Central China Schisandra Fruit Development Stage Lignan Content Changes

Schisandra sphenanthera Rehd.et Wils.(S.sphenanthera) is a kind of perennial lianas which belongs to Schisandra Michx.in Magnoliaceae.Its' dried ripening fruits,which are called nan-wu-wei-zi(Mandarin Chinese,the literal English translation is southern five-taste fruit),are a rich source of lignans with diverse biological activities.The dried fruits of S.sphenanthera have been widely used as a tonic and sedative in China for a long time.S.sphenanthera grow in many provinces of China,such as Shaanxi,Shanxi,Gansu,Anhui,Zhejiang,Jiangxi,Fujian,Henan,Hubei, Hunan,Sichuan,Guizhou,and the northeast part of Yunnan.While the fruits of S.sphenanthera have not attracted enough people's attentions,because the price is lower than Schisandra chinensis (Turcz.) Baill.(another kind of perennial lianas in Schisandra Michx.).So a little of studies have focused on this plant.In this study,a HPLC method for the quantification of four common schisandra lignans,schisandrin,schisantherin A,deoxyschizandrin andγ-schizandrin in S. sphenanthera was developed.And the method was conducted to investigate the lignans changes during S.sphenanthera fruits ripening in four parts of S.sphenanthera,the fruits,the leaves,the multi-year-old stems and the one-year-old stems,expecting to find the develop-pattern of the fruits and determining the best time to harvest,which provide a base-line information regarding these biochemical changes and maximizing the yield for the exploitation of S.sphenanthera in Zhashui in the south of Chin mountain,Shaanxi province in China.The main results were as blow:1.A rapid and convenient HPLC analysis method had been developed for determination of lignans, schisandrin,schisantherin A,deoxyschizandrin,andγ-schizandrin,in S.sphenanthera.The HPLC system consisted Shimadzu LC-2010(Shimadzu Corp.,Kyoto,Japan) and Shimadzu LCsolution software.Separation was achieved on a Shimadzu C18 column(Phenomenex,150×4.6mm;5μm particle size).The mobile phase consisted of methanol-deionised water(70:30).The flow rate was adjusted to 0.8mL min^-1,the detection wavelength to 280 nm and 8μm of sample was injected.All separations were performed at 30℃.After the checking of the linearity,the accurately,the repeatability and the precision,the method was showed suitable for the determination of S. sphenanthera.2.Three lignans were identified in the dried fruits.There were schisantherin A,deoxyschizandrin, andγ-schizandrin.The content of schisantherin A reached the standard of the Chinese Parmacopoeia which indicated that S.sphenanthera from Zhashui was in high grade. 3.The lignans kind and the lignans qualities were vary in different plant organs.In all the four detected parts,fruits,leaves,multi-year-old stems and one-year-old stems,lignans contents were highest in the fruits,not only their kind,but also their qualities.While other three organs,leaves, multi-year-old stems and one-year-old stems,contained only a little of schisantherin A.4.From Jue to Augest in the year 2007,the development of S.sphenanthera fruits was described as a process of discontinuity,which could be divided into four periods.First period was 25^th-around 40^th days from anthesis.This was the first growing stage.Second period was about 40^th-50^th days from anthesis.In this period,the fruits grew very slowly.Third period was 50^th-75^th days from anthesis or so.This was the second growing stage.Last period was after 75^th days from anthesis. The fruits had almost finished growing.Both the weight and the shape of fruits reached their highest points at the 75^th days from anthesis.5.During S.sphenanthera fruit developing,all the three lignans contents accumulated, schisantherin A,deoxyschizandrin,andγ-schizandrin,and reached their highest degrees at the 40^th days from anthesis.Then,the schisantherin A content was cut back sharply,theγ-schizandrin content lessened slowly,while the content of deoxyschizandrin maintained almost equably until the 75^th days from anthesis when it began to reduce.In the growing stage,the contents of all the three lignans were augmented.In the second growing stage,both the contents of schisantherin A andγ-schizandrin diminished,while the deoxyschizandrin did not vary much.6.According to the various applications,the S.sphenanthera fruits should be picked up at different time.The best times to harvest were determined as follow.(1) For being used as traditional Chinese medicine,the harvest time was adjusted to around the 75^th days from anthesis. (2) For extracting schisantherin A,deoxyschizandrin,andγ-schizandrin,the fruits should be collected at about 50^th,75^th,and 50^th days from anthesis respectively.(3) For being consuming as commercial fruits,the best time to harvest was determined at 75^th days from anthesis.