Herbal Medicine Market Research Articles

Herbal oils in healthcare: a review

The herbal medicine market has grown considerably as an alternative currently used for the application of plants in the treatment of various diseases. In this environment, studies on the bioactivity of essential oils and the search for those that have antimicrobial, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, antioxidant properties and also oils that can inhibit key enzymes are highlighted. However, research on the use of plants in the pharmaceutical industry, chemical composition of native species and possible biological activities are still scarce. Therefore, studies for the knowledge of native species with therapeutic potential gain great relevance. This study carried out a review of the research already done on essential oils from species with potentially promising biological activities for the contribution of the sustainable use of biodiversity and the relevance of their medicinal potential.

일본 인삼 재배의 쇠락 원인에 관한 연구

In Japan, where ginseng did not grow naturally, ginseng seeds obtained from Joseon were sown in Nikkozan fields according to Bakufu's plan, which resulted in success of ginseng cultivation. Bakufu supplied for the domestic demand by establishing both governmental and private cultivation system for the expanded cultivation of Otane ginseng(Joseon ginseng). In addition, large quantities of white and red ginseng were exported to the Qing Dynasty, that at one time, ginseng cultivation was so prosperous that it ranked 13th among Japanese exports. However, entering the Showa era after the Meiji Restoration, ginseng cultivation began to decline, and ginseng lost its value in the Japanese agricultural industry. In this study, the causes of the decline of the Japanese ginseng industry including the influence of Joseon ginseng on the Japanese ginseng industry were investigated. The main reasons for the decline of ginseng cultivation in Japan were its modernization policy, and failure to increase the value of Japanese ginseng. At the time, price competition in Japan’s ginseng industry was intensified due to the absence of a function to control supply and demand for production. Accordingly, as ginseng was processed mainly for low-end products, it was not possible to gain an edge in price competitiveness. In addition, after the Meiji Restoration, as the market for traditional herbal medicines decreased due to the modernization policy of introducing western medicines, Japanese ginseng cultivation finally entered the path of decline.

The Antibacterial Property of Nigella sativa (Black seed) Oil Against Gram-positive and Gramnegative Bacteria

Antimicrobial resistance is one of the most challenges ? that face the world today, and it is heading toward the post-antibiotic era. Traditionally, herbal extracts, medicinal plant oil extracts, and probiotics have been used as an alternative to antibiotics due to bacterial resistance and drug side effects. This ?work is carried out to evaluate the antimicrobial efficacy of Nigella sativa oil extracts ?against common resistant bacteria, including Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The black seed was purchased from the traditional herbal medicine market, Hot extraction of the oil was performed. The bacteria were obtained from a microbiology company and from clinical samples at the Shar hospital in Sulaimani Provence. The bacteria were gram-negative (Salmonella enterica, Escherichia coli, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and gram-positive (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Bacillus subtilis, and Bacillus cereus). The agar ?diffusion well technique and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) were used. The black seed oil components were analyzed by the Gas Chromatograph mass spectrum. The results revealed that the oil of Nigella sativa shows a ?significant effect on Gram-positive bacteria, including MRSA, which is known as a multidrug resistance bacterium. ? Bacillus subtilis was more sensitive than other strains, and the significant antibacterial effect of the extracted was observed against Escherichia coil, while it has no significant effect on Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Salmonella enterica.? Determination of Nigella sativa oil minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) for Gram-positive bacteria is 100 ml for Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis, and the MIC was 200 ml and 400 ml for Bacillus cereus and MRSA respectively. This study concludes that oil extract of Nigella sativa is a ?good natural antimicrobial, it can be used against ?MRSA and other Gram-positive bacteria.

Identifying prioritized planting areas for medicinal plant Thesium chinense Turcz. under climate change in China

As an important plant resource in China, medicinal plants dominate the Chinese herbal medicine market. The intensified human activities and the deteriorated ecological environment have caused the reduction or even extinction of medicinal plants nationwide. The artificial bionic cultivation of medicinal plants has become an important way for the healthy development of the Chinese medicine industry, given the increasing demand for Chinese medicinal materials. However, the blind introductions of medical plants ignoring the planting area's environmental suitability will waste many human and financial resources. Currently, species distribution models, widely used to predict the potential geographic distribution of species, enable the proper planning of prioritized planting areas with fully considered climatic factors. To scientifically and reasonably determine the best planting area of medicinal materials under current and future climate, we used the MaxEnt model to predict the suitable habitat for Thesium chinense Turcz., and determined the potential migration trends of its suitable areas. In addition, we also evaluated the main environmental variables that affect the distribution of T. chinense. In all the suitable habitat predictions, the training and testing area under the curve (AUC) values were greater than 0.9, indicating the robust performance of our model. Meanwhile, we found that annual mean temperature (Bio1), the maximum temperature of the warmest month (Bio5), annual temperature range (Bio7) and annual precipitation (Bio12) are the main environmental variables determining the T. chinense distribution, with the temperature being the most important factor under bionic cultivation conditions. The potential distribution areas of T. chinense are mainly the provinces along the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. Under the future climate scenario, the highly suitable areas of T. chinense will generally increase, with the distribution ranges extending to higher latitudes. The Yellow River Basin may become another important planting area of T. chinense. Overall, the analysis provided the scientific basis for planning prioritized planting areas and improving bionic cultivation management techniques.

The Relationship between Word-of-Mouth, Satisfaction, Trust and Loyalty in Herbal Medicine Industry

Favourable word-of-mouth, customer satisfaction and trust are essential elements for strengthening customer brand loyalty to gain a sustainable advantage in a competitive market. However, there is a relative scarcity of research on the impact of word-of-mouth and customer satisfaction on brand loyalty through the mediated role of brand trust in the herbal medicine market. Consequently, this research aimed to assess the impact of word-of-mouth and customer satisfaction on loyalty through the mediating role of trust in the herbal medicine market. A survey questionnaire was utilised to obtain empirical data from a sample of 265 customers through systematic sampling strategy. Covariance-based structural equation modelling was employed to examine the hypotheses formulated to achieve the aim of the study. The research established that positive word-of-mouth, satisfaction, and trust significantly impact loyalty in the herbal medicine market. More importantly, the research indicated that the customers` trust partially mediated the impact of word-of-mouth and customer satisfaction on loyalty in the herbal medicine market. Hence, this research contributes to advancing the extant brand management literature by establishing the intervening role of trust in the relationship between word-of-mouth, satisfaction and loyalty in the herbal medicine market. This research further provides a reference point to encourage the practitioners to develop and track the customers` word-of-mouth, satisfaction and brand trust to enhance loyalty in the industry.

Identification and phylogenetic analysis of five Crataegus species (Rosaceae) based on complete chloroplast genomes.

The chloroplast genomes of the five Crataegus species were shown to have a conserved genome structure. Complete chloroplast genome sequences were more suitable than highly variable regions for the identification and phylogenetic analysis of Crataegus species. Hawthorn, which is commonly used as a traditional Chinese medicine, is one of the most popular sour fruits and has high economic value. Crataegus pinnatifida var. pinnatifida and C. pinnatifida var. major are frequently adulterated with other Crataegus species on the herbal medicine market. However, most Crataegus plants are difficult to identify using traditional morphological methods. Here, we compared five Crataegus chloroplast (CP) genomes comprising two newly sequenced (i.e., C. pinnatifida var. pinnatifida and C. pinnatifida var. major) and three previously published CP genomes. The CP genomes of the five Crataegus species had a conserved genome structure, gene content and codon usage. The total length of the CP genomes was 159,654-159,865bp. A total of 129-130 genes, including 84-85 protein-coding genes, 37 tRNA genes and 8 rRNA genes, were annotated. Bioinformatics analysis revealed 96-103 simple sequence repeats (SSRs) and 48-70 long repeats in the five CP genomes. Combining the results of mVISTA and nucleotide diversity, five highly variable regions were screened for species identification and relationship studies. Maximum likelihood trees were constructed on the basis of complete CP genome sequences and highly variable regions. The results showed that the former had higher discriminatory power for Crataegus species, indicating that the complete CP genome could be used as a super-barcode to accurately authenticate the five Crataegus species.

Brazilian essential oils as source for the discovery of new anti-COVID-19 drug: a review guided by in silico study.

The emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in China and its spread worldwide has become one of the biggest health problem due to the lack of knowledge about an effective chemotherapy. Based on the current reality of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, this study aimed to make a review literature about potential anti-coronavirus natural compounds guided by an in silico study. In the first step, essential oils from native species found in the Brazilian herbal medicine market and Brazilian species that have already shown antiviral potential were used as source for the literature search and compounds selection. Among these compounds, 184 showed high antiviral potential against rhinovirus or picornavirus by quantitative structure–activity relationship analysis. (E)-α-atlantone; 14-hydroxy-α-muurolene; allo-aromadendrene epoxide; amorpha-4,9-dien-2-ol; aristochene; azulenol; germacrene A; guaia-6,9-diene; hedycaryol; humulene epoxide II; α-amorphene; α-cadinene; α-calacorene and α-muurolene showed by a molecular docking study the best result for four target proteins that are essential for SARS-CoV-2 lifecycle. In addition, other parameters obtained for the selected compounds indicated low toxicity and showed good probability to achieve cell permeability and be used as a drug. These results guided the second literature search which included other species in addition to native Brazilian plants. The majority presence of any of these compounds was reported for essential oils from 45 species. In view of the few studies relating essential oils and antiviral activity, this review is important for future assays against the new coronavirus.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11101-021-09754-4.

ETHNOMEDICINALLY IMPORTANT PLANTS USED BY THE LOCAL PEOPLE OF AL GALABAT LOCALITIES, GEDAREF STATE, SUDAN

This research aims to document the medicinal plants used by the local people in two localities of El Gadaref state in eastern Sudan. Information was obtained during several visits using a semi-structured questionnaires in group discussions at herbal medicine practitioners homes, market, and healers shops. Most of the information was obtained from respondents of age 51 to 65 years. The study documented 79 species belonging to 36 families used to treat various ailments. The most utilized plant families were Leguminosae ( 45%) followed by Combretaceae (11%). 7% of the total plants used belongs to Asteraceae, Capparaceae, and Solanaceae. This study document the use of Martynia annua fruits to treat tumors and dysentery for the first time in Sudan. Common treated diseases are abdominal pains, unary tract infections, fever, and malaria. Further pharmacological research studies are recommended to identify the active chemical components in the reported plants. KEYWORDS- Medicinal plants; local people; Gadarif state ; Sudan

Pemberdayaan Perempuan dalam Proses Pembuatan Black Garlic menuju Masyarakat Mandiri di Era Ekonomi Industri 4.0

Kahayan Market in Palangka Raya is more famous as a market for herbal medicines. The benefits of single black garlic are familiar, but for the people of the city of Palangka Raya, the single black garlic is still unfamiliar. Black garlic is known to have higher anticancer content than ordinary garlic, as well as anti-bacterial activity. The many properties possessed by black garlic, provide space for people to consume herbal medicines as well as considerable opportunities to become businesses. Seeing the high enthusiasm of the participants involved in the training activities of making black garlic it can be concluded that the training participants were greatly helped by the existence of this training. Participants can absorb training material and immediately practice making black garlic well. After the training activity, the participants were able to make quality products in the form of black garlic. With the high response from the participants and also the products produced, it can be concluded that the training activities for making black garlic were successfully carried out well. The suggestion of this activity is the need for ongoing monitoring related to the manufacture of Black Garlic going forward, it is necessary to increase the spread of market share targets to increase product sales, as well as the need for broader cross-sector collaboration to increase the productivity of black garlic going forward

Nano Phytomedicine Based Delivery System for CNS Disease.

Herbal medicines are being used since ancient times and are an important part of the alternative and traditional medicinal system. In recent decades, scientists are embracing herbal medicines based on the fact that a number of drugs that are currently in use are derived directly or indirectly from plant sources. Moreover, herbal drugs have lesser side effects, albeit are potentially strong therapeutic agents. The herbal medicine market is estimated to be around US $62 billion globally. Herbal medicine has gained widespread acceptance due to its low toxicity, low cost, ease of accessibility and efficacy in treating difficult diseases. Safety and efficacy are another important factors in the commercialization process of herbal medicines. Nanotechnology has been shown to be potentially effective in improving the bioactivity and bioavailability of herbal medicines. Development of nano-phytomedicines (or by reducing the size of phytomedicine), attaching polymers with phytomedicines and modifying the surface properties of herbal drugs, have increased the solubility, permeability and eventually the bioavailability of herbal formulations. Novel formulations such as niosomes, liposomes, nanospheres, phytosomes etc., can be exploited in this area. This article reviews herbal medicines, which have prominent activity in the Central Nervous System (CNS) disorders and reported nano-phytomedicines based delivery systems.

Türkiye’de Tıbbi ve Aromatik Bitkilerin Üretimi, Ticareti ve Gelecek Perspektifi

Tıbbi ve aromatik bitki kültüründe karşılaşılan sorunları çözmek, araştırmayı bir bütün olarak ele almak, bu çalışmaları düzenlemek ve çalışan insanlar ve kurumlar arasında koordinasyonu sağlamak amacıyla 1990 yılında T.C. Tarım ve Orman Bakanlığı tarafından Tıbbi ve Aromatik Bitkiler Ulusal Araştırma Projesi başlatılmıştır. Bu çalışmaların temel amacı, Türkiye'deki tıbbi, aromatik ve boya bitkilerinde farklı endüstrilerin ihtiyaç duyduğu standart ve kaliteli hammaddelerin üretimi için yeni bitki türleri yetiştirerek tescilli çeşitlerin geliştirilmesidir. Türkiye'nin farklı bölgelerinde bulunan araştırma enstitüleri ekolojilerine uygun kültür bitkilerini seçerek ıslah ve çeşit geliştirme çalışmalarına yapmaktadırlar. Bitkilerde aktif maddelerin belirlenmesi için kalite çalışmaları agronomi çalışmaları ile bütünleştirilerek ıslah çalışmaları daha verimli hale getirilmiştir. Bu çalışmalar sonucunda şu ana kadar 15 türe ait 41 çeşit tıbbi ve aromatik bitki çeşidi tescil edilmiştir. Bu türlerin üretim alanları her yıl artmaktadır. 2018 yılında yaklaşık 100.000 hektar alanda 300.000 ton şifalı ve aromatik bitki üretilmiştir. Bu üretimin 50.000 tonu ihraç edilmiş ve 265 milyon ABD doları gelir sağlanmıştır. Bundan sonraki süreçte kültür, ıslah, yetiştirme ve kalite çalışmalarının sürdürülmesi ve yeni çeşitler geliştirilerek bu çeşitlerin üretim ve kullanım alanlarının artırılması hedeflenmektedir. Öte yandan, 2050 yılında 5 trilyon ABD dolarına ulaşması beklenen dünya bitkisel ilaç pazarından daha fazla pay alabilmek için ham drog ihracatı yerine işlenmiş ürünlerin ihracatına öncelik verilmesi planlanmaktadır.

Development and Application of InDel Markers for Authentication of the Korean Herbs Zanthoxylum schinifolium and Zanthoxylum piperitum.

Zanthoxylum schinifolium and Zanthoxylum piperitum are the sources of the well-known traditional Korean herbal medicines “sancho” (prickly ash) and “chopi” (Korean pepper), respectively. Sancho and chopi are often indiscriminately mixed due to the similar appearance of the herbal materials when used as spices and herbal medicines. Moreover, commercial sancho and chopi products often contain adulterants, which is insufficient to ensure food efficacy and safety. In this study, we developed hypervariable insertion/deletion (InDel) markers to distinguish between sancho and chopi products by comparing the complete chloroplast genome sequences of four Zanthoxylum species deposited in the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) GenBank. Comparative analyses of the nucleotide diversity (Pi) of these Zanthoxylum genomes revealed four hypervariable divergent sites (trnH-psbA, psbZ-trnG, trnfM-rps14, and trnF-ndhK) with Pi > 0.025 among 520 windows. Of these four regions, including two genic and two intergenic regions, only psbZ-trnG yielded accurate PCR amplification results between commercial sancho and chopi products from the Korean herbal medicine market. We therefore selected psbZ-trnG, an InDel-variable locus with high discriminatory powers, as a candidate DNA barcode locus. This InDel marker could be used as a valuable, simple, and efficient tool for identifying these medicinal herbs, thereby increasing the safety of these spices and herbal materials in the food market.

Identification and evaluation of Lonicera japonica flos introduced to the Hailuogou area based on ITS sequences and active compounds.

Lonicera japonica flos (LJF), the dried flower buds of L. japonica Thunb., have been used in traditional Chinese herbal medicine for thousands of years. Recent studies have reported that LJF has many medicinal properties because of its antioxidative, hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic, anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory, and antibacterial effects. LJF is widely used in China in foods and healthcare products, and is contained in more than 30% of current traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions. Because of this, many Chinese villages cultivate LJF instead of traditional crops due to its high commercial value in the herbal medicine market. Since 2005, the flower buds of L. japonica are the only original LJF parts considered according to the Chinese Pharmacopoeia of the People’s Republic of China. However, for historical and commercial reasons, some closely related species of Lonicera Linn. continue to be mislabeled and used as LJF. Currently, there are hundreds of commercial varieties of LJF on the market and it is difficult to choose fine LJF varieties to cultivate. In this study, a total of 21 varieties labeled as LJF on the market were planted in the Hailuogou area. In order to choose the optimum variety, internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequence alignment analysis was used to test whether the 21 varieties were genuine LJF or not. Cluster analysis of active components based on the content of chlorogenic acid and luteoloside in flower buds, stems and leaves was used to evaluate the quality of the varieties. Results demonstrated that four of the varieties were L. macranthoides Hand.-Mazz., while the other 17 varieties were L. japonica, and genuine LJF. The ITS sequence analysis was proven to be highly effective in identifying LJF and Lonicerae flos. Among the 17 L. japonica varieties, the amounts of chlorogenic acid and luteoloside in flower buds, stems and leaves were significantly different. Based on the cluster analysis method, the variety H11 was observed to have the highest level of active components, and is therefore recommended for large-scale planting in the Hailuogou area.

Indian Imaginaries of Chinese Success in the Global Herbal Medicine Market

Abstract India’s share in the global herbal market is dwarfed by that of China. Public and policy discourse in India exhorts Ayurvedic stakeholders to emulate Chinese medicine’s “science-based approach” to expand their global market share. But contrary to popular perception in India, China has been largely unsuccessful in making inroads into the coveted Euro-American herbal medicine market. Chinese medicine’s global footprint is largely the result of historical-cultural links, diasporic influences, and acupuncture practitioners. With national traditional medicine policies increasingly shaped by the evidence-based regulatory paradigm, the future of these informal bottom-up pathways is uncertain. Ignoring the roots of Chinese medicine’s global career has led to a distorted image of its “success” as an outcome of state investment in scientific validation and standardization programs. Our findings underscore the need to critically examine the imaginaries of success that drive stakeholders of non-biomedical traditions toward scientization to earn legitimacy and profits in the global realm.

Molecular Authentication of the Medicinal Species of Ligusticum (Ligustici Rhizoma et Radix, "Gao-ben") by Integrating Non-coding Internal Transcribed Spacer 2 (ITS2) and Its Secondary Structure.

Ligustici Rhizoma et Radix (LReR), an important Chinese medicine known as “Gao-ben,” refers to Ligusticum sinense Oliv. or Ligusticum jeholense Nakai et Kitag. However, a number of other species are commonly sold as “Gao-ben” in the herbal medicine market, which may result in a series of quality control problems and inconsistent therapeutic effects. The “Gao-ben” is commonly sold sliced and dried, making traditional identification methods difficult. Here, the mini barcode ITS2 region was examined on 68 samples representing LReR and 7 potential adulterant or substitute species. The results showed 100% success rates of PCR and sequencing and the existence of a barcoding gap. The neighbor-joining (NJ) tree indicated that all the tested samples could be exactly identified. The ITS2 secondary structure revealed a clear difference between true “Gao-ben” and three adulterant species. We therefore recommend the use of ITS2 as a mini barcode for distinguishing between closely or distantly related plant species that may be used in Chinese medicine.

Research on regional distribution and industrial status analysis of genuine medicinal resources of flowers in Henan province

Flower medicinal materials usually refer to Chinese medicinal materials with a complete flower,inflorescence,or part of a flower as the different medicinal parts,they have an important share in the Chinese herbal medicine market and appeared frequently in Chinese medicine prescriptions. Firstly,the species and regional distribution of the flower medicinal materials resources in China were briefly summarized. Secondly,the characteristics,yield,producing area and origin distribution of the main flower medicinal materials in Henan province were discussed. Finally,the present situation and the main problems of the flower medicinal materials industry in Henan province were comprehensively analyzed,and the corresponding industrial development countermeasures were put forward.This research was intended to provide decision-making demonstration and scientific basis for the rational exploitation and utilization of resources,breeding of new varieties,planting division,production layout and the healthy and sustainable development of the flower medicinal materials industry in Henan province.

Quantitative analysis of Cu and Pb in <i>Coptidis</i> by reheated double pulse laser induced breakdown spectroscopy

<i>Coptidis</i> plays an important role in the field of traditional Chinese medicine. However, it is easily polluted by heavy metals in environment (water and soil), and thus can affect human health. In order to detect the heavy metal elements Cu and Pb in <i>Coptidis</i>, which was purchased from the Chinese herbal medicine market in Chongqing, the reheated double-pulse laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (RDP-LIBS) is investigated. In order to reduce the experimental error caused by the irregular shape, it is necessary to pretreat the <i>Coptidis</i> samples prior to the determination step. The <i>Coptidis</i> samples are dried, milled, and sieved to form thin cylindrical tablets each with a diameter of 13 mm and thickness of 2 mm, which are formed under a mechanical press of 10 MPa for 2 min. The influences of the main experimental parameters, such as double-pulse LIBS detection delay, double-pulse LIBS laser energy, and double-pulse LIBS pulse interval are optimized. According to the LIBS signal intensity and signal-to-background ratio, the optimal laser energy set of the characteristic line Cu I (324.46 nm) covers <i>E</i><sub>1</sub> = 15 mJ and <i>E</i><sub>2</sub> = 35 mJ, and the pulse interval and detection delay time are 1.4 μs and 1.5 μs respectively; the laser energy set of Pb I (405.78 nm) also covers <i>E</i><sub>1</sub> = 15 mJ and <i>E</i><sub>2</sub> = 35 mJ, and the pulse interval and detection delay time are 1.6 μs and 1.7 μs, respectively. Comparing with the scenarios of single-pulse laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy, it can be seen that the spectral intensity of Cu I (324.46 nm) increases from 5779 counts to 12749 counts, i.e. it increases about 2.2 times; the spectral intensity of Pb I (405.78 nm) characteristic line increases from 4703 counts to 15838 counts, i.e. it increases about 3.3 times. It is shown that the second laser pulse re-excites the plasma which is generated by the first laser pulse, thus making the plasma emission spectrum stronger. The detection performances of heavy metal elements in Chinese medicinal materials are evaluated by RDP-LIBS and SP-LIBS. The results show that the detection limit of Cu decreases from 5.13 mg/kg to 1.91 mg/kg, and the detection limit of Pb decreases from 10.87 mg/kg to 3.03 mg/kg. There was observed a noticeable difference in the limit of detection between Cu and Pb, which meets the requirements of the Green Industry Standard for Import and Export of Medicinal Plants. Moreover, the linear curve fitting degree of RDP-LIBS is higher than that of SP-LIBS, which indicates that the RDP-LIBS technology has better detection performance in Chinese herbal medicine.

Measuring customer-based brand equity in traditional herbal medicine market in Kumasi, Ghana

Measuring customer-based brand equity in traditional herbal medicine market in Kumasi, Ghana

Comprehensive quality assessment of Dendrubium officinale using ATR-FTIR spectroscopy combined with random forest and support vector machine regression

Dendrobium officinale, as a tonic herb, has attracted more and more consumers to consume in daily life. In order to protect the wild resource, the herb has made great progress though cultivation in vitro. However, the quality is fluctuated in Chinese herbal medicine market due to influence such as cultivated areas and harvesting period. Therefore, the herbal samples from different cultivated locations were evaluated with high-performance liquid chromatography with diode array detector (HPLC-DAD) in terms of two chemical components, quercetin and erianin. In addition, two markers in leaf and stem also were used for support vector machine regression (SVMR) prediction. Samples from different harvesting periods were also classified using attenuated total reflectance mid-infrared spectroscopy coupled with random forest model. The results indicated that Pu'er and Menghai in Yunnan Province were suitable places for the herb cultivation and the leaf of the herb was also an exploitable resource just in light of the content of two components. What's more, combination of suitable spectra pretreatment and grid search method efficiently improved the prediction performance of the regression model. The results of random forest model indicated that important variables combination between stem and leaf was an effective tool to predict the harvesting time of the herb with 94.44% accuracy in calibration set and 97.92% classification correct rate in validation set. The results of combination were better than the models using individual stem and leaf spectra. In addition, the suitable harvesting time (December) could be classified efficiently. Our study provides a reference for quality control of raw materials from D. officinale herb.

Status and thinking of quality supervision on imported medicinal materials in shortage

With the continuous development of traditional Chinese medicine business, the types and amounts of Chinese materia medica resources are increasingly reduced. By reviewing the origins, trading sources, and existing quality standards of the available common Chinese madicinal materials in shortage, it was found that the large amount of imported medicinal materials in domestic market or clinical application were not due to the traditional paths such as envoys presenting tribute, business trade, war conflict, national migration, and tourist travel, but due to the shortage of resources in domestic origins. Meanwhile, the former quality control standard on traditional imported medicinal materials was out of date, and the new imported medicinal materials quality control standard was in absence, resulting in unclear origins, unknown origins and processing methods, as well as more and more prominent problems on mixed use of the different varieties with same name and the same varieties from different origins. On the one hand, this situation once again sounded the alarm for the development of Chinese medicine industry from the resource perspective. On the other hand, the confusion of new varieties in Chinese herbal medicine market has also brought a serious threat to the efficacy of Chinese medicine. It is pointed out that it is an effective way to ensure the drug safety of imported medicinal materials through strengthening quality supervision of shortage of traditional Chinese medicines based on the new pharmacopoeia standards.