Germplasma Investigations On Lycium Plants In China And Studies On The Chemical Constituents Of Viola Yedoensis Makino

Lycium plants belong to the Solanaceae family, comprises about 80 species, which are mainly distributed in South America, South Africa, and a few in temperate Europe and Asia. In China, there are 7 species and 3 varieties, mostly distributed in the northwest and north of China. Lycii Fructus (fruit of L. barbarum, called Gouqizi in Chinese), Lycii Cortex (root bark of L. barbarum or L. chinense, called Digupi in Chinese) and Lycii Folium (leaf of L. barbarum or L. chinense, called Gouqiye in Chinese) are widely used as traditional medicine in many countries, especially in China. Lycii Fructus can be used both as food and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) with benefits to liver and kidneys, to replenish vital essence and improve eyesight. Lycii Cortex can be used as antipyretic and for the treatment of pneumonia, night-sweats, cough, hematemesis, inflammation, and diabetes mellitus. Lycii Folium can be used for tonifying deficiency, nourishing the kidney, clearing heat and brightening the eyes. Lycii Fructus and Lycii Cortex are recorded in the Pharmacopaeia of the People's Republic of China. In the civil, the other species of Lycium plants were also used as medicines. We studied the Germplasma resources of Lycium plants in China.In 1989, M.L. Harsh et al. reported that the fruits of L. barbarum from India contain atropine, and the content of atropine in fruits of L. barbarum collected in India is as high as 0.95%. As we know, the dried ripe fruits of Lycium barbarum (Gouqizi) are widely used in Asian countries especially in China for medicinal purposes and as a functional food. The widespread traditional use, with practically no report of intoxication, does not coincide with the findings of M.L. Harsh et al. So their results have been questioned. Since then, however, there has been a discussion on whether the Gouqizi are suitable for human consumption. We have also tested several Lycium fruits from 5 species and 2 varieties, and 11 commercial samples of Gouqizi collected from seven main producing-areas of China using LC-MS method. The results indicated that atropine in all of the examined samples is of maximally 3 ppb (w/w), which if far below the generally accepted toxic amount (5～10mg). This low level of atropine without toxicological relevance may explain the wide use of L. barbarum fruits with practically no reports of intoxication. So, Gouqizi from China is safe, and can be certainly used as medicine or food.We studied the impact of temperature on LBP andβ-carotene of fresh Lycii Fructus, and provided a scientific basis to product and process fresh Lycii Fructus.Lycium barbarum L. polysaccharide (LBP) is one of the important biological constituents of Lycii Fructus. LBP has many activities:immunomodulation, antidiabetic, hypolipidemic, anti-atherosclerosis, hepatoprotective, antioxidant, antiaging, antitumor, etc. We analyzed LBP in different species and commercial samples of Lycii Fructus, provided the theoretical evidence to the further utilization of Lycii Fructus.L. barbarum and L. chinense are recorded in the Pharmacopaeia of the People's Republic of China as plants for Lycii Fructus and Lycii Cortex, but in the civil, the other species of Lycium plants were also used as medicines. We easily identified and analyzed eight species of Lycium fruits by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), second derivative IR spectra and two-dimensional correlation infrared spectroscopy (2D-IR).Lycium Plants have strong immunomodulation effects, we studied the impact of different Lycii Fructus and Lycii Cortex extracts on TLR2 and TLR4, which are important receptors in immune signal pathway.In addition, advances in the research of distribution, traditional usage, chemical constituents and bioactivities of Lycium plants in this paper. Viola yedoensis Makino belongs to Violaceae family, Viola genus, comprises about 110 species, which are mainly distributed in Northeast, North, Shannxi, Ningxia, Gansu, Henan, Shandong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui provinces of China. The dried whole plants of Viola yedoensis Makino has been used as a traditional medicine in China to remove toxic heat, reduce swelling, to treat carbuncle and boil, superficial infection, hieropyra, venomous snake bite, etc. Up to date, chemical and biological work on this plant was little. We proceeded a phytochemical investigation of V. yedoensis in order to clarify the chemical constituents of it and search for active compounds. According to our previous activity screening, the petroleum ether and ethyl acetate extracts have strong anti-microbial activity. Since the petroleum ether extracts has been studied before, the ethyl acetate extracts become the focus of this study.Kinds of chromatographic methods were employed to isolate and purify compounds from the dried whole plants of V. yedoensis collected from Beijing.8 compounds were isolated from the the ethyl acetate extract of this plant. The structures of the 8 compounds were identified by classical chemical methods and combination of spectroscopic strategies, including 1 aliphatic acid,1 aromatic acid,1 sterol,1 triterpenoid,3 coumarins,1 amide. All these 8 compounds were found to be in this plant for the first time, while 5 of them were isolated from the genus of Viola for the first time.In addition, advances in the research of traditional usage, chemical constituents and pharmacological activities of Viola plants in this paper.