Background: Chaihu-Shugan-San (CSS), a Traditional Chinese Medicine formula, has been widely used for treating depression since the Ming Dynasty, as recorded in Jingyue Quanshu, but its effectiveness and safety lack comprehensive and objective evaluation. Based on our meta-analysis, we aimed to adequately evaluate the efficacy and risk of CSS by considering the latest clinical literature. Methods: Multiple databases, including PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, SinoMed, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chongqing VIP, and Wanfang, were used to collect clinical data. The quality of the included clinical studies was assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool, and the data were meta-analyzed using Review Manager 5.0 and Stata 17. The data were obtained from a genome-wide association study, and Mendelian randomization (MR) was performed using R Software 4.3.2 with the TwoSampleMR and MR Pleiotropy RESidual Sum and Outlier packages. Results: A total of 15 studies with 1034 patients and 6 antidepressant drugs were included in this work. Meta-analyses revealed that drug combinations of CSS and antidepressants significantly improved depressive symptoms (weighted mean difference = −4.21; 95% confidence interval [CI]: −5.62–−2.81), increased the effective rate (odds ratio [OR] = 3.82; 95% CI: 2.44–6.83), and reduced side effects (OR = −3.55; 95% CI: −5.66–−1.43) compared with antidepressant monotherapy. Additionally, compared with antidepressant monotherapy, CSS alone exhibited fewer side effects (95% CI:−9.25–−6.95). Like antidepressants, CSS also improved depressive symptoms (weighted mean difference = −0.05; 95% CI: −0.63–−0.52) and increased the effective rate (OR = 1.07; 95% CI: 0.52–2.20). Additionally, MR was used to evaluate the safety of traditional antidepressants, as there was a causal association between amitriptyline and body mass index. Conclusion: This analysis demonstrated that compared with traditional antidepressants, CSS combined with antidepressants was more effective and safer for treating depressed patients. MR showed that a causal relationship may exist between amitriptyline and body mass index. Therefore, clinicians should carefully consider the advantages and potential drawbacks of Traditional Chinese Medicine and classic drugs to serve patients better.

Chemical composition of the essential oil from Kochia scoparia (L.) Schrad. (syn. Bassia scoparia (L.) A. J. Scott) was analyzed in quality and quantity by GC–MS and GC–FID. Repellent activities of the essential oil from K. scoparia (KSEO) were evaluated against two common species of stored-product insects Tribolium castaneum Herbst and Liposcelis bostrychophila Badonnel. Results indicated that KSEO mainly consisted of eugenol, β-caryophyllene, and α-humulene, accounting for 75.6

Poria cocos is an edible fungus used as a health product and traditional Chinese medicinal preparation. Nevertheless, little is known about its nutrients. In this study, ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with triple-quadrupole linear ion-trap tandem mass spectrometry was conducted to quantify nucleosides, nucleobases, and amino acids in 32 batches of Poria cocos samples collected from Anhui, Sichuan, Hubei, Hunan, and Guizhou. Subsequently, the linearity, precision, repeatability, stability, and recovery of our methods were validated. Samples from different regions were clearly separated by partial least squares discriminant analysis and cluster analysis. Our results suggested that Poria cocos samples from different geographical environments differed in nucleosides, nucleobases, and amino acids. The plot of variable importance for projection disclosed differential compositions of L-Leucine, Uridine, L-Asparagine, L-Glutamine, L-phenylalanine, L-Ornithine monohydrochloride, L-Hydroxyproline, Taurine, and Inosine in Poria cocos from five regions. We found the highest content of total analytes, total amino acids, and total nonessential amino acids in Poria cocos fromAnhui, total essential amino acids in the Sichuan samples, and total nucleosides in the Hunan samples. Overall, we determined the content of Poria cocos-derived nucleosides, nucleobases, and amino acids, providing the foothold for further chemical mining and use of Poria cocos.

Ethnopharmacological relevance: Guizhi-Fuling capsule (GZFL), a well-known herbal remedy, has been widely used to treat primary dysmenorrhea (PD). Hence, systematic identifying multiple active ingredients and the involved mechanism is essential and urgently needed for GZFL. Aim of the study: This study was planned to assess the pharmacokinetics of GZFL in rats, and identify whether these GZFL-derived absorbed components (ACs) contribute to the efficacy of source herbs and relevant mechanism. Materials and methods: The in vivo pharmacokinetic profile of 11 phytochemicals and 13 metabolites in healthy and PD rats were evaluated using liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Whereafter, the introduced contribution strategy assessed ACs' effect (doses = their contents in GZFL) in PD rats with the mechanism. Result: The pharmacokinetic profiles of prototypes and metabolites differed in healthy and PD rats. As a main proxy of GZFL, 11ACs exerted an anti-PD effect (improvement of indexes for writhing latency, writhing time, PGF(2 alpha)/PGE(2), TXB2/6-keto-PGF(1 alpha) and beta-EP) by regulating PI3K-Akt/ERK pathway. Conclusion: As a paradigmatic example, 11ACs contributed an average of 113.55% to GZFL in terms of anti-PD efficacy, providing an approach to rapidly, accurately and consistently identify the bioactive components and their pathway from herbs.

The present study evaluates different processing and drying methods and investigates their effects on the chemical components in Paeoniae Radix Alba via content determination. The fresh medicinal materials of Paeoniae Radix Alba collected from Bozhou of Anhui province were processed(boiled and peeled) and dried(hot air-dried, infrared-dried, and microwave-dried) at different temperatures(40, 50, 60 and 70 ℃), and the 11 components(monoterpene glycosides, polyphenols, tannin, and benzoic acid) in Paeoniae Radix Alba were determined by ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled to triple quadrupole with electrospray tandem mass spectrometry(UPLC-TQ-MS). Then the compounds in processed and dried samples were analyzed by partial least squares discriminant analysis(PLS-DA) and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis(OPLS-DA), and the contribution rates of differential components were evaluated by variable important in projection(VIP). The results indicated that the samples obtained by different processing and drying methods could be distinguished. Albiflorin, gallic acid, 1,2,3,4,6-pentakis-O-galloyl-β-D-glucose, and benzoic acid were the common differential components in boiled Paeoniae Radix Alba. Benzoic acid was the common differential component in peeled Paeoniae Radix Alba. Gallic acid was the common differential component in Paeoniae Radix Alba dried by different methods. The samples could not be distinguished after drying at different temperatures due to the lack of common differential components. This study is expected to provide a reference for the selection of processing and drying methods and the optimization of processing parameters.

目的:研究桂枝茯苓胶囊在原发性痛经模型大鼠体内的代谢产物.方法:基于超高效液相色谱-线性离子阱-静电轨道阱串联质谱联用(UHPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS )方法,采用Waters ACQUITY UPLC BEH C18色谱柱(100 mm X 2.1 mm,1.7pm),以乙腈-0.1％甲酸水为流动相,梯度洗脱,流速0.4 mL·min-1,质谱采用电喷雾(ESI)离子源,以正负离子模式采集多级质谱碎片信息,对大鼠灌服桂枝茯苓胶囊混悬液后的血浆、胆汁、尿液和粪便进行分析,利用质量亏损过滤(MDF)技术进行代谢产物鉴定分析.结果:共鉴定出8个原形及50个代谢产物,在体内主要发生Ⅰ相代谢反应(脱羧、水解、脱羟基和脱水等)及Ⅱ相代谢反应(甲基化、乙酰化、硫酸化及葡萄糖醛酸化等).结论:采用LC-MS方法鉴定了原发性痛经模型大鼠体内桂枝茯苓胶囊代谢产物,为该复方制剂的药物代谢动力学研究提供依据.

目的:研究不同干燥方法对桂枝药材中苯丙素类(香豆素、肉桂醇、肉桂酸、桂皮醛、邻甲氧基肉桂醛)化学成分的影响,为桂枝适宜干燥方法的确定提供依据.方法:以苯丙素类化学成分含量为评价指标,分别对晒干、阴干及3种现代加工干燥方法后桂枝的质量进行评价,通过SPSS软件进行主成分分析,利用主成分得分进行综合评价.结果:不同干燥处理方法后有效成分含量差异较大,其中微波干燥使有效成分损失最多,阴干、晒干、低温热风干燥有利于桂枝有效成分的保留.结论:以干燥时间、化学成分含量、外观性状、气味等为评价指标,确定热风干燥50℃为桂枝药材较为适宜的现代干燥加工方法.

目的:研究同一药材不同基原桃仁和山桃仁之间化学成分的差异.方法:采用超高效液相色谱-四极杆-飞行时间质谱联用(UPLC-Q-TOF/MS)及气相色谱-质谱联用(GC-MS)的技术手段以探讨桃仁与山桃仁之间的化学成分差异.结果:不同产地多个样品测定结果显示,桃仁和山桃仁之间的化学成分在种类上未发现不同,但在相对含量上存在一定的差异.十二烷酸、十四烷酸、十六碳烯酸、棕榈酸、十七烷酸、亚油酸、油酸、二十烷酸、扁桃酸酰胺-β-龙胆二糖苷、扁桃酸-β-D-吡喃葡萄糖苷、苄基-β-龙胆二糖苷、苦杏仁苷、野黑樱苷、PrupersinB这些成分间存在显著差异,此差异主要体现在药材成分的含量上,桃仁中十二烷酸等饱和脂肪酸及扁桃酸酰胺-β-龙胆二糖苷、扁桃酸-β-D-吡喃葡萄糖苷、野黑樱苷、PrupersinB含量显著高于山桃仁;而十六碳烯酸等不饱和脂肪酸及苄基-β-龙胆二糖苷、苦杏仁苷在山桃仁中的含量显著高于桃仁.结论:虽然桃仁与山桃仁在2015年版《中华人民共和国药典》中同为桃仁药材,但它们除在外观性状上存在差异外,在脂肪酸类、氰苷类等化学成分上也存在差异.本研究为它们的质量控制与临床应用提供了参考.

目的:建立超高效液相色谱-串联四极杆/线性离子阱质谱法(UPLC-QTRAP-MS法)同时测定不同产地茯苓药材中8个三萜酸类成分(茯苓新酸B、去氢土莫酸、茯苓新酸A、猪苓酸C、去氢茯苓酸、茯苓酸、松苓新酸、去氢齿孔酸)的含量,并比较其差异.方法:采用Acquity UPLC BEH C18色谱柱(2.1 mm×100 mm,1.7 μm),流动相为0.1％甲酸水-乙腈,梯度洗脱,流速0.4 mL·min-1,柱温25℃,以多反应监测(MRM)方法进行质谱扫描,并利用偏最小二乘判别分析(PLS-DA)绘制得分图.结果:8个化合物线性范围良好,相关系数(r2)均大于0.996 9,平均加样回收率在98.1％～101.1％范围内,RSD≤3.2％,经PLS-DA分析,茯苓样品按产地被聚集为3组,并通过变量权重重要性排序(VIP值)图发现茯苓新酸A、去氢土莫酸、去氢茯苓酸、猪苓酸C为3个产地茯苓样品间的主要差异成分.结论:所建立的茯苓药材UPLC-QTRAP-MS质量评价方法可用于茯苓药材的多成分的快速测定及质量控制.

目的:研究不同干燥方法对牡丹皮药材化学成分的影响.方法:采收牡丹皮新鲜药材,分别采用3种现代不同干燥方式(热风、红外、微波)下4个不同干燥温度(40、50、60、70℃)及晒干、阴干处理,干燥至水分合格为止;采用超高效液相色谱-三重四级杆质谱串联法(UPLC-TQ-MS)技术,对牡丹皮中酚及酚苷类、单萜苷类、有机酸类、黄酮类、鞣质类、苯丙素类等类型共16个成分进行含量测定.将14个干燥品的分析结果标准化处理,进行主成分(PCA)分析.结果:经主成分分析,不同干燥方法处理的牡丹皮药材中化学成分含量综合评分依次为:红外(40℃)干燥>红外(50℃)干燥>微波(60℃)干燥>红外(60℃)干燥>微波(40℃)干燥>热风(50℃)干燥>微波(50℃)干燥>热风(40℃)干燥>红外(70℃)干燥>微波(70℃)干燥>热风(60℃)干燥>热风(70℃)干燥>阴干>晒干.结论:不同干燥方法对牡丹皮药材中各类化学成分有一定影响,牡丹皮药材干燥方法以红外(40℃)干燥处理为宜.

目的:研究不同干燥方法及条件对黄芪药材质量的影响.方法:红外、热风、微波3种干燥设备分别在40、50、60、70℃下对新鲜黄芪药材进行干燥加工.运用Weibull分布函数模拟黄芪药材干燥过程,研究其水分比及干燥速率随干燥时间的动态变化规律,比较干燥后药材的外观性状,结合黄芪中8种皂苷类成分、4种黄酮类成分及多糖的含量评价干燥对黄芪药材质量的影响.运用逼近理想值排序法(TOPSIS)综合评价不同干燥方式下黄芪药材的质量.结果:通过黄芪药材干燥动力学研究得出,黄芪药材干燥速率大小依次为微波、热风、红外干燥;干燥速率随着温度的升高而增大,干燥能耗大小依次为红外、微波、热风干燥.微波60、70℃干燥时,药材因局部焦糊而外观较差,红外与热风干燥药材外观较好.TOPSIS分析法对各干燥方法进行评分,结果显示前3位为红外50℃、微波50℃、红外60℃干燥,都在很大程度上保留了黄芪药材中的成分.结论:优选出黄芪产地最佳干燥加工方式为红外50℃干燥,为黄芪药材产地加工现代干燥技术的合理应用提供参考.

This study was designed to determine the metabolites of Zhali Nusi Prescription(ZLNSP) in rats. The ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-LTQ Orbitrap mass spectrometric(UHPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS) and mass defect filter techniques were applied to analyze the metabolites of ZLNSP in rat plasma, bile, urine and feces. The biological samples were analyzed by ACQUITY UPLC BEH T_3 column(2.1 mm×100 mm,1.7 μm), with 0.1% formic acid water(A)-acetonitrile(B) as mobile phase, and the biological samples were analyzed in negative ion mode by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry(ESI-MS). An analytical method for biological samples of rats was established, and 8 prototype components and 36 metabolites were identified. The results showed that the metabolic pathways of the main components of ZLNSP in rats included methylation, glucuronidation, sulfation and so on. It provi-ded information for the therapeutic effect of ZLNSP in vivo.

This study aims to compare the differences of Paeonia lactiflora from different habitats by establishing fingerprint. The fingerprint of P. lactiflora was established by UPLC. The samples collected from Sichuan,Hebei,Henan,Shanxi and Anhui were analyzed. The common peaks were identified by UPLC-Q-TOF/MS. The relative peak area of the common peaks was analyzed through similarity evaluation system( 2012 edition) for chromatographic fingerprint of traditional Chinese medicine developed by the National Pharmacopoeia Commission. Twelve common peaks were obtained and ten components were identified by reference substance and literature comparison. The similarity of each sample to the reference fingerprint is greater than 0. 900. However,all samples were clearly divided into 5 groups according to habitats after PLS-DA analysis. The peaks 2,6( ethyl gallate),10( galloypaeoniflorin) and 12( benzoyl paeoniflorin) were found to be the main difference components between the samples from five different habitats through the VIP value map. The study found that the variety of ingredients in the different areas are basically similar. But there are some differences in the content of the four components. The results of this study can provide reference at choosing and utilizing P. lactiflora from different places comprehensively.

目的:建立超高效液相色谱-三重四极杆质谱串联法(UPLC-TQ-MS法)同时测定牡丹皮中18个化学成分,并比较其差异.方法:采用Acquity UPLC BEH C18色谱柱(2.1 mm×100 mm,1.7 μm),流动相为0.1％甲酸水溶液-乙腈,梯度洗脱,流速0.4 mL· min-1,柱温35℃,采用多反应监测(MRM)方法进行质谱扫描.结果:18个待测成分的浓度与峰面积线性关系良好(0.992 3＜r2＜0.999 9).利用正交偏最小二乘判别分析(OPLS-DA)绘制OPLS-DA得分图及VIP图,发现了芍药苷亚硫酸酯、槲皮素、儿茶素、氧化芍药苷、没食子酸、没食子酸甲酯为硫熏与未硫熏样品之间的差异性成分.结论:建立一种全面、准确的牡丹皮药材质量评价方法,同时为鉴别牡丹皮药材是否经硫熏以及质量控制提供参考.