Alkylamide Profiling of Pericarps Coupled with Chemometric Analysis to Distinguish Prickly Ash Pericarps

Herbal materials used as soil amendments alleviate root rot of Panax ginseng

Root rot is a serious soil-borne fungal disease that seriously affects the yield and quality of Panxa ginseng. To develop a sustainable strategy for alleviating ginseng root rot, an herb-based soil amendment is suggested in this study. Mixed powers of medicinal herbs (MP) and corn stalks (CS) were used as soil amendments, respectively, along with a control group (CK) without treatment. The application of MP and CS led to significant relief from ginseng root rot. The disease index (%) represents both the incidence rate and symptom severity of the disease. The disease index of the MP and CS group was 18.52% and 25.93%, respectively, lower than that of CK (40.74%). Correspondingly, three soil enzyme activities improved; the antifungal components in the soil increased; and the relative abundances of root rot pathogens decreased in response to MP Soil enzyme activities were negatively correlated with disease grades. MP group also led to possible interactive changes in the communities of soil fungi and chemical components. In conclusion, our results suggest that the use of herb-based soil amendments has significant potential as an ecological and effective approach to controlling root rot disease of ginseng by the changing rhizosphere fungal community and soil compositions.

Pharmacological activities of Zanthoxylum L. plants and its exploitation and utilization

The study aims to provide an up-to-date review at the advancements of the investigations on the ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, pharmacological effect and exploitation and utilizations of Zanthoxylum L. Besides, the possible tendency and perspective for future research of this plant are discussed, as well. This article uses "Zanthoxylum L." "Zanthorylum bungeanum" as the keywords and collects relevant information on Zanthoxylum L. plants through electronic searches (Elsevier, PubMed, ACS, Web of Science, Science Direct, CNKI, Google Scholar), relevant books, and classic literature about Chinese herb. The plants of this genus are rich in volatile oils, alkaloids, amides, lignans, coumarins and organic acids, and has a wide range of pharmacological activities, including but not limited to anti-inflammatory, analgesic, anti-tumor, hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic, antioxidant and anti-infectious. This article reviewed both Chinese and international research progress on the active ingredients and pharmacological activities of Zanthoxylum L. as well as the applications of this genus in the fields of food, medicinal and daily chemicals, and clarified the material basis of its pharmacological activities. Based on traditional usage, phytochemicals, and pharmacological properties, of Zanthoxylum L. species, which indicate that they possess diverse bioactive metabolites with interesting bioactivities. Zanthoxylum L. is a potential medicinal and edible plant with diverse pharmacological effects. Due to its various advantages, it may have vast application potential in the food and medicinal industries and daily chemicals. Nonetheless, the currently available data has several gaps in understanding the herbal utilization of Zanthoxylum L. Thus, further research into their toxicity, mechanisms of actions of the isolated bioactive metabolites, as well as scientific connotations between the traditional medicinal uses and pharmacological properties is required to unravel their efficacy in therapeutic potential for safe clinical application.

Exogenous priming of chitosan induces resistance in Chinese prickly ash against stem canker caused by Fusarium zanthoxyli

Stem canker is a highly destructive disease that threatens prickly ash plantations in China. This study demonstrated the effective control of stem canker in prickly ash using chitosan priming, reducing lesion areas by 46.77 % to 75.13 % across all chitosan treatments. The mechanisms underlying chitosan-induced systemic acquired resistance (SAR) in prickly ash were further investigated. Chitosan increased H2O2 levels and enhanced peroxidase and catalase enzyme activities. A well-constructed regulatory network depicting the genes involved in the SAR and their corresponding expression levels in prickly ash plants primed with chitosan was established based on transcriptomic analysis. Additionally, 224 ZbWRKYs were identified based on the whole genome of prickly ash, and their phylogenetic evolution, conserved motifs, domains and expression patterns of ZbWRKYs were comprehensively illustrated. The expression of 12 key genes related to the SAR was significantly increased by chitosan, as determined using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Furthermore, the activities of defensive enzymes and the accumulation of lignin and flavonoids in prickly ash were significantly enhanced by chitosan treatment. Taken together, this study provides valuable insights into the chitosan-mediated activation of the immune system in prickly ash, offering a promising eco-friendly approach for forest stem canker control.

Antifungal compounds of Chinese prickly ash against drug-resistant Candida albicans

The leaf of Chinese prickly ash, a unique spice having typical pungent sensation, is a popular food in Southwest China with antipruritic, insecticidal and fungicidal functions, but its bioactive constituents of fungistatic capacity remain unknown. In present investigation, twenty-nine compounds were isolated from leaf of Chinese prickly ash, and their antifungal bioactivity against drug-resistant Candida albicans were evaluated in vitro and in vivo. As a result, three compounds 3, 10, 29 showed antifungal bioactivity by damage of the fungal biofilm, and they might recover sensitive of drug resistant C. albicans to Fluconazole. Then Chinese prickly ash leaf was proved to be a functional food against fungus for the first time in experiment.

Volatile Oil Profile of Prickly Ash (Zanthoxylum) Pericarps from Different Locations in China

Volatile oils of prickly ash (Zanthoxylum) pericarps have various potential biological functions with considerable relevance to food, pharmacological, and industrial applications. The volatile profile of oils extracted from prickly ash pericarps obtained from 72 plantations in China was determined by gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. Several chemometric analyses were used to better understand the volatile oil profile differences among different pericarps and to determine the key factors that affected geographical variations in the main volatile constituents of oils. A total of 47 constituents were detected with D-limonene, alfa-myrcene, and linalool as the most abundant. The volatile profile of pericarp oils was significantly affected by prickly ash species and some environmental factors, and the key factors that affected volatile profile variations for different prickly ash species were diverse. Chemometric analyses based on the volatile oil profile could properly distinguish Z. armatum pericarps from other pericarps. This study provides comprehensive information on the volatile oil profile of pericarps from different prickly ash species and different plantations, and it can be beneficial to a system for evaluating of pericarp quality. Moreover, this study speculates on the key environmental factors that cause volatile oil variations for each species, and can help to obtain better prickly ash pericarp volatile oils by improving the cultivated environments.