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Objective: Realgar possesses important medical properties. This article aims to evaluate realgar and emerging artificially optimized realgar to ensure safe clinical use. Methods: Multiple techniques were employed to test natural realgar and artificially optimized realgar. Soluble arsenic content in representative samples were measured. Natural realgar and artificially optimized realgar were administered to KM mice via gavage for 28 days, and the extent of liver and kidney tissue damage, arsenic accumulation and form of arsenic were measured. Results: Natural realgar and artificially optimized realgar can be distinguished by their physical properties or spectral signatures. ICP-MS and EPMA identified different contents of elements between two groups. In simulated gastric and intestinal fluids, only As (III) and As (V) were detected. Toxicity experiments in vivo demonstrate that both groups caused minimal liver and kidney damage at a dose of 30 mg·kg−1. At a dose of 180 mg·kg−1, artificially optimized realgar caused significantly greater liver and kidney damage. Conclusion: The differences between natural realgar and artificially optimized realgar were successfully distinguished through several methods. In vitro experiments showed that As is the main component exerting their medicinal effects. In vivo toxicity tests demonstrated that at higher dose, artificially optimized realgar exhibited significantly higher toxicity, suggesting that natural and artificially optimized realgar have different toxic properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lycium barbarum L. (LB) fruits have high nutritive values and therapeutic effects. The aim of this study was to comprehensively evaluate the differences in phenolic composition of LB fruits from different geographical regions. Different methods of characterization and statistical analysis of data showed that different geographic sources of China could be significantly separated from each other. The highest total phenolic compound (TPC) content was observed in LB fruits from Ningxia (LBN), followed by those from Gansu (LBG) and Qinghai (LBQ). The Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectra of LB fruits revealed that LBQ had a peak at 2972 cm−1 whereas there was no similar peak in LBG and LBQ. A new HPLC method was established for the simultaneous determination of 8 phenolic compounds by quantitative analysis of multiple components by a single marker (QAMS), including 4 phenolic acids (chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid, 4-hydroxycinnamic acid, and ferulic acid), 1 coumarin (scopoletin), and 3 flavonoids (kaempferol-3-O-rutinoside, rutin, and narcissoside). It was showed that rutin was the most dominant phenolic compound in LBQ, although the average content of 4 phenolic acids was also high in LBQ, and scopoletin was the richest in LBG. UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS was used to qualitatively analyze the phenolics, which showed LBN was abundant in phenolic acids, LBQ was rich in flavonoids, and coumarins were the most plentiful in LBG. In conclusion, this study can provide references for the quality control and evaluation of phenolics in LB fruits and their by-products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The permeability of coal seams directly determines the disaster prevention effect of water injection. It is of great significance to realize the accurate fractal expression of coal structure and construct a fractal permeability model for elucidating the dynamic evolution law of the permeability of coal during and after water injection. Therefore, a rough Menger sponge is used as the physical model to characterize the structure of the coal in this paper. Combined with the structure fractal dimension calculated by the increasing fractal construction method, a new fractal permeability model is established to describe the seepage process of water injection. The influence of the tortuosity and roughness of the pore surfaces on the seepage characteristics is discussed, and the theoretical permeability is compared with the results of NMR experiments and existing models. The volume fractal dimension obtained by calculation is between 2.74 and 2.77, which decreases with increasing confining pressure and increases with increasing pore water pressure. The research shows that the fractal dimensions of the pore structure and volume can quantitatively describe the specific surface area of porous medium and are directly proportional to the specific surface area. With the increase in the structure fractal dimension, the fluid flow resistance increases, and the theoretical permeability decreases. The results of the permeability comparison show that the variation law of the theoretical permeability is consistent with that of the liquid permeability and that the theoretical result is closer to the measured value because the tortuosity and roughness of the seepage channel surfaces is further considered in the model. The theoretical model provides reliable theoretical support for further perfecting seepage theory of porous media and improving the effect of coal seam water injection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction – The beneficial health effects of traditional Chinese medicines are often attributed to their potent antioxidant activities, usually established in vitro. However, these wet chemical methods for determining antioxidant activities are timeconsuming, laborious, and expensive. Objectives – This study was conducted to establish a rapid determination of antioxidant activity of Radix Scutellariae using nearinfrared (NIR) and mid-infrared (MIR) spectroscopy. Material and methods – Antioxidant capabilities were evaluated using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl hydrazyl (DPPH) and oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assays. The total flavonoid contents (TFCs) of Radix Scutellariae were measured by the aluminium chloride colorimetric method. The same sample was then scanned using NIR and MIR spectroscopy. Chemometrics analysis using partial least-squares (PLS) regression was performed to establish the models for predicting the antioxidant activities of Radix Scutellariae. Results – A better predictive performance was achieved using PLS models based on NIR data. The determination coefficient (R2) and the residual predictive deviation (RPD) for the validation set were 0.9298 and 2.84 for DPPH, and 0.9436 and 2.66 for TFCs, respectively.MIR-PLS algorithms gave a slightly lower reliability (R2 = 0.9090 and 0.9374, RPD = 2.01 and 2.42, for DPPH and TFC, respectively). Very comparable results for ORAC were obtained with the two methods. Conclusion – The developed spectroscopic method can be successfully applied in high-throughput screening of the antioxidant capability of Radix Scutellariae samples. It can also be a viable and advantageous alternative to laborious chemical procedures. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sanghuangporus vaninii (Ljub.) L.W. Zhou & Y.C. Dai (SV) is a major cultivar of Sanghuang, which is well known as an excellent anti-tumour drug and reaches the mainstream market in China. Water, 60% ethanol and 95% ethanol were used to extract the drug, and three kinds of polar extracts were obtained separately. Compared with water extracts and 95% ethanol extracts, the 60% ethanol extract had the highest flavonoid content, and its polysaccharide content was greater than that in the 95% ethanol extract and lower than that in the water extract. Its essential components were phenolics whose majority were phenolic acids, flavonoids and phenylpropanoids. This extract has better inhibition effects on the proliferation of SW480 human colon cancer cells, inducing cell apoptosis and blocking G2/M period cells. It can significantly inhibit gene expression and reduce the activation of the AKT/mTOR signalling pathway. The anti-cancer activity of the 60% ethanol extract is satisfactory and may be a result of the combined effects of polysaccharides and flavonoids. The data suggest that the 60% ethanol extract can be used as an adjuvant for chemotherapy and as a potential anti-cancer agent with broad development prospects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To analyze constituents of traditional Chinese medicine galamina, and provide basis for the quality control of galamina., Method: Polarization microscope and electron probe were adopted for a qualitative and quantitative analysis on microscopic appearance and micro-area constituents of galamina. Fourty-two elements contained in galamina were determined by the plasma mass-spectrometric method. Zinc oxide, the major constituent of galamina samples, was detected using the pharmacopeia method., Result: The micro-area analysis on galamina samples showed that galamina is mainly constituted by various mineral particulates such as hydrozincite, smithsonite, zinc oxide and dolomite in a loose texture. It is also found that there are many counterfeit galamina sold in the market, marked by a high lead content in natural galamina samples., Conclusion: Galamina is a mineral aggregation of multiple natural mineral substances, but those sold in the market has many quality problems. Therefore, a fast method shall be established to identify the authenticity of galamina and a standard shall be set to control harmful elements contained in galamina. It is suggested to conduct in-depth studies on excessive harmful elements contained in galamina medicinal materials.

Objective: To investigate the effects of refining temperatures and amounts of sheep's oil used in processing Epimedii Folium on Kedney-yang deficiency rats., Method: The corticosterone was subcutaneous injected to establish the kidney yang deficiency rat model. With the temperatures and amounts of sheep's oil were 250 degrees C/30%, 120 degrees C/30% and 120 degrees C/20% respectively, the crude drug and three kinds of pressed Epimedii Folium were extracted by water and used as examined samples while total flavonoid of Epimedii Folium was used as positive control. After examined samples and control samples were intragastirc administrated, the pharmacologic action was analyzed., Result: As compared to crude drug, all of the aqueous extracts of processed Epimedii Folium have stronger effect of warming kidney and enhancing yang, especially the Epimedii Folium processed by sheep's oil with refining temperatures 120 degrees C and amounts of sheep's oil 30%. Its mechanism might be related to improving the insufficiency of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal-thymus (HPAT) axis suppression., Conclusion: The refining temperature of sheep's oil can affect the quality of excipients and processed drugs. The results may be useful in explaining the mechanism of Epimedii Folium processing and establishment of pharmaceutical standard of sheep's oil used as processing excipients.

Objective: To search new effective compounds, the different hemostatic effects of Flos Sophorae, Flos Sophorae Carbonisatus and principal constituent were observed., Method: Using the bleeding time (BT) and the recalcification time (RT) as the specificity indicators for the hematischesis function, the hemostatic effects of the following were observed. Flos Sophorae, Flos Sophorae Carbonisatus, characteristic value extraction thing A and B (SCE A and B) and the principal constituent after orally administered in normal rats in order to analyze the new hemostatic compounds., Result: Flos Sophorae, and Flos Sophorae Carbonisatus can obviously reduce BT and RT in rats, in which the effect of Carbonisatus is stronger than the crude. Otherwhile, SCE A and SCE B can also obviously reduce BT and RT in rats, in which the effects of SCE B surpassed those of SCE A. Furthermore, two characteristic compounds extracted from SCE B (kaikasaponin I called compound 1 and isorhamnetin-3-O-rutinoside named called 2) and other nominated principal constituents (rutin, tannin), can obviously shorten BT and RT in rats, among which compound 2 is most superior., Conclusion: The Flos Sophorae, Flos Sophorae Carbonisatus and their character compounds can shorten! the BT and RT in rats. The compound 2 from SCE B has the most superior effect. Study showed that compound 2 should be the new hemostatic compounds after Flos Sophorae carbonized. The results also indicated that the increase of hemostatic effect after Flos Sophorae carbonized should be related with the coordination of various kinds of ingredient.

Objective: To investigate the chemical constituents of lipid-soluble and water-soluble extracts in Flos Sophorae Carbonisatus., Method: The compounds were isolated by means of solvent extraction and column chromatography, and their structures were determined by spectral analysis., Result: Two compounds from petroleum ether extract and ten from n-BuOH extract were isolated and identified as sophoradiol (1), beta-sitosterol (2), 3 beta, 22 beta, 24-trihydroxy-olean-12-ene (soyasapogenol B) (3), daucosterol (4), kaikasaponin I (5), quercetin (6), isorhamnetin (7), 2-O-methyl-insitol (8), isorhamnetin-3-O-rutinoside (9), isoquercitrin (10), orobol-7-O-beta-D-glucoside (11), rutin (12), respectively., Conclusion: Compound 3, 8-11 were isolated from Flos Sophorae Carbonisatus for the first time. The results could be basic foundation for further study on processing mechanism of Flos Sophorae Carbonisatus.

Objective: To study and establish the optimal technology for the preparation of evodiae juice., Method: The contents of evodiamine, rutaecarpine and evodin were simultaneously determined with HPLC, and each yield of the three compounds were chosen as the evaluating indicator. The orthogonal test coupled with the weighted coefficient method were adopted to acquire the optimal technology for the preparation of evodiae juice., Result: The study showed that the optimal technology for the preparation of evodiae juice was as follows: decocted three times while the first time was with 12-fold of water socked 30 minutes and decocted 45 minutes, the second time was with 8-fold of water decocted 20 minutes and the third time was with 6-fold of water decocted 20 minutes., Conclusion: This method is simple and accurate. The optimal technology is suitable for industry manufacture of evodiae juice.

Objective: To compare the hemostatic effect of Flos Sophorae in crude, parched and carbonized forms and its extracts, including rutin, quercetin and tannin., Methods: All the testing samples were orally administered to the experimental animals for 5 days, then the bleeding time (BT), coagulation time (CT), platelet count and capillary permeability (CP) in the treated mice were tested, and the prothrombin time (PT), fibrinogen (FBG) content and platelet aggregation rate (PAR) in the treated rats were determined., Results: All the samples could lower the CP, BT and CT in mice and also decrease the plasma PT in rats. All three forms of Flos Sophorae could increase FBG in rats, while the three extracts of it could inhibit the PAR in rats obviously. In addition, rutin had the effect of raising the platelet count., Conclusion: All the three forms and three extracts of Flos Sophorae have hemostatic effect, the effect of parched and carbonized form is higher than that of crude drug. The mechanism of the hemostatic effect of the six kinds of sample might be various.