A perspective on geoherbalism: An example of scutellariae radix biogeography based on three chloroplast DNA regions

Dynamic Chiropractic

Shiliang Zhou¹  Shouzhuo Li²  Bin Li³ 

[1] Chengde Medical College, Chengde 067000, Hebei, China.;Research Institute of Forestry, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing 100091, China.;State Key Laboratory of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100093, China.

关键词: Chloroplast DNA;    genetic diversity;    geoherbalism;    scutellariae radix;    Scutellaria.;   

DOI  :  10.5897/JMPR11.1630

学科分类：医学（综合）

来源: MPA Media

【 摘 要 】

The term ‘geoherbalism’ is extensively used for both academic and commercial purposes. To examine the recent application of this term to a frequently used herbal medicine, 231 samples of genuine scutellariae radix,Scutellaria baicalensis, were collected from 13 populations, covering almost the entire distribution range. In addition, we sampled its two succedanea, that is, 39 samples from two populations ofScutellaria rehderianaand 45 samples from two populations ofScutellaria viscidulaand a control (Scutellariaregeliana). The genetic differences among the samples in the three rapidly evolving chloroplast DNA regions (matK, psbK-psbI and trnL-trnF) were analyzed. All three of the medicinal species showed very low genetic diversity when compared to the control, possibly because of the long harvesting history. Based on the markers used,S. baicalensiswas distinguishable fromS. rehderianabut not fromS. viscidula. The geoherbalic populations in Rehe were indistinguishable from the other populations. We conclude that the concept of geoherbalism should be restricted to its historical usage in referring to the genuine medicinal species rather than the geographical regions within the genuine species as proposed by some advocates.

【 授权许可】

Unknown