Objective To study the conditions of callus induction with the roots of Aquilaria sinensis as explants. Methods Two sources of roots of Aquiliaria sinensis were selected as the explants. The effects of sterilization methods and the combination of different concentrations of phytohormones on callus induction were evaluated. Results When Aquiliaria sinensis root seedling was sterilized in 0.01mg/mL HgCl2 solution for 3 minutes, the sterilized effect was the best. The optimal callus induction medium was MS+0.1 mg/L 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) +0.1 mg/L 6-benzylaminopurine (6-BA). Aseptic Aquiliaria sinensis root seedling cultivated in callus induction medium containing MS+1.0 mg/L naphthalene acetic acid ( NAA) +0.8 mg/L 6-BA achieved the highest callus induction rate. Conclusion Callus can be induced from two sources of Aquilaria sinensis roots. The induction rate of callus is lower when the explant root seedling is cultivated using 2,4-D alone as inducer, and is increased when used together with 6-BA.

This article was aimed to study the species identification capability of psbA-trnH among Guanzhong herbs from Dryopteri. The nucleotide sequence information of psbA-trnH region was abstracted using standardized manners from 9 Dryopteri species (19 samples). The identification efficiency of psbA-trnH was analyzed based on TaxonGap among both tested materials (9 species, 19 samples) and tested materials plus GenBank data (17 species, 44 samples in total). The results showed that with the expanded species range, the discriminative efficiency of psbA-trnH de-clined from 100% (9/9) to 82.4% (14/17), while the proportion of within-specific heterogeneity larger than between-specific separability increased from 11.1% (1/9) to 52.9% (9/17). It was concluded that psbA-trnH can be recom-mended as the valuable barcode for homonym distinguishment among Guanzhong herbs, with attention of adequate sampling within species.

Biological chemistry of Chinese herbal germplasm resources (BCCHGR) is a new cross-discipline formed from rapid development of modern science and technology and its application in the area of Chinese herbal resources. BCCHGR was defined as probing and understanding biological processes like heredity, gene transcription, expression and metabolism of Chinese herbal germplasm, at the interface of biochemistry, molecular biology and chemistry, elu-cidating the nature of Chinese herbal germplasm using as TCM medicine as well as the forming mechanism thereof. In this paper, the scientific background, definition, significance and contents of BCCHGR were discussed to depict a preliminary picture of BCCHGR and arouse popular consideration and discussions.

Objective To evaluate the quality of medicinal materials of Lignum Dalbergiae Odoriferae in Chinese herbal medicine market. Methods Eighteen batches of commercial medicinal materials of Lignum Dalbergiae Odoriferae were identified and analyzed by macroscopical identification, thin layer chromatography (TLC), and volatile oil assay according to the Chinese Pharmacopoeia published in 2010. Visible spectrometry was used to determine the content of total flavonoids from the qualified samples. And the gas chromatography was applied to evaluate the content of nerolidol from volatile oils of the qualified samples. Results Only 33.3%of the samples met the standard of Chinese Pharmacopoeia. The total flavonoid content of the qualified samples was in the range of 21.6-29.0 mg/g. The content of nerolidol from volatile oils of the qualified samples was in the range of 294-574 mg/g. Conclusion At present, the quality of medicinal materials of Lignum Dalbergiae Odoriferae in Chinese herbal medicine market and in clinic varies greatly, and adulterants and inferior are common. The contents of chemical components in different batches of samples are significant different.

This study was aimed to identify original plants of Xi-Huang-Cao (XHC) through DNA barcodes. The nu-cleotide sequence information of rbcL, psbA-trnH, matK and ITS2 regions were abstracted using standardized man-ners from 41 samples (including Rabdosia serra, R. lophanthoides and R. lophanthoides var. graciliflora). Sequencing efficiency of each marker was calculated. Species identification capability was tested on the basis of TaxonGap. The results showed that sequence success rates were 100% for rbcL, 90.2% for psbA-trnH, 87.8% for ITS2, and 70.7%for matK. Three markers (rbcL, psbA-trnH and ITS2) were competent for species discrimination (not for subspecies). It was concluded that rbcL can be the preferred barcode for XHC because of its convenience and efficacy.