Project description:Cynomorium songaricum is a root holoparasitic herb that is mainly hosted in the roots of Nitraria roborowskii and Nitraria sibirica distributed in the arid desert and saline-alkaline regions. The stem of C. songaricum is widely used as a traditional Chinese medicine and applied in anti-viral, anti-obesity and anti-diabetes, which largely rely on the bioactive components including: polysaccharides, flavonoids and triterpenes. Although the differences in growth characteristics of C. songaricum between N. roborowskii and N. sibirica have been reported, the difference of the two hosts on growth and polysaccharides biosynthesis in C. songaricum as well as regulation mechanism are not limited. Here, the physiological characteristics and transcriptome of C. songaricum host in N. roborowskii (CR) and N. sibirica (CS) were conducted. The results showed that the fresh weight, soluble sugar content and antioxidant capacity on a per stem basis exhibited a 3.3-, 3.0- and 2.1-fold increase in CR compared to CS. A total of 16,921 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were observed in CR versus CS, with 2573 characterized genes, 1725 up-regulated and 848 down-regulated. Based on biological functions, 50 DEGs were associated with polysaccharides and starch metabolism as well as their transport. The expression levels of the selected 37 genes were validated by qRT-PCR and almost consistent with their Reads Per kb per Million values. These findings would provide useful references for improving the yield and quality of C. songaricum.
Project description:The present study aimed to evaluate the quality of Cynomorium songaricum Rupr. from different producing areas, which is an edible, holoparasitic, and desert plant that has been used in traditional medicine for improving immunity and kidney function and treating constipation. We optimized the extract conditions by response surface methodology (RSM) and determined the content of gallic acid, protocatechuic acid, and catechin of C. songaricum simultaneously from different producing areas by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). It is the first study in which the RSM was used to optimize the extract condition of C. songaricum with multiple evaluation factors, ensuring the efficiency and accuracy of the study. The results were analyzed by principal component analysis, and they showed that the quality of C. songaricum from Qinghai Province was the best, while the quality of C. songaricum from Gansu Province was the worst. For the first time, the two ecotypes of C. songaricum, including Outside Great Wall type and Inside Great Wall type, were discovered and identified by the chemical marker protocatechuic acid. This study is the scientific basis for quality evaluation, especially for food safety.
Project description:Cynomorium songaricum is an important endangered plant with significant medicinal and edible values. However, the lack of resources and quality variation have limited the comprehensive developments and sustainable utilization of C. songaricum. Here, we evaluated the chemical and genetic traits of C. songaricum from the highly suitable habitat regions simulated with species distribution models. The PCA and NJ tree analyses displayed intraspecific variation in C. songaricum, which could be divided into two ecotypes: ecotype I and ecotype II. Furthermore, the LC-MS/MS-based metabolomic was used to identify and analyze the metabolites of two ecotypes. The results indicated that a total of 589 compounds were detected, 236 of which were significantly different between the two ecotypes. Specifically, the relative content and the kind of flavonoids were more abundant in ecotype I, which were closely associated with the medicinal activities. In contrast, amino acids and organic acids were more enriched in ecotype II, which may provide better nutritional quality and unique flavor. In summary, our findings demonstrate the ecotype division and chemical diversity of C. songaricum in China from different geographical regions and provide a reference for the development of germplasm and directed plant breeding of endangered medicinal plants.