Studies On The Contents Of Saikosaponins In The Bupleurum Chinese Patent Medicines

Bupleurum is a Traditional Chinese Medicine which has been utilized in China for thousands of years. There are varieties of chemical components in the species among which the saikosaponins and volatile oil are the major part. Saikosaponin a, c, d rank the top in the saikosaponins contents and saikosaponin a, d play the most obvious role in the pharmacological activities. Therefore, the studies on the Bupleurum original material are focused on the determination of the contents of saikosaponin a, c, d and the results are regarded as one of the significant indexes of the quality of the Bupleurum original material.Till now many Chinese Patent Medicines such as Zheng Chaihu Yin, Xiao Chaihu Tang, Xiaoyao Wan and Jianwei Yuyang Pian those taking Bupleurum as monarch drug lack a reasonable quality detection method. The existing detecting methods mainly aim at the components of other original materials like the paeoniflorin, baicalin, glycyrrhetinic acid and so on. Moreover, the detecting methods in only several studies aiming at the saikosaponins are not convenient operating, not practical and unavailable to get the contents of all the three saikosaponin a, c, d.The author established a fast accurate HPLC method to measure the saikosaponin a, c, d based on amounts of experiments and then determined the contents of saikosaponin a, c, d in 29 drug samples which separating in four different kinds of Bupleurum Chinese Patent Medicines and other two prescriptions containing Bupleurum, in different formulations, different manufacture factories and dates. The results are reasonable. A part of this article titled "Determination of Saikosaponin A in 4 Bupleurum Chinese Patent Medicines by HPLC" was published in the journal Zhong Cheng Yao.According to the research data, the author explored the impacts of the factors including the composing prescriptions, formulations and manufacture processes to the saikosaponin's leaching rate. And the author analyzed different storage conditions and time will degrade the saikosaponins in the medicines.The paper is of guiding significance for the development and manufacture of these Bupleurum Chinese Patent Medicines and it provide reliable information and data as references to their prescription compatibility, formulations, manufacturing, quality detect and control.