Abstract
To provide basis for improving the quality of Gentianae macrophyllae Radix and optimising the field processing method. Gentianae macrophyllae Radix samples were collected from Long County. Five main active iridoids were determined by using HPLC. The HPLC fingerprints were measured and analysed by the traditional Chinese medicine chromatographic fingerprint similarity evaluation system. Water, total ash, acid insoluble ash and ethanol extract contents were determined in accordance with Chinese Pharmacopoeia (2015). Colour of the surface and powdered samples were determined by using a colorimeter. Data were analysed by SPSS11.0. Notable differences were found among samples from different sweating and drying processes, in spite of the relatively consistent overall chemical characteristics. Sweating and drying methods influenced the contents of some active ingredients and colour very significantly; moreover, they also showed significant effects on the water, ash, and ethanol extract contents. The necessity of sweating treatment in the field processing of Gentianae macrophyllae Radix may be insufficient. Drying in the shade and oven drying are more profitable for preserving the active constituents. Gentianae macrophyllae Radix should be dried directly without sweating, and drying in the shade and oven drying should be adopted preferentially to improve the quality.
Highlights
Gentianae macrophyllae Radix (“Qin-jiao”), a traditional Chinese medicine, is the dried roots of the perennial herbs Gentiana macrophylla Pall., G. straminea Maxim, G. crassicaulis Duthie ex Burk. or G. dahurica Fiseh. (Gentianae)
Under the conditions of our experiment, with the average daily sun of about 7 h, drying Gentianae macrophyllae Radix can be finished in a week
The results showed that the contents of main active iridoid glycosides in Gentianae macrophyllae Radix treated by sweating and that treated without sweating were significantly different
Summary
Gentianae macrophyllae Radix (“Qin-jiao”), a traditional Chinese medicine, is the dried roots of the perennial herbs Gentiana macrophylla Pall., G. straminea Maxim, G. crassicaulis Duthie ex Burk. or G. dahurica Fiseh. (Gentianae). As well as sweating treatment, will have important effects on the quality of medicinal herbs[15]. Studies on the history of field processing of Gentianae macrophyllae Radix show that sweating treatment of this medicinal herba appeared very late in modern times[19]. The contents of five main active components and the contents of water, total ash, acid-insoluble ash and ethanol extract were determined and combined with fingerprint analysis and colour analysis to evaluate the quality of samples from different processing methods. Exploring the effects of sweating treatment and different drying methods on the quality of Gentianae macrophyllae Radix can favor the optimization of drying methods in field processing, and provide basis for improving the quality of this important crude drug
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