Bupleurum chinense DC. is a widely used traditional Chinese medicinal plant. Saikosaponins are the major bioactive constituents of B. chinense, but relatively little is known about saikosaponin ...biosynthesis. The 454 pyrosequencing technology provides a promising opportunity for finding novel genes that participate in plant metabolism. Consequently, this technology may help to identify the candidate genes involved in the saikosaponin biosynthetic pathway.
One-quarter of the 454 pyrosequencing runs produced a total of 195, 088 high-quality reads, with an average read length of 356 bases (NCBI SRA accession SRA039388). A de novo assembly generated 24, 037 unique sequences (22, 748 contigs and 1, 289 singletons), 12, 649 (52.6%) of which were annotated against three public protein databases using a basic local alignment search tool (E-value ≤1e-10). All unique sequences were compared with NCBI expressed sequence tags (ESTs) (237) and encoding sequences (44) from the Bupleurum genus, and with a Sanger-sequenced EST dataset (3, 111). The 23, 173 (96.4%) unique sequences obtained in the present study represent novel Bupleurum genes. The ESTs of genes related to saikosaponin biosynthesis were found to encode known enzymes that catalyze the formation of the saikosaponin backbone; 246 cytochrome P450 (P450s) and 102 glycosyltransferases (GTs) unique sequences were also found in the 454 dataset. Full length cDNAs of 7 P450s and 7 uridine diphosphate GTs (UGTs) were verified by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction or by cloning using 5' and/or 3' rapid amplification of cDNA ends. Two P450s and three UGTs were identified as the most likely candidates involved in saikosaponin biosynthesis. This finding was based on the coordinate up-regulation of their expression with β-AS in methyl jasmonate-treated adventitious roots and on their similar expression patterns with β-AS in various B. chinense tissues.
A collection of high-quality ESTs for B. chinense obtained by 454 pyrosequencing is provided here for the first time. These data should aid further research on the functional genomics of B. chinense and other Bupleurum species. The candidate genes for enzymes involved in saikosaponin biosynthesis, especially the P450s and UGTs, that were revealed provide a substantial foundation for follow-up research on the metabolism and regulation of the saikosaponins.
Medicinal plants belonging to the family Polygonaceae in Chinese pharmacopoeia possess important medicinal efficacy in traditional Chinese medicines.
DNA barcodes are first used to discriminate the ...Polygonaceae in Chinese pharmacopoeia and their adulterants.
DNA samples, extracted from thirty-eight specimens belonging to eighteen species in Polygonaceae, were used as templates. Eight candidate barcodes were amplified by polymerase chain reaction. Sequence analysis was accomplished by CodonCode Aligner V 2.06 and DNAman V 6. Species identification was performed using MEGA V 4.0.
The amplification efficiency of six candidate DNA barcodes (
rbcL,
trnH-
psbA,
ndhJ,
rpoB,
rpoC1,
accD) was 100%, while the efficiency of
YCF5 and nrITS was 56% and 44%, respectively. The interspecific divergence was highest for the
trnH-
psbA (20.05%), followed by the nrITS (14.01%) across all species pairs, while intraspecific variation both within populations and between populations was absent (0.0%). The
trnH-
psbA can not only distinguish ten species of Polygonaceae in Chinese pharmacopoeia, but also recognize eight other species of Polygonaceae including their adulterants.
Our findings show that DNA barcoding is an efficient tool for identification of Polygonaceae in Chinese pharmacopoeia and their adulterants.
To reveal the ecological mechanism for various chemical types of Rheum tanguticum Maxim.ex Balf,this paper was designed to investigate the geographical variation of functional components,and further ...study the critical climate factors and the key period for various components based on the multi-scales climate factors.The methods of Cluster was applied for analyzing the geographical variation of chemical components of R.tanguticum.Coefficient of correlation was used to assess the relationships between the climate factors and the components.Two chemotypes were classified based on the accumulating data,one was the combined anthraquinone chemotype from Qinghai and Gansu province,and the other was the free anthraquinone chemotype from Sichuan province.The relationships between the climate factors and the chemical components were as follows:the anthraquinones were significantly negatively related to annually average temperature.Polyphenols were negatively correlated with annually average temperature and annual preci
In this study, we tested the applicability of four DNA regions (rbcL, matK, ITS, and ITS2) as barcodes for identifying species within Euphorbiaceae. Based on assessments of the specific genetic ...divergence, the DNA barcoding gap, and the ability for species discrimination, the present results affirmed that ITS/ITS2 is a potential barcode for the Euphorbiaceae species. This study also provided a large-scale test to evaluate the effectiveness of ITS/ITS2 for differentiating species within Euphorbiaceae. Of the 1183 plant samples collected from 871 species in 66 diverse genera, ITS/ITS2 successfully identified > 90 % and 100 % of them at the species and genus levels, respectively. Therefore, our research indicates that use of the ITS/ITS2 region is a powerful technique for Euphorbiaceae identification.
The typical desert-inhabiting shrub Haloxylon ammodendron (C. A. Mey.) Bunge is an important species that is endangered in Northwest China. In this study, variance, correlation and cluster analysis ...were employed to examine phenotypic variations of H. ammodendron seed traits from 14 populations in China to investigate their relationships with environmental and genetic factors. The average coefficient of variation was higher among regions (26.9%) than within regions (19.8%). Correlation analysis revealed that the diameter/thickness and fruit wing length were significantly correlated with environmental factors. A cluster dendrograms designed based on seed traits was consistent with the finding from environmental and genetic data obtained using Ward's method and the unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic means. A Mantel test revealed correlation between seed traits and environmental data (r = 0.53, P < 0.01) was greater than that between seed traits and genetic data (r = 0.25, P < 0.05). Thus, seed traits associated with morphology, mass, and germination varied significantly among the populations, are strongly affected by climatic and geographical factors, and were moderately correlated with genetic diversity. These results provide insights for designing appropriate conservation strategies for H. ammodendron.
•The seed traits of H. ammodendron exhibited a wide range of variation and the variation among regions was higher.•Due to geographical and climatic differences, there were many significant variations among regions.•H. ammodendron seeds phenotype was greater influenced by environmental factors compared with genetic factors.
Artemisia annua L. is an important source for artemisinin, a potent drug for treating malaria. This study aims to map and predict the potential geographic distribution of A. annua L. in China.
The ...Geographic Information System for traditional Chinese medicine (TCM-GIS) was developed and used to map the potential geographic distribution of A. annua L.
Climatic, edaphic and topographic characteristics of A. annua L. microhabitats in Youyang County were mapped to find distribution patterns. The maps identified that certain habitats in the Chongqing region and some potential regions, especially in Guizhou Province, possess similarity indices of >/=98%. In particular, high quality microhabitats A. annua L. were found in the Wuling mountains region.
The present study demonstrates a GIS approach to predict potential habitats for A. annua L. TCM-GIS is a powerful tool for assessing bioclimatic suitability for medicinal plants.
Many medicinal plants are increasingly endangered due to overexploitation and habitat destruction. To provide reliable references for conservation planning and regional management, this study focuses ...on large-scale distribution prediction of Rheum tanguticum Maxim. ex Balf (Dahuang).
Native habitats were determined by specimen examination. An improved version of GIS-based program for the distribution prediction of traditional Chinese medicine (TCMGIS-II) was employed to integrate national geographic, climate and soil type databases of China. Grid-based distance analysis of climate factors was based on the Mikowski distance and the analysis of soil types was based on grade division. The database of resource survey was employed to assess the reliability of prediction result.
A total of 660 counties of 17 provinces in China, covering a land area of 3.63 × 106 km2, shared similar ecological factors with those of native habitats appropriate for R. tanguticum growth.
TCMGIS-II modeling found the potential habitats of target medicinal plants for their conservation planning. This technology is useful in conservation planning and regional management of medicinal plant resources.
To explore the effect of ecological factors on the features of ginsenosides and amino acids of mountainous forest cultivated ginseng (MFCG) and distinguish it from garden ginseng (GG). The main ...active constituents of ginsenosides and primary metabolites-amino acids of MFCG were determined by the high-performance liquid chromatography with diode array detector (HPLC-DAD) technique; The climatic factors were obtained by Geographic Information System for Global Medicinal Plants (GMPGIS), and the topographic factors were recorded at the place of origin; Mineral elements in rhizosphere soils of MFCG were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) and atomic absorption spectrometry and other rhizosphere soil factors, inclusive of pH and available N, P and K. The findings indicated that the warmer, relatively humid, and relatively shady environments are suitable for the accumulation of ginsenosides of MFCG, in addition, they were also influenced by its rhizosphere soil. Contrastingly, conditions of lower temperature, more precipitation, weaker light, and higher altitude are beneficial to the accumulation of amino acids; Additionally, mineral elements are conducive to the accumulation of amino acids, while soil acidification is unfavorable. Surprisingly, the present study found that the temperature could regulate ginsenosides and amino acids in an opposite direction, and the ecological environment has a greater effect on primary metabolites of amino acids than secondary metabolites of ginsenosides. Finally, the Ser, Arg, Gly, Thr, Pro, Cys, Ile, Leu, Phe, Tyr, and GABA in MFCG were lower than those in GG (p < 0.01); The dencichine (p < 0.05) and dencichine/GABA (p < 0.01) in MFCG were higher than those in GG. Among them, the average ratio of dencichine to GABA is about 6:1 in MFCG and 3:1 in GG in most instances. It is for the first time that the effects of ecological factors on the chemical composition of MFCG and its distinction from GG by amino acids were investigated.
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•Ecological environment has a greater effect on primary metabolites than secondary metabolites.•Temperature can regulate ginsenosides and amino acids in an opposite direction.•Minor amounts of heavy metal elements are useful for the accumulation of food composition.•Key ecological factors of mountainous forest cultivated ginseng were identified.•The characteristics of amino acids in mountain- and garden- cultivated ginseng.
The quality of Chinese herbal medicine is closely related to its producing region. In order to apply mathematical models to do a quantitative study on the suitability of Chinese herbal medicine, it ...is necessary to study on the ecological factors and the interpolation of climatic data, which influence the Chinese herbal medicine growth. The paper firstly studied the judgment standard of ecological index from the points of ecology and statistics, and how to calculate the optimum range values and the weight of each ecological factor. Secondly, meteorological element data is essential data in analyzing the suitable region of Chinese herbal medicine, and the spatial distribution of meteorological elements is closely related to terrain environment, so, in order to make the results close to true value by the greatest degree. The paper adopted multiple linear regression interpolation method which based on DEM. The paper distinguished the factor system of suitable region and interpolation on the point of datumization, and made a study on it about some key issues.
Szechuan peppers, famous for their unique sensation and flavor, are widely used as a food additive and traditional herbal medicine. Zanthoxylum bungeanum and Z. armatum are both commonly recognized ...as Szechuan peppers, but they have different tastes and effects. The chemical components, genetic characteristics, and suitable habitat of six cultivars were analyzed in this study. The results indicated that Z. armatum contained a larger proportion of volatile oil, whereas Z. bungeanum produced a more non-volatile ether extraction. The average content of volatile oil and non-volatile ether extract of Z. armatum were 11.84 and 11.63%, respectively, and the average content of volatile oil and non-volatile ether extract of Z. bungeanum were 6.46 and 14.23%, respectively. Combined with an internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) sequence characters and chemical PCA results, six cultivars were classified into their own groups, for the two species in particular. The temperature in January and July were the most significant ecological factors influencing the contents of the Z. armatum volatile oil. However, annual precipitation, temperature in January and relevant humidity had a significant positive correlation with the content of non-volatile ether extract in Z. bungeanum. Thus, the most suitable areas for producing Z. bungeanum cultivars ranged from the Hengduan Mountains to the Ta-pa Mountains, and the regions suitable for Z. armatum cultivars were found to be in the Sichuan Basin and Dalou-Wu mountains. The predicted suitable habitat could be used as a preliminary test area for Szechuan pepper cultivar production.
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