Bioassay, which construct the characteristics consistents with Chinese medical science, is the core mode and methods for the quality control of Chinese materia medica. Taking the bioassay of Radix Isatidis as an example, the contribution, status and application of bioassay in the quality control of Chinese materia medica were introduced in this article, and two key issue (the selection of reference and measurement methods) in the process of establishing bioassay were also explained. This article expects to provide a reference for the development and improvement of the bioassay of Chinese materia medica in a practical manipulation level.
Aconitum ; Materia Medica ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; utilization ; Quality Control

Objective:The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between monocyte to high density lipoprotein-cholesterol ratio (MHR) and the infection, severity, and prognosis of diabetic foot ulcer.Methods:A retrospective cohort study of 194 patients with diabetic foot ulcer between September 2016 and August 2018 was conducted at the First Affiliated Hospital of University of South China. The clinical data, glucose and lipids metabolism, renal function, nutritional status, coagulation function, and severity of infection, severity, ischemic, and diagnosis were recorded. The rates of healed ulcer, amputation, and mortality were followed for six months.Results:The higher MHR levels of diabetic foot ulcer patients were accompanied with the higher Wagner grade, infection grade, severity of lower extremity ischemia, and proportion of adverse outcomes ( P trend<0.05). MHR and many traditional risk factors of diabetic foot ulcer (white blood cell count, C-reactive protein, albumin, estimated glomerular filtration rate, and ankle brachial index) were significantly correlated (all P<0.05). After adjustment for potential confounders, multivariate logistics regression analysis showed that MHR levels were positively associated with the occurrence of adverse outcomes [odds ratio ( OR) for the highest quartile vs lowest quartile, 1.52 (95% CI 1.08-3.08), P<0.05]. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis showed that area under the curve (AUC) of high MHR, high C-reactive protein, and low albumin for predicting the occurrence of adverse outcomes in diabetic foot ulcer patients were 0.674 (95% CI 0.581-0.747), 0.703(95% CI 0.615-0.772), and 0.667(95% CI 0.569-0.734), respectively. Conclusion:Elevation of MHR in diabetic foot ulcer patients are positively correlated with the grading of Wagner classification, and the severity of infection and ischemia, and seriously affects the prognosis of patients, suggesting that more attention should be paid to the MHR.

Objective: To explore the relationship between serum C1q and tumor necrosis factor related protein 6(CTRP6) level and insulin resistance in patients with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods: A total of 167 patients with newly diagnosed T2DM in the outpatient department of our hospital were recruited from April 2016 to March 2017 and 165 subjects with normal glucose tolerance were used as the control group. The concentrations of CTRP6, interleukin 6 (IL-6), monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) were determined by ELISA. Results: Circulating CTRP6 level was significantly higher in T2DM group than that in control group [(652.54±132.57) vs (521.28±119.93)μg/L, P<0.01] after adjusting age and body mass index (BMI). Overweight/obese subjects revealed higher CTRP6 levels compared with those in lean individuals. In addition, circulating CTRP6 level was positively correlated with BMI, waist circumference, fasting plasma glucose, postprandial 2h plasma glucose, HbA_1C, fasting insulin, homeostasis model assessment insulin resistance index (HOMA-IR), triglyceride (TG), IL-6, MCP-1, highly sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), and TNF-α, while it was inversely correlated with high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol(P<0.01). Multivariate linear regression analysis showed that TG, HOMA-IR, and IL-6 were independent factors for CTRP6 level. After adjusting for potential confounders, CTRP6 remained an independent risk factor for T2DM. Trend test showed that the increase in CTRP6 level was significantly linear with the occurrence of T2DM. The analysis of receiver operating characteristic curves revealed that the area under the curve for circulating CTRP6 to predict T2DM was 0.730. Conclusions CTRP6 may be associated with insulin resistance.

Angelicae Sinensis Radix (Danggui) and Ligusticum Chuanxiong Rhizoma (Chuan Xiong) herb-pair (DC) have been frequently used in Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) prescriptions for hundreds of years to prevent vascular diseases and alleviate pain. However, the mechanism of DC herb-pair in the prevention of liver fibrosis development was still unclear. In the present study, the effects and mechanisms of DC herb-pair on liver fibrosis were examined using network pharmacology and mouse fibrotic model. Based on the network pharmacological analysis of 13 bioactive ingredients found in DC, a total of 46 targets and 71 pathways related to anti-fibrosis effects were obtained, which was associated with mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signal pathway, hepatic inflammation and fibrotic response. Furthermore, this hypothesis was verified using carbon tetrachloride (CCl