Search

One of the main purposes for which dandelions are cultivated is to derive phenolic acids from their processing. Phenolic acids, which are one of the main useful compounds in dandelion, constitute one of the important groups of therapeutically significant bioactive compounds in traditional Chinese medicine. To carry out a relatively full evaluation of dandelion quality, it was found advisable to use multiple indices to avoid conflict with the single evaluation index stipulated by China Pharmacopoeia. Thus, a quality evaluation method was created based on traditional Chinese medicinal theory and relevant statistics on phenolic acids. Firstly, four main kinds of phenolic acids – caftaric acid, chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid and cichoric acid – were chosen as the main indices for quality evaluation through the optimisation of high performance liquid chromatography detection conditions and fingerprint comparison analysis; then, the content of each component was divided into five levels based on the descriptive statistics of 578 dandelion samples and references; finally, the equal weight average method was used to convert content levels of the four components into a comprehensive quality index, which served as the means for dandelion quality to be identified and segregated into grades, as follows: Grade 1 (super high, probability of 0.8%), Grade 2 (high, 18.72%), Grade 3 (medium, 37.28%), Grade 4 (qualified, 32%) and Grade 5 (low, 11.2%). This method is the first to comprehensively evaluate dandelion quality for setting an industry standard in China, and has practical and scientific characteristics.

Since most yaks have a long postpartum anestrus period, postpartum anestrus is the main factor affecting the reproductive efficiency of yaks. In this study, the third-generation sequencing technology was used to successfully screen differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and differentially expressed transcripts (DETs) in the ovarian tissues of yaks during estrus and anestrus. The functional references of DEGs and DETs were Gene Ontology, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes, and Clusters of Orthologous Genes database. A total of 1149 DEGs and 2294 DETs were successfully identified. These DEGs and DETs were mainly related to biological processes such as "reproduction", "reproductive process", "metabolic process" and "rhythmic process". Kisspeptin-G protein-coupled receptor was found to be involved in regulating the reproductive cycle of yaks. DEGs and DETs were also related to gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) signaling pathways such as oocyte meiosis, estrogen signaling pathway, and progesterone-mediated induced oocyte maturation. The results showed that SIRT1 , CSNK1A1 , SLIT3 , INHBA , INSL3 , ZP2 , Clock , BMP15 , Bmal1 , KISS1 , and LCHGR regulate the postpartum quiescent state and the reproductive cycle of yaks. This study will help to further clarify the reproductive mechanism of yaks at the molecular level and provide certain assistance for the development of animal husbandry.