Combretum indicum can kill insects and benefit the spleen and stomach, which is the most important medicine to treat children's diseases. The classics of materia medica, calendar edition of Chinese Pharmacopoeia, local processing standards and related literature were reviewed to sort out the processing history of Combretum indicum, compare the ancient medicinal parts and processing methods, and summarize the inclusion in national and local standards. The history of the evolution of Combretum indicum was summarized in order to provide ideas for rational drug use in clinical and standard improvement.

Objective To establish an HPLC method for simultaneous assay of macrocyclic polyphenols from Penthorum chinense Pursh, pinocembrin-7-O-[4'', 6''-(S)-hexahydroxydiphenoyl]-β-D-glucose (PHG), pinocembrin-7-O-[3''-O-galloyl-4'', 6''-(S)-hexahydroxydiphenoyl]-β-D-glucose (PGHG) and pinocembrin dihydrochalcone-7-O-[3''-O-galloyl-4'', 6''-(S)-hexahydroxydiphenoyl]-β-D-glucoside or thonningianin A (THA), and optimize the extraction process. Methods The total extraction rate of PHG, PGHG, THA was used as an investigated index to analyze the extracts from Penthorum chinense Pursh. Orthogonal design was applied to evaluate solvent amount, extraction time, solvent concentration and extraction times as the influencing factors for the optimal extraction process of macrocyclic polyphenols from Penthorum chinense Pursh. Results When this content assay method was adopted, there were good linear relationships for PHG, PGHG, THA in the linear range. The recoveries were between 100.90% to 102.04% with the RSDs below 1.5%. The optimal extraction process was involved in cutting Penthorum chinense Pursh into 3-5 cm, adding 10 times 80% ethanol aqueous solution by volume and refluxing 2 hours twice. The extraction rate of macrocyclic polyphenols was above 90% with this process. Conclusion This assay method is accurate, stable, and repeatable. The optimized extraction process is stable and feasible for further development and utilization.

Objective To provide the experimental basis for the subsequent genetic diversity research through establishing and optimizing the inter-simple sequence repeat PCR (ISSR-PCR) reaction system of Gnaphalium affine. Methods The single-factor experimental method and full experimental method were used to optimize the ISSR-PCR reaction system of Gnaphalium affine. Under the optimal system, after screening primers and corresponding annealing temperatures, the systematic feasibility was verified. Results The optimal ISSR-PCR reaction system was consisted of 10 μl Premix Taq DNA polymerase, 0.3 μmol/L primer, 10 ng DNA template, and sterilized water added to 20 μl. Finally, 10 primers were screened from 100 universal primers, and verification results indicated the system had high stability, good reproducibility, and the selected primers had good polymorphism. Conclusion The ISSR-PCR amplification system of Gnaphalium affine was established for the first time and the primers with appropriate annealing temperatures were filtered out, which provided a reference for the subsequent genetic diversity research of Gnaphalium affine.