127%,which were yield factor,plant type factor,leaf type factor,component factor and seed weight factor. Among the traits affecting the quality of A. paniculata,the yield factor for reliability of the selection of A. paniculata is higher than other factors. There are abundant variations among the traits of A. paniculata,carried in space which increase the genetic diversity. The principal component analysis method can be used to select the principal component factors according to the breeding requirements,which provides a theoretical basis for the breeding of high-yield and high-quality A. paniculata and the high-yield and stable cultivation of A. paniculata.

The family of flavonoid 3-O-glucosyltransferase catalyzes the modification of anthocyanin from unstable-structure to stable-structure. In this study,based on homology cloning and transcriptome library,we isolated the full-length c DNA of UDP-glucose: flavonoid 3-O-glucosyltransferase( named SmUF3GT) from the flower tissues of S. miltiorrhiza. This gene was consisted of 1 353 bp open reading frames( ORF) encoding 450 amino acids. And the SmUF3GT protein was performed for the bioinformatic analysis. Our results showed that the protein was preliminary localized in the Golgi and peroxisome of cytosol,as well as plasma membrane and cell nuclear.QRT-PCR analyses indicated that SmUF3GT expressed differently in all tissues and organs but roots of S. miltiorrhiza and S. miltiorrhiza f.alba. During floral development,the expression of SmUF3GT showed a trend of rising fist and then down in purple-flower Danshen,whereas decreasing sharply fist and then slowly in white-flower Danshen. The present study provides basic information for further research on the network of synthesis and accumulation of flavonoids in S.miltiorrhiza.

Based on high-throughput sequencing and metagenomic technology,the community composition and ecological functions of endophytic fungi in the bark of Eucommia ulmoides from three producing areas,Fengxiang town in Zunyi county of Guizhou province,Lingyang town of Cili county of Hunan province and Mumen town of Wangcang county of Sichuan province,were analyzed. A total of110 865 effective sequences of endophytic fungi were obtained in the study. The corresponding fungal group of OTUs after clustering belonged to 3 phyla( Ascomycota,Basidiomycota,Zygomycota),10 classes,25 orders,41 families,57 genera and 74 species. Among them,the dominant genera of Sichuan Wangcang Bark of E. ulmoides( EWP) was an unclassified genus in the Nectriaceae of the Crimsonaceae,with a relative abundance of 54. 79%; The dominant species of Hunan Cili Bark of E. ulmoides( ECP) was the unclassified genus of Ascomycota,with a relative abundance of 39. 97% and the dominant species of Guizhou Zunyi bark( EZP) was Lophiostoma,and its relative abundance was 47. 07%. The analysis of α diversity indicated that the shannon diversity index of endophytic fungi from different places was as follows: ECP: 1. 340 2>EZP: 1. 380 4 > EWP: 1. 168 3. The simpson diversity index was: EWP( 0. 427 3) >EZP( 0. 332 5) > ECP( 0. 313 6). FUNGuild software platform analysis displayed that endophytic fungi of E. ulmoides bark from three producing areas contained the following 14 functional groups: plant pathogen,animal pathogen and endophyte et al.,the number of functional groups in the 3 samples of E. ulmoides reached up 8 genera and exceeded one half of the total number. Correlation analysis of Canonical correspondence analysis( CCA) between endophytic fungal community diversity and four active compounds of E. ulmoides were analyzed,the results showed that the contents of pinoresinol diglucoside and chlorogenic acid,to a certain extend,had a positive correlation with an unclassified genus of Davidiellaceae,Mortierella,Chaetomium and Pestalotiopsis from the endophytic fungi in EWP sample.

The research studies the effect of different fertilization treatments on yield and accumulation of secondary metabolites of Codonopsis pilosula by using single factor randomized block design, in order to ensure reasonable harvesting time and fertilization ratio, and provide the basis for standardized cultivation of C. pilosula. According to the clustering results, the nitrogen fertilizer benefitted for the improvement of root diameter and biomass of C. pilosula. The phosphate fertilizer could promote the content of C. pilosula polysaccharide. The organic fertilizers could increase the content of lobetyolin. With the time going on, C. pilosula's yield, polysaccharide and ehanol-soluble extracts increased while the content of lobetyolin decreased. According to various factors, October is a more reasonable harvest period. Organic fertilizers are more helpful to the yield and accumulation of secondary metabolites of C. pilosula., Competing Interests: The authors of this article and the planning committee members and staff have no relevant financial relationships with commercial interests to disclose., (Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.)

The industry of Chinese medicinal materials is going through another high-level development stage with some important files issued by Chinese government in the past months, such as "the protection and development plans of Chinese medicinal materials (2015-2020)" and "the strategic development plans of Chinese medicine (2016-2030)". In addition, the effect of "TU Youyou" will not only improve the industry development, but also indicates the increasing international competition intensely. Therefore, one of the core problems of the sustainable-development industry is the training of senior talents under the "New Situation" with opportunity and intense competition. As one of the forefront courses of Chinese Pharmacology, Molecular Pharmacognosy (MP) is a new interdisciplinary science, which integrates the pharmacognosy and molecular biology, and combines many discipline theories and technological systems. MP not only inherits the traditional concepts,but also makes up for the shortages of pharmacognosy, and improves the development of pharmacognosy. Thus, these are importance of MP for cultivation of senior talents, and also the difficult teaching points of MP with no unified teaching mode. We will, in this paper, discuss the possible teaching modes through several aspects for talent cultivation and meeting the needs of social and industry development, such as teaching state of MP, the education of undergraduate and graduate students, social identity, and self renewal of curriculum theories and practice., Competing Interests: The authors of this article and the planning committee members and staff have no relevant financial relationships with commercial interests to disclose., (Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.)

Sucrose non-fermenting 1-related protein kinase 2(SnRK2) plays a key role in abiotic stress signaling in plants. In this study, we cloned a SmSnRK2.4 gene belonging to subclass I of SnRK2 from Salvia miltiorrhiza by screening its transcriptome database. The SmSnRK2.4 gene contains 8 introns and 9 exons, with a 1 068 bp open reading frame encoding a polypeptide of 355 amino acids, the predicted molecular mass of which is 40.63 kDa. Prokaryotic expression of SmSnRK2.4 protein using pMAL-c2X as the expression vector displayed that the recombinant protein of SmSnRK2.4 gene in E. coli was consistent with the predicted size. A 3 000 bp promoter sequence of SmSnRK2.4 contained some stress-responsive elements and hormone-responsive elements. Quantitative real-time PCR analysis revealed that the expression of SmSnRK2.4 in root was much higher than that in stem and leaf, SmSnRK2.4 was strongly induced by PEG stress, weakly induced by ABA stress. This research provided a basis for further study of the SmSnRK2.4 gene playing the role in accumulate mechanism of secondary metabolites in S. miltiorrhiza under drought., Competing Interests: The authors of this article and the planning committee members and staff have no relevant financial relationships with commercial interests to disclose., (Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.)

There is distinctive advantage of using male sterile lines to breed new cultivar and produce hybrids, when compared with general breeding method on yield and quality. In our previous work, near-isogenic lines (NILs) of male sterile and fertile Salvia miltiorrhiza have been obtained through continuous hybridization in many years. In this investigation, 378 primer combination were screened by using AFLP and BSA technique, in which 26 markers amplified from seven primers were found to tightly link to male sterile gene. Based on these markers, two linkage genetic maps were constructed. A 2 027,2 028 bp fragment was amplifed from NILs of fertile and sterile S. miltiorrhiza, respectively, using genome walking technique and previous E11/M4-208 marker as template. Four base mutations were found in intron when comparing both fragments. Among all different markers between NILs of male sterile and fertile S. miltiorrhiza, four was found to have 100% identities to chromosome 1, 3 and 5 of Arabidopsis, namely, E01/M09-418, E05/M13-308, E05/M04-750 and E01/M01-204. The E01/M09-418 marker was very close to male sterile gene of S. miltiorrhiza with distance of 2.1 cM, which also had 100% identities to male sterile gene MS2 in Arabidopsis. Both were distributed in chromosome 3 of Arabidopsis. The 2 028 bp fragment also had 100% identities to MS2 gene. Another E05/M04-750 marker that had 100% identities to chromosome 5 of Arabidopsis was found to have high identities to POP085-M05 gene of poplars and low affinity calcium antiporter CAX2 of Arabidopsis with very low E-value. The constructed genetic map and differential fragments with potential functions found in this study provide a solid foundation to lock male sterile genes in S. miltiorrhiza genome and to discover their functions., Competing Interests: The authors of this article and the planning committee members and staff have no relevant financial relationships with commercial interests to disclose., (Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.)

To research the expression of key enzymes in saikosaponin biosynthesis and the content of saikosaponin under the drought stress, the study focused on the gene-level and the end product responses to environmental change. Taking the five months of Bupleurum chinense as research materials, the contents of saikosaponin A and saikosaponin D under different stress levels were measured by HPLC. The drought was simulated by poly ethylene glycol. The real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR was used to analyze the expression of four key enzymes genes HMGR, IPPI, FPS, β-AS and the expression of β-tubulin was set as a reference gene. The results showed that drought stress significantly improved the content of saikosaponin. The contents of SSa and SSd were highest researching 0.648% and 0.781%, respectively when the concentration of PEG was 10%. Meanwhile, the results reflected that the expression of four key enzymes had risen differently and FPS, β-AS raised significantly(P<0.01). In addition, the results of correlation analysis showed that there was a significant positive correlation between the expression of the four key enzymes genes and the content of saikosaponin. In a word, the contents of secondary metabolites were regulated by the expression of key enzymes genes under the drought stress in B. chinense., Competing Interests: The authors of this article and the planning committee members and staff have no relevant financial relationships with commercial interests to disclose., (Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.)

In this study, the growth and accumulation of active components of Salvia miltiorrhiza in twenty two experimental sites which crossing through three typical climate zones. The S. miltiorrhiza seedlings with the same genotype were planted in each site in spring, which were cultivated in fields with uniform management during their growing seasons till to harvest. The diterpene ketones (dihydrotanshinone, cryptotanshinone, tanshinone I and tanshinone II(A)) in S. miltiorrhiza root samples were determined by using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method. The biomass of root (root length, number of root branches, root width and dry weight) was also measured. The results showed that tanshinone II(A) in all samples of each site were higher than the standards required by China Pharmacopoeia. It has been found there is a relationship between root shape and climate change. The correlation analysis between active components and meteorological factors showed that the accumulation of tanshinones were effected by such meteorological factors as average relative humidity from April to October > average vapor pressure from April to October > average temperature difference day and night from April to October > annual average temperature and so on. The correlation analysis between root biomass and meteorological factors exhibited that root shape and accumulation of dry matter were affected by those factors, such as average annual aboveground (0-20 cm) temperature from April to October > annual average temperature > average vapor pressure from April to October > annual active accumulated temperature > annual average temperature > average vapor pressure from April to October. The accumulation of tanshinones and biomass was increased with the decrease of latitude. At the same time, the dry matter and diameter of root decreased if altitude rises. In addition, S. miltiorrhiza required sunlight is not sophisticated, when compared with humid and temperature. To sum up, S. miltiorrhiza can adapt to a variety of climatic conditions and the southern warm humid climate is more conducive to its growth and accumulation of active components.

A pot experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of UV-B radiation on sensitive index (SI) synthetically formed by the height, leaf area and biomass, and on the accumulation of rosmarinic acid (RA) and salvianolic acid B (SAB) of Salvia miltiorrhiza in two growth periods. The results showed the SI in the shoot vigorous growth and harvesting periods both decreased with the increasing UV-B radiation, but the SI in the latter period was even less. The RA and SAB contents in the leaves increased with the increasing UV-B radiation, and the increment was greater in the harvesting period than in the shoot vigorous growth period. The RA and SAB contents decreased in the roots, and decreased with the increasing UV-B intensity and duration. Total contents of RA and SAB in roots decreased to 10.0% and 6.3% of the control under the high UV-B intensity in the harvesting period.

In the present study, 16S rRNA gene sequencing based approaches were used to analyze the bacterial communities and diversity in the precipitation samples from Shanghai city, which were carried out in different months in 2012. Five clone libraries were established based on the rainwater samples collected during 5 different precipitation periods. The results showed that Proteobacteria (alpha-, beta-, gamma-) (32.5% - 94.1%) were dominant in the precipitation, including Alphaproteobacteria, Betaproteobacteria, and Gammaproteobacteria, while other 6 bacterial communities, such as Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria, Deinococcus-Thermus, Cyanobacteria, Acidobacteria, and Firmicutes, were involved as well. Furthermore, a small proportion of undetermined bacteria (TM7, 2.5%) were also found. In addition, microbial diversity in the sample of SH6 was obviously more than those in other samplers. The investigation revealed that there was a difference in the bacterial communities and diversity in precipitation of different months.

Our previous research indicated that the Streptomyces pactum Act12 (Act12) had a certain promotional effect on tanshinone accumulation and up-regulated the expression of genes 3-hydroxy-3-methyglutaryl-CoA reductase (HMGR) and 1-deoxy-d-xylulose-5-phosphate reductoisomerase (DXR) in Salvia miltiorrhiza hairy roots. This study focuses on the roles of reactive oxygen species in S. pactum Act12-induced tanshinone production in S. miltiorrhiza hairy roots. The 4% Act12, 4% Act12 + CAT and 4% Act12 + SOD were added to S. miltiorrhiza hairy root and subcultured for 21 days, the dry weight, contents of reactive oxygen species, contents of tanshinones and expression of HMGR and DXR were determined at different harvest-time. The generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in S. miltiorrhiza hairy roots was triggered by 4% Act12 treatment. The relative expressions of genes HMGR and DXR in 4% Act12 treatment were 32.4 and 4.8-fold higher than those in the control. And the total tanshinone in the hairy roots was 10.2 times higher than that of the control. The CAT and SOD could significantly inhibit the ROS accumulation and relative expressions of genes HMGR and DXR in 4% Act12 treatment, which induced the total tanshinone content was decreased by 74.6% comparing with the 4% Act12 treatment. ROS mediated Act12-induced tanshinone production. The Act12 may be via the ROS signal channel to activate the tanshinone biosynthesis pathways. Thereby the tanshinon content in hairy roots was increased.

In order to discover light quality's effects on growth, photosynthesis and effective components content of Panax notoginseng, a pot experiment using 7 light qualities (red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, violet, and blue) was conducted. The growth, photosynthesis and content change of effective components were measured during plant growth. The results showed that light qualities had significant effect on plant growth, red light increased the plant height, while cyan, yellow, violet, and blue lights promoted accumulation of biomass underground, blue and yellow lights increased the photosynthesis, cyan light increased accumulation of ginsenoside Rd, yellow and cyan lights increased total effective components of individual plant.

Drought is one of the most important abiotic factors limiting plant growth, development and survival. Due to global warming, the drought episodes in the future will become more frequent and severe. Therefore, the plant responses to drought stress, especially the drought-resistant mechanisms, have been a focus of the studies. This paper summarized the plant growth and physiological responses to drought stress, and proposed a staged response strategy of plants for the adaptation to natural drought stress. Overall, from drought initiation to drought-induced death, plants experienced five stress stages with increasing drought intensity, i. e., drought initiation-mild drought-moderate drought-severe drought-extreme drought, and the plant responsive and adaptive process in this whole event could be acute response-active adaptation to mild and severe drought stresses-passive adaptation to extreme drought stress. The essential function of the plant drought-resistant mechanisms varied with drought stress stages. Some key scientific problems and research directions about the staged response characteristics of plants to drought stress needed to be solved urgently in the future were pointed out.

Objective: To identify risk factors of obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) in female patients, and assess its treatment and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of the patients., Methods: One hundred and ninety three female patients undergoing polysomnography whith sleep breath disorders were recruited and divided into non-OSAHS group and OSAHS group. Age, body mass index (BMI), and prevalence of menopause and hypertension were compared between the two groups. The associations of those variables with apnea hypopnea index (AHI) and lowest pulse oxygen saturation (LSpO2) were analysed. The treatment of OSAHS and its impact on HRQoL assessed by the Calgary quality of life index (SAQLI) were evaluated., Results: The OSAHS group had greater mean age, BMI, and prevalence of menopause and hypertension than the non-OSAHS group (P<0.05). Those variables were significantly correlated with AHI and LSpO2 (P<0.05). Weight control and positional therapy were the most common treatment for sleep breath disorders. Weight loss and continuous positive airway pressure improved the Epworth sleep scale (ESS) of the patients with OSAHS significantly (P<0.05). But positional therapy made no difference (P>0.05). The ESS of the 32.5% of patients who did not undergo any treatment was worsened during the same period of time (P<0.05). No differences were found in the scores of the four domains of SAQLI between the two groups (P>0.05). The stepwise multiple regression analysis identified Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI), ESS and AHI as independent predictors for the total score of SAQLI (P<0.05)., Conclusion: Older age, greater BMI, menopause and hypertension are risk factors of OSAHS in female patients. OSAHS was not well managed in female patients. PSQI, ESS and AHI can be used as predictors for HRQoL.

Objective: To evaluate the severity of punctate white matter lesions (PWML) in neonatal brain injury with susceptibility weighted imaging (SWI) and explore the value and limitation of SWI versus the conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)., Methods: A total of 34 neonates presenting with PWML at initial MRI were recruited for this prospective study. PWML were defined as punctuate lesions with T(1) hyperintensity and T(2) isointensity or hypointensity in white matter. There were 21 males and 13 females with a median age of 9.24 days (range: 2 - 17 days). All MRI examinations were performed at 1.5 Tesla unit including conventional MRI (T(1), T(2) & Flair sequences), DWI and SWI. PWML were classified into two groups: (1) T(1) hyperintensity & T(2) isointensity; (2) T(1) hyperintensity & T(2) hypointensity. The manifestations of PWML on SWI were analyzed., Results: Among all cases, only 5 cases (14.7%) demonstrated an evidence of hemorrhage on SWI. There were 7 cases in Group 1. Only 1 case showed punctate hypointensity in the areas of PWML on SWI while there was no hemorrhage on SWI in other 6 cases. Twenty-seven cases were in Group 2. Only 4 cases showed an evidence of hemorrhage on SWI while hemorrhage was absent on SWI in other 23 cases., Conclusion: Most areas of PWML in neonatal brain show no hemorrhage on SWI. And SWI can help to identify whether or not hemorrhage is present in PWML of neonates.

Taking two-year-old Periploca sepium seedlings as test materials, an experiment with controlled soil water contents was conducted to study the effects of repeated drying and re-watering on the leaf photosynthetic characteristics and the lipid peroxidation and antioxidant system in young leaves, mature leaves, old leaves, new stems, and fine roots. The seedlings were subjected to three cycles of drying and re-watering, with regular irrigation to maintain the soil water content at around 80% of field capacity as the control (CK). Under drying, the leaf relative water content (RWC) and net photosynthesis rate (Pn) decreased significantly, while the leaf photosynthetic pigments content increased. When the seedlings were re-watered, their leaf RWC recovered to the CK level, showing a strong repair capacity after drying. Both the leaf chlorophyll content and the Pn after repeated drying and re-watering presented a higher level than those of the CK, indicating a compensatory effect appeared and an appropriate drought stress being able to induce the adaptability of P. sepium to drought stress. Stomatal closure was the main factor limiting P. sepium photosynthesis under drought stress, while non-stomatal limitation only worked at noon. Under drying, the superoxide anion radical (O2-*) production rate in young leaves, new stems, and fine roots increased while the malondialdehyde (MDA) contents decreased, suggesting that these young tissues were not suffered from the oxidative stress. The activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and peroxidase (POD) in different organs had different variation trends, with those in fine roots changed actively, suggesting the important role of fine roots in the acclimation of P. sepium to drought environment. It was the cooperation and coordination among plant organs that made P. sepium more adaptive to the repeated drying and wetting conditions in drought-prone regions.

Objective: To detect the expression of CD25 and FOXP3 in mouse asthma model, and the effect of dexamethasone (DXM) on it., Methods: BALB/c mice were randomly divided into three groups which were of normal control group, asthmatic group and DXM treatment group. The pathological changes of lungs were detected by HE staining. The expressions of CD25 and FOXP3 from lungs were evaluated by Western blot and RT-PCR. The expression of FOXP3 from bone marrow of asthmatic group and DXM treatment group were detected by RT-PCR., Results: The expression of FOXP3 in asthmatic group and DXM treatment group was significantly higher than that of normal control group (P < 0.05), DXM could promote the expression of FOXP3 (P < 0.05). The expression level of CD25 in asthmatic group and DXM treatment group was higher than that of normal control group (P < 0.05), but no significant difference was observed between asthmatic and DXM treatment groups (P > 0.05). Expressed FOXP3 mRNA in bone marrow were detected in both asthmatic and DXM treatment groups, but higher expression level was observed in DXM treatment group., Conclusion: The expression of CD25 and FOXP3 increased in mouse asthma model, DXM could promote the expression. Cells in bone marrow could express FOXP3, DXM maybe promote the expression of FOXP3.

Objective: To investigate the relationship between clinical features of patients with A/H5N1 infection and their prognosis in mainland China., Methods: This study included 28 human cases with A/H5N1 infection in mainland China from October 2005 to May 2008. Data were collected and reviewed from hospital medical records and publishied papers. A database was built by EPIDATA 3.02 and statistical analyses were performed with SPSS 13.0., Results: The median age of the 28 cases was 29 years (range 6-62), and 15 were females. Ten patients survived, and 18 died. The typically clinical manifestations of human influenza A/H5N1 infection included fever and lower respiratory infection. The numbers of peripheral white blood cells, lymphocytes and platelets in the survival and non-survival groups were (4.01 +/- 1.86) x 10(9)/L vs (5.1 +/- 2.9) x 10(9)/L, (1.09 +/- 0.49) x 10(9)/L vs (0.98 +/- 0.44) x 10(9)/L, and (116 +/- 39) x 10(9)/L vs (101 +/- 40) x 10(9)/L, respectively; the differences were not statistically significant between the 2 groups (P>0.05). There was also no statistically significant difference in the increased serum enzymes, such as aspartate aminotransferase [(173 +/- 246) U/L vs (272 +/- 263) U/L], lactate dehydrogenase [(1016 +/- 568) U/L vs (1512 +/- 1052) U/L], creatine kinase [(1099 +/- 1590) U/L vs (2534 +/- 4281) U/L] and MB isoenzyme of creatine kinase [(28 +/- 30) U/L vs (125 +/- 197) U/L] (P>0.05) between the survival and the non-survival groups. However, there was a statistically significant difference in the number of patients with an initial LDH level more than 8 fold of the normal value between the survival and the non-survival groups (none vs 6, P<0.05). All of the 28 cases developed bilateral multiple infiltrates and consolidation in chest radiographs. Acute respiratory distress syndrome occurred in 22 cases, 17 of them died. All the 9 patients with acute kidney injury died. Ten patients received antiviral treatment with oseltamivir, and 6 of them survived. There was a statistical difference in the time of initiating oseltamivir treatment between the survival and the non-survival cases [(6.5 +/- 3.0) d vs (11.8 +/- 3.3) d, Z = 3.70, P<0.05]. Broad spectrum antibiotics and corticosteroids were administered in all of the 28 cases. There was no statistical difference between the survival and the non-survival groups regarding to the corticosteroid treatment (P>0.05)., Conclusions: Initial LDH level reaching more than 8 fold of the normal value suggests a poor prognosis for human H5N1 infection. Patients complicated with either ARDS or acute kidney injury had a higher risk of death. Early administration of effective antiviral agents might improve the prognosis and decrease case fatality.

Objective: To assess the impact of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) on the quality of life and economic burden in Chinese urban areas., Methods: COPD patients (n = 723) were interviewed face-to-face in outpatient departments in 6 large cities in China. The questionnaire included social and demographic information, current health status, quality of life (SGRQ), and medical expenditure on outpatient visit, hospitalization, medicine purchasing in medicine stores in the last 12 months, and other expenditures related with COPD were also collected. All the data were analyzed using descriptive method., Results: Of the 723 COPD patients interviewed, 73% were male and the average age was 67 years old. The average symptom score of SGRQ was 49 +/- 24, activity score 57 +/- 23, impact score 46 +/- 23 and total score 50 +/- 21, which were all higher than scores of the healthy populations. The average direct medical cost (including outpatient cost, inpatient cost, and medicine purchasing cost) was 11 744 RMB yuan annually. The direct non-medical cost (including transportation fee, nutrition fee, and nursing fee) was 1570 RMB yuan. 36% of the patients in work had an average of 17 working days lost in the last 12 months because of COPD, while 17% of their relatives had an average of 14 working days lost for caring the patients., Conclusions: COPD has a serious impact on the quality of life of Chinese urban patients and places a heavy economic burden on their family and the society. Management of COPD should be improved for patients at stable conditions, so as to reduce the incidence and exacerbation of COPD.

Objective: To investigate respiratory care equipment, operators and conditions of performance in intensive care units (ICU), with the aim of providing data for standardization and developing respiratory care in China., Methods: A questionnaire survey was performed in one national and two international conferences in August, 2006. Four hundred and ninety-one doctors and nurses from 320 ICUs in 264 tertiary hospitals responded., Results: Ratios of invasive and noninvasive mechanical ventilators to beds were 0.52:1 (2 189/4 185) and 0.16:1 (672/4 185), respectively. Of 320 ICUs, ratios of ICU equipped with ultrasound, jet nebulizers and MDI were 55.9% (179/320), 33.8% (108/320) and 12.1% (39/320), respectively, and percentages of doctors in charge of setting modes and parameters, weaning and extubation were 92.1%, 93.1%, 83.5%, respectively. Suction (93.9%), humidification (90.2%), aerosol therapy (91.6%) and circuit changing (83.7%) were nurses' duties. Among 491 responders, 40.9% of them implemented spontaneous breathing trials (SBT) before weaning, 13.4% were ignorant of it, and 12.8% never. 27.1% of ICU never monitored air temperature during invasive mechanical ventilation, 34.4% provided humidification by instilling or pumping saline continuously for those patients who were weaned from ventilators but not extubated, 55.6% checked ventilator before use. Ventilator circuits were changed once a week in 48.1%, 1-3 days in 25.0% and 3-5 days in 14.7%., Conclusion: The quantity of ventilators in the ICU has increased, but other practical respiratory care equipment have not been used widely. Most of respiratory care services are still provided by nurses and doctors, lacking professional staffs. The management is evidently variable but without a standardized guideline.

Objective: To study and establish the GC fingerprint of essential oils of 10 batches the flower of Lonicera japonica., Method: The essential oils were extracted by steam distillation from ten batches of the flowers, then separated by capillary gas chromatography., Result: The similarity of 10 batches of the flower of L. japonica was high., Conclusion: The method was reliable, and can be used to evaluate the quality of the flower of L. japonica.

The fibrous roots are the residues of production of cut crude drug of Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza). Enzymatic pretreatment and ultrasonic extraction are beneficial to extract effective constituents from fibrous roots more effectively. The present research was to optimize the enzymatic parameters by the central composite design and response surface method. Under the best conditions, the yields of total tanshinones and total salvianolic acids in the extracts of enzymatic pretreatment increased by 113.92% and 30.64%, comparing with the non-enzymatic extraction, respectively. TLC analysis also showed that the types of effective constituents in the two samples were not affected by enzymatic hydrolysis. Meanwhile, the complex correlation coefficients of the mathematical models were high, which provided a good prediction.

Having digested the root and shoot of Astragalus membranaceus (Fisch.) with the mixture of nitric acid and perchloride acid (4 : 1) under the condition of the bolling point and the normal pressure, the contents of the five mineral elements necessary to humanity, potassium, copper, zinc, iron and manganese in root and shoot of Astragalus membranaceus (Fisch.) were determined by flame atomic absorption spectroscopy (FAAS), and the results were analyzed in statistics. The correlative coefficient of the standard curve in this method is 0.997 3-0.999 9, the recovery of standard addition was 92.88%-109.25% and the relative standard deviation (RSD, n = 5) was 0.393 5%-3.175 2%. The method is simple and the results were accurate and reliable. The contents of K, Fe, Zn, Mn, Cu in the root and shoot of Astragalus membranaceus (Fisch.) were compared. The results showed that the sequence of the content of metal elements is as follows in all samples: K > Fe > Zn > Mn > Cu. However, the distribution of elements in shoot and root is not uniform, and the content of Fe, Zn and Cu in root is richer than in shoot. There are abundant Fe, Zn and Cu in root, for example, the content of Fe in root is 1.54 times that in shoot. In addition, there are also abundant mineral elements in the shoot, especially in K and Mn, for example, the content of K in shoot is 1.63 times that in root. The contents of K, Fe, Zn, Mn and Cu in shoot are in agreement with the medical effects of Astragalus membranaceus (Fisch.). The results should provide useful data for investigating the distribution of mineral element in Astragalus membranaceu body and the correlation between the mineral element content and the effect of medicine in Astragalus membranaceus (Fisch.).

Objective: To study difference among populations which belong to Astragalus membranaceus and A. membranaceus var. mongholicus on morphology, habit, characteristics of physiology and resistance to powdery mildew, and classify them in order to provide theoretical basis for breeding and improving varieties., Method: Morphology, habits, isozyme and soluble protein electrophoretograms were compared among the populations. They were categorized by cluster analysis based on those electrophoretograms. Different ability of resistance to powdery mildew was also studied through comparing disease indices among six populations., Result: The results showed A. membranaceus var. mongholicus was distinctly different from A. membranaceus. There was a special type in colonies of A. membranaceus, which showed hairy upper epidermis of leaflets and later florescence., Conclusion: Astragalus for medicine could be categorized in three types A. membranaceus var. mongholicus, A. membranaceus early florescence type and A. membranaceus late florescence type. Among them A. membranaceus var. mongholicus is most resistant to powdery mildew, while A. membranaceus is easily infected, and the early florescence type is even more easily infected.

To illustrate distribution of fat-soluble compounds in the roots, stems and leaves of four Salvia plants, the methods of Histochemistry and HPLC were adopted to analyze different parts of the four Salvia plants in this paper. The results showed that distribution was differential, and following as this: the roots, stems and leaves of four Salvia plants contained fat-soluble compounds, moreover, the fat-soluble compounds of the roots located in periderm and the stems and leaves in epidermis. The main components of the fat-soluble compounds were Tanshinone IIA, Tanshinone I and Dihydrotanshinone I in the toots of Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge and Salvia miltiorrhiza bge. f. alba, yet there were only Tanshinone IIA in the roots of Salvia japonica and Salvia officinalis. And fat-soluble compounds were not Tanshinone IIA, Tanshinone I and Dihydrotanshinone I in the stems and leaves of four Salvia plants. The type and content of fat-soluble compounds related to the species and introduction regions, they changed with the species and introduction regions. The conclusion clarified the accurate distribution of fat-soluble compounds in the different parts of four Salvia plants, and provided some theoretical basis for the application of Chinese herbs.

Objective: To study the effect of water stress on the growth and accumulation of active components of Isatis indigotica., Method: By pot culture experiment,the characteristic indexes of water requirement, chlorophyll content, transpiration rate, photosynthesis, biomass and effective ingredient indirubin were studied under normal and water stress conditions, respectively., Result: With the increase of the extent and duration of water stress, the quantity of water requirement, chlorophyll content, respiration rate, photosynthesis and biomass of I. indigotica were decreased, while water use efficiency increased., Conclusion: It is a critical period of water requirement in July, high water content in soil and extreme water stress are not propitious to the accumulation of indirubin, appropriate water stress can stimulate indirubin accumulatio. The harvest of leaves of I. indigotica is optimal in July, while the harvest of root is appropriate in October. Yield and quantity of I. indigotica are improved when the field capacity is between 45% and 70%.

Objective: To study Astragalus membranaceus absorption characteristic of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium at different growth stages., Method: Through the field experiment and the sampling analysis, the absorbing capacity of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium as well as the growth of plant at different growth stages in A. membranaceus were analyzed., Result: The dry matter accumulation reached 88.22% of the total accumulation in 100-163 days after seedling emergence, The content of N, P, K in the stem was higher than that in the root system. Nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium absorbing capacity in the stem, the leaf and the root systems was N > K > P. In the whole growth period, nitrogen accumulation reached the highest, and followed with the accumulation of potassium, and the accumulation of phosphorus was the lowest. In the last phase of the exuberant growth period, the accumulation intensity of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium reduced. During the harvesting time, the accumulation intensity of nitrogen and potassium increased, and the accumulation intensity of phosphorus remained stable., Conclusion: The dry matter accumulation reached the maximum in 100-163 days after seedling emergence. The absorption strength of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium in aerial part reached the maximum in 100-132 days after seeding emergence, the maximum absorption comes earlier than that of phosphorus and potassium, at that time the needs of nutrients reach the highest. For producing of 100 kg A. membranaceus 2.32 kg N, 0.323 kg P2O5, 1.62 kg K2O are needed to be absorbed from soil and fertilizer.

The application of N and K fertillizer could improve the sensibility of Bupleurvum chinense DC. to Root Rot, while large application of P fertilizer could decrase the sensibility. The fertilizer measure which could obtain highest yield but could not increase its disease resistense. To protect Bupleurum chinense against root rot, more phosphorous fertilizer, certain nitrogen and potassium ferilizer should be applied in early elongation stage in the second growing year.

It was studied that the characteristics of Bupleurum chinense DC. in nutrition uptake based on potted and field experiment to provide a properly fertilizer application measure. The result showed that the absorption amounts of N, P and K were in the order of K > N > P under field condition. For one-year-old B. chinesnse DC., the average N, P2O5 and K2O absorption per 100 kg dry matter of root were 11.77 kg, 2.43 kg, 14.07 kg respectively; for two-year-old, the average N, P2O5 and K2O absorption amount per 100 kg dry matter of root were 12.11 kg, 2.74 kg, 18.39 kg respectively. The total absorption amount of N, P2O5 and K2O were lower in the first year, while the percentage of content was higher, that was to say, the demand for N, P and K was urgent in the first year. The accumulation peak of N, P2O5 and K2O occurred regreening to later elongation stage in the second year. The ratio of N, P and K were differential in different growth stages.

Cucumber (Cucumis statirus L.) is commonly cultivated by grafting on squash (Cucurbita moschata) in commercial production. The effects of root exudates of squash grafted with cucumber on seed germination rate of cucumber and squash were tested. In this study, the exudates of cucumber-grafted squash roots were continuously collected with XAD-4 resin, and were further diluted with distilled water to make 5%, 10%, 20% and 40% concentrations. Cucumber and squash seeds were used for bioassay. The seeds were germinated in glass petri dishes with 2 filter papers at bottoms and containing 5 mL the diluted root exudates. The results showed that the exudates of cucumber-grafted squash roots significantly inhibit germination rate, radicel and hypocotyl elongation in cucumber and squash, and the inhibitory rate positively correlate with the concentration of the grafted cucumber root exudates. So grafted cucumber still have allelopathy. The exudates of cucumber-grafted squash roots significantly stimulated IAA oxidase activity in cucumber and squash. As a result, they decrease IAA level in cucumber and squash, and restrained their growth. The exudates of cucumber-grafted squash roots also decrease significantly the activities of amylase and alpha-amylase in cucumber and squash, and this decrease effects were strengthening with the increasing of the concentration of the grafted cucumber root exudates. So the exudates of cucumber-grafted squash roots can inhibit the hydrolysis and utilization of starch in cucumber and squash, and thereby suppress germination and seedling growth.

Objective: To study the relationship between plant growth and accumulation of active ingredients in Salvia miltiorrhiza., Method: Transplants of S. miltiorrhiza were sampled at 20 day intervals. At each stage, the growth of seedling and root system was recorded and the contents of tanshinone II (A) and salvia acid were measured., Result and Conclusion: This study showed that the rapid growth stage of the root system lags behind that of the seedling system, but the growing period of root system lasts longer. The quantitative change of roots reveals a double "S" curve; two rapid growth stages emerge during 30 - 70 days and 140 - 200 days after the seedlings were transplanted. The content of salvia acid reaches the highest level during 140 - 180 days, whereas the content of tanshinone peaks during 100 - 120 days.

Objective: To provide theoretic warrant and technical reference for Salvia miltiorrhizr standardization planting, by carrying out various systemic studies such as observation of seeds configuration fabric, idiosyncrasy of water absorption and groping germinating conditions., Method: In the study of configuration fabric, seeds were observed and taken photos by scanning electronic microscope, and heft method was used for measuring changes of water absorption velocity and dehydration velocity. Seeds germination conditions were probed into under the national test regulations for crop seeds and related prescription from international standards., Result: (1) There was a layer of slime about 10-20 microm thickness covering epicarp of Danshen seeds. The slime formed as diamond meshwork (reseau) and the weight of it was 8%-10% of total seeds weight. (2) The speed of water absorption of seeds was extremely rapid. The weight of seeds could increase above 10 times as original while the dehydration velocity was quite low. (3) The optimal temperature for the seeds germination is around 25 degrees C, and the germination rate of the new seeds gained yearly was above 75%, but the rate would decrease sharply as years went by. It was also found that the seeds germination power and exponent of vigor were quite high under the temperature transformation between 23 degrees C, 28 degrees C. Such treatments as pre-cool, PEG treatment and infusing with GA3 could increase the rate of seeds germination capacity obviously.

Objective: To confirm the amount of fertilizer and the ration of fertilizer., Method: Through the experiment of planting Salvia miltiorrhiza in pot and in field were carried out., Result: When N:P = 1:1, The production was 1.8 times more than the contrast group in plotting experiment, and in field the production of the highest fertilizer plot were 2.5 times more than the contrast and the higher and high fertilizer plot is 2.25 and 1.2 times respective were than those in the contrast group., Conclusion: The proper ration of nitrogenous fertilizer and phosphorous fertilizer is 1:1. Nitrogen shows negative effects to the accumulation of tanshinon IIA, the more the nitrogen ous fertilizer, The less the content of tanshinon IIA. In contrast, phosphor ous fertilizer shows good effects on the accumulation of tanshinon IIA. Phosphorous fertilizer could alleviate the decline of the content of tanshinon IIA by using nitrogenous fertilizer. The accumulation peak of the tanshinon IIA emerge in the period of 150 d.