Background The Shui are a small Chinese sociolinguistic group living in Sandu Shui Autonomous County, south of Guizhou Province. The Shui people have accumulated and developed rich traditional medicinal knowledge, which has played a significant role in their healthcare. Traditional ethnic herbal medicines, like Shui ethnomedicine, have become an important resource of rural development in Guizhou Province. However, not much research has been conducted to document the medicinal plants traditionally used by the Shui people. This study's aims are (1) to record the current use of medicinal plants in Sandu County and associated traditional knowledge, including the medicinal plant species used and the types of diseases treated by local healers and any unique aspects of their preparations; (2) to analyze the most important medicinal plant species using relative frequency of citation (RFC); and (3) to provide useful information and data for possible future development and application of ethnomedicine and promote the conservation and preservation of Shui traditional medicinal knowledge. Methods Field surveys were conducted between July 2015 and August 2022 in Sandu County. A total of 15 local healers as key informants were interviewed. An additional 132 informants from villages and local markets were also interviewed through semistructured interviews and focal group discussions. Local Shui healers were followed during their collection of medicinal plants in the fields and recorded the medicinal plants' names, uses, and parts used. An ANOVA was used to evaluate the number of medicinal plants recognized by local healers across age-groups and townships, and relative frequencies of citation values were determined for the recorded medicinal plants. Results In this study, data collected from 15 Shui healers and 132 other informants were analyzed. The healers used fresh or dried parts of 505 plant species as medicine to treat a wide range of conditions and diseases. These plants belong to 405 genera from 156 families, with Fabaceae being the highest represented plant family. The Jiuqian township had the highest distribution of per capita healers (pch); only one local healer was in Zhonghe. Of the 15 local healers, only two were younger than 40 years of age. There is a major concern that traditional medicinal knowledge may be lost if there are not sufficient trainees or suitable successors. Among the common medicinal plants, most are herbaceous and the Shui typically use the whole plant in their medicines. There are 85 different recorded diseases treated by Shui medicinal plants, and among them, rheumatism and bone fractures have the largest number of species used. Three medicinal plant species, Isodon amethystoides, Asarum insigne, and Acorus tatarinowii, are the most commonly used ethnomedicines by the Shui people. Conclusion This study demonstrated that Shui people have extensive knowledge of a diverse range of medicinal plants, many of which had not been systematically recorded before the current study. Further research on the chemistry, pharmacology, and toxicity of Shui medicinal plants will be useful for developing functional foods or pharmaceutical products, particularly those of Isodon amethystoides, Asarum insigne, and Acorus tatarinowii. Additionally, as a result of rapid economic growth, fewer young people in Shui communities pursue traditional medicinal studies. Only 15 traditional Shui healers remain in the county, and only two of them are below the age of 40 years. Therefore, to conserve Shui's traditional medicinal knowledge, initiatives and policies are required to regenerate, strengthen, and promote Shui medicinal knowledge.

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Aim: This study systematically reviewed the application of ICP-MS and its combined technology in the determination of mineral and heavy metal elements in medicinal materials derived from plants, animals, minerals and their preparations (Chinese patent medicine), and biological products. It provides a reference for improving the quality standard of traditional medicine and exploring the effective components, toxic components, and action mechanism of traditional medicine. Materials and Methods: A total of 234 articles related to the determination of mineral and heavy metal elements in medicinal materials derived from plants, animals, and minerals and their preparations (Chinese patent medicine) were collected from PubMed, CNKI, Web of Science, VIP, and other databases. They were classified and sorted by the inductively coupled plasma-mass-spectrometry (ICP-MS) method. Results: Of the 234 articles, 154 were about medicinal materials derived from plants, 15 about medicinal materials derived from animals, 9 about medicinal materials derived from minerals, 46 about Chinese patent medicine, 10 about combined technology application, and 3 about drugs being tested after entering the body. From the 154 articles on medicinal materials derived from plants, 76 elements, including Cu, Cd, Pb, As, Cr, Mn, and Hg, were determined, of which the determination of Cu was the most, with 129 articles. Medicinal materials derived from the roots, stems, leaves, flowers, and fruits and seeds of plants accounted for 25.97%, 18.18%, 7.14%, 7.79%, and 14.94%, respectively. Moreover, medicinal materials derived from the whole plants accounted for 14.94%, and other medicinal materials derived from plants and soil accounted for 11.04%. A total of 137 of the tested medicinal materials were from traditional Chinese medicine, accounting for 88.96%, 12 were from Arabic medicine (including Unani), accounting for 7.79%, 2 were from Tibetan medicine of China, and 1 was from Mongolian medicine of China, 1 was from Miao medicine of China, and 1 was from Zhuang medicine of China. In the 15 articles on medicinal materials derived from animals, 49 elements such as Cu, As, Cd, Hg, Se, Pb, and Mn were determined, of which Cu was the most. All the tested medicinal materials belong to traditional Chinese medicine. From the nine articles on medicinal materials derived from minerals, 70 elements such as Fe, Cu, Zn, Al, As, Se, and Na were determined, of which Fe, Cu, and Zn were the most. The tested medicinal materials all belong to traditional Chinese medicine. From the 46 articles on Chinese patent medicine, 62 elements such as Cu, As, Pb, Cd, Hg, Ni, and Cr were determined, of which Cu was the most. Regarding the tested Chinese patent medicine, 38 articles belong to traditional Chinese medicine, 6 to Tibetan medicine, and 2 to Mongolian medicine of China. Three articles determine the content of metal elements in biological samples such as animal hepatic venous blood, abdominal aortic blood, brain, liver, kidney, urine, and feces, and one article determines the content of metal elements in human lung and serum. From the 10 articles combined with liquid chromatography and gas chromatography, 16 elements such as MMA, DMA, AsIII, AsV, AsB, AsC, and AsI 3 were determined, of which MMA and DMA were the most. It can realize elemental morphology and isotope analysis. The tested medicinal materials and Chinese patent medicine belong to traditional Chinese medicine. Conclusion: ICP-MS was applied the most in traditional Chinese medicine, followed by Arabic medicine. ICP-MS was used to determine more medicinal materials derived from plants, and Cu was determined the most. The characteristic inorganic element spectrum of medicinal materials can also be established. ICP-MS and its combined technology are widely used in Chinese patent medicine, but the test of biological samples is the least. The information provided in this article can provide a reference for improving the quality standard of traditional medicines and exploring the active ingredients and toxic ingredients and their mechanism of action.

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Background Colocasia gigantea, Caladium bicolor and Xanthosoma sagittifolium are three worldwide famous ornamental and/or vegetable plants in the Araceae family, these species in the subfamily Aroideae are phylogenetically perplexing due to shared interspecific morphological traits and variation. Result This study, for the first time ever, assembled and analyzed complete chloroplast genomes of C. gigantea, C. bicolor and X. sagittifolium with genome sizes of 165,906 bp, 153,149 bp and 165,169 bp in length, respectively. The genomes were composed of conserved quadripartite circular structures with a total of 131 annotated genes, including 8 rRNA, 37 tRNA and 86 protein-coding genes. A comparison within Aroideae showed seven protein-coding genes (accD, ndhF, ndhK, rbcL, rpoC1, rpoC2 and matK) linked to environmental adaptation. Phylogenetic analysis confirmed a close relationship of C. gigantea with C. esculenta and S. colocasiifolia, and the C. bicolor with X. sagittifolium. Furthermore, three DNA barcodes (atpH-atpI + psaC-ndhE, atpH-atpI + trnS-trnG, atpH-atpI + psaC-ndhE + trnS-trnG) harbored highly variable regions to distinguish species in Aroideae subfamily. Conclusion These results would be beneficial for species identification, phylogenetic relationship, genetic diversity, and potential of germplasm resources in Aroideae.

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Objectives: To evaluate the current evidence whether Chinese medicine compound (CMC) can reduce the serum levels of rheumatoid factor (RF) and anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies (anti-CCP). Methods: We comprehensively searched PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), the Database for Chinese Technical Periodicals (VIP), and Wanfang data. We then performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of all randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing the CMC therapy methods. This study is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42020216284. Results: In total, 65 studies were eligible for inclusion, including 6099 patients. The result of the meta-analysis showed that compared with common Western medicine therapy, CMC monotherapy or combined with Western medicine was able to reduce serum RF (SMD= -0.85, 95%CI -1.04 to -0.67) and anti-CCP (SMD= -0.56, 95%CI -0.79 to -0.32) levels to some extent. In the efficacy meta-analysis, a greater number of CMC-treated patients achieved the efficacy criteria after a period of treatment, where the relative risk (RR) was 1.20 [1.08, 1.33] for achieving ACR20, 1.57 [1.38, 1.78] for ACR50, and 2.21 [1.72, 2.84] for ACR70. At the same time, there was a statistically significant difference in the effective rate of the patient's TCM symptoms (RR = 1.22, 95%CI 1.19-1.26). Conclusions: Through this meta-analysis and systematic review, we found that CMC for the treatment of RA is effective in reducing RF and anti-CCP levels and might have better clinical efficacy than Western medicine monotherapy. Some active components are responsible for this efficacy and worth further exploring.

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In Asia, the market for whitening cosmetics is expanding rapidly, more and more people prefer to use natural products. Driven by natural product demand and technical advances, herbal research is also developing fast. Lots of studies reported that Asian herbal reagents can reduce melanogenesis, these findings provide evidence for the whitening application of Asian herbs. However, the current development status and challenges of herbal research need attention too. By reviewing these studies, different problems in studying herbal formulas, extracts, and active ingredients were presented. One of the most influential troubles is that the components of herbs are too complex to obtain reliable results. Thus, an understanding of the overall quality of herbal research is necessary. Further, 90 most cited Asian herbal studies on whitening were collected, which were conducted between 2017 and 2020, then statistical analysis was carried out. This work provided a comprehensive understanding of Asian herbal research in skin whitening, including the overall status and quality, as well as the focuses and limitations of these studies. By proactively confronting and analyzing these issues, it is suggested that the focus of herbal medicine research needs to shift from quantity to quality, and the new stage of development should emphasize transformation from research findings to whitening products.

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