Advances in Research on Medicinal Plants of Lindernia All. in Guangxi Province

Fengfeng XIE Yi CAO Hua ZHU

Abstract On the basis of extensive literature search， the paper summarized the pharmacological identification， chemical composition， pharmacological effects and clinical application of Lindernia plants produced in Guangxi Province， with an attempt to provide basic information for further development and utilization of the medicinal resources.

Key words Guangxi; Lindernia All.; Pharmacognostical identification; Chemical components; Pharmacology; Clinical application

Distribution of Lindernia Plants

Lindernia All. belongs to Scrophulariaceae[1]， mainly distributed in the tropical and subtropical regions of Asia， and there are also a few species distributed in the Americas and Europe. There are about 70 species in this genus， among which about 26 species are distributed in China， divided into 11 groups. There are 16 species in Guangxi Province， namely： L. anagallis， L. micrantha D. Don， L. antipoda （L.） Alston， L. ciliata （Colsm.） Pennell， L. crustacea （L.） F. Muell， L. delicatula， L. montana （Bl） Koord， L. nummularifolia （D. Don） Wettst.， L. procumbens （Krock.） Philcox， L. pusilla （Willd.） Boldingh， L. ruellioides （Colsm.） Pennell， L. setulosa （Maxim.） Tuyama ex Hara， L. stricta Tsoong et Ku， L. urticifolia （Hance） Bonati， L. viscosa （Hornem.） Merr. and L. yaoshanensis， belonging to nine groups. Among them， L. delicatula， L. stricta and L. yaoshanensis are the unique varieties in Guangxi Province， which are produced in Longzhou County， Gui County and Xingan County， and Yao Mountains， respectively. Li[2]summarized Scrophulariaceae plants in Guangxi and their geographical distribution characteristics， to classify theses plants. Lindernia plants have complex and diverse distribution types， and are mainly distributed in tropical regions. The number and species in Guangxi Province are second only to Yunnan and such three countries as Vietnam， Laos and Cambodia. In the vertical distribution， the Lindernia plants in Guangxi Province are distributed in areas with an altitude lower than 1 000 m; and L. crustacea and L. ruellioides both grow outside the limestone matrix and granite matrix， and the rest are distributed in the granite matrix， which means they are prefer to acid soil. Medicinal plants in Lindernia All. have the effects of clearing away heat and toxic substances， promoting blood circulation and reducing swelling[3]， and are mainly used for treating windheat cough， sore throat， irregular menstruation， dysmenorrhea， bruises and so on. L. ruellioides and L. ciliate are widely used in Guangxi for treating joint pain and irregular menstruation in the folk， and belong to commonly used Zhuang medicines[4-5]and Yao medicines[6]in Guangxi Province. At present， there are few studies on this genus at home and abroad. In order to conduct indepth research and development and utilization of this resource， this paper reviewed studies on the pharmacological identification， chemical composition， pharmacological action and clinical application of this genus.

Pharmacognostical Identification

Traditional identification of methods

Liang[7]identified L. ciliata through original plant identification， medicinal material identification and microscopic identification. Ye[8]used light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy to observe and study the pollen morphology of six plants， L. crustacean， L. procumbens， L. micrantha， L. anagallis， L. antipoda and L. setulosa in Anhui Province. Tang[9]applied microscopic method to identify L. ruellioides. Lin[10]conducted pharmacognostical study on L. crustacean and L. antipoda by trait identification and microscopic identification. Xie[11]conducted pharmacognostical study on L. oblonga according to sources， traits， microscopic identification and thin layer identification. Yang[12]from Leqing Institute for Food and Drug Inspection in Zhejiang Province identified L. antipoda and Lobelia chinensis Lour.， which were differentiated from the morphology of original plants. Ji[13]studied the crosssection structure and powder microscopic characteristics of the stems and leaves of L. crustacea， L. hyssopioides and L. ruellioides by paraffin section， surface slice processing， powder slide processing and dissociation. Ma[14]carried out trait identification and microscopic identification on L. crustacea in Scrophulariaceae.

Thin layer identification

Xie[11]carried out a TLC identification experiment， in which obvious spots could be observed under different developing agents， and a good separation effect was achieved， which could serve as the basis for identification of L. oblonga. Tang[15]identified L. ruellioides by thin layer method and obtained clear spots with good resolution.

Content determination

Li[16]determined the moisture， total ash， acidinsoluble ash and leachate contents in L. ruellioides according to the method in the appendix of Chinese Pharmacopoeia （the 2010 edition）.

Spectral identification

Yu[17]conducted a comparison on the main shapes of L. nummularifolia， L. crustacean， L. procumbens， L. micrantha， L. anagallis， L. antipoda and L. ruellioides in Sichuan Province and tested their UV spectra. The results showed that the ultraviolet original spectra of the medicinal plants in Lindernia had obvious "genus" characteristics， and all had a snakedshaped peak nearby.

Molecular identification

Cao[18]established an NJ tree of Lindernia plants in Sichuan Province by DNA barcode technology， and the results were basically consistent with those of classical morphological classification.

Chemical Components

Iridoid glycosides： Lin[10]preliminarily judged that L. crustacea and L. antipoda both contained iridoid glycosides.

Sterols： Lan[19]isolated five crystals from the whole grass of L. ciliate and identified three of them assitosterol， stigmasterol and lupeol by IR， UV， Ms and NMR spectroscopy.

Organic acids： Cao[20]detected seven medicinal plants in Lindernia All. by HPLC to contain oleanolic acid and chlorogenic acid.

Phenylethanoid glycosides： Zhang[21]isolated such five caffeoyl phenylethanoid glycosides as plantainoside A， linderruelliosides A， leucosceptoside A， linderruellioside B and desrhamnosylverbascoside from L. ruellioides.

Phenylpropanoids： Jiang[22]from Liuzhou Institute for Food and Drug Control in Guangxi Province detected verbascoside in Yao medicine L. ruellioides by TLC and HPLC.

Pharmacological Effects

Zhang[21]evaluated and compared the invitro antioxidant capacities of five caffeoyl phenylethanoid glycosides isolated from L. ruellioides by ·OH， O-2· and DPPH· scavenging experiments， and the results showed that the caffeoyl phenylethanoid glycosides isolated from L. ruellioides all had higher antioxidant capacities against ·OH and DPPH· and certain antioxidant capacity against O-2·， and within certain ranges， with the concentrations of the compounds increasing， their antioxidant activity increased， showing certain doseeffect relationships. Pan[23]established an A549 lung cancer mice transplantable tumor model and studied the effects of extractions of L. procumbens （Krock.） Phileox on A549 lung cancer mice transplantable tumor. The results showed that the extractions of L. procumbens remarkably inhibited the growth of A549 lung cancer， showing a tumor inhibition rate of 40%. Compared with the negative group， there was no effect on the body weight of A549 lung cancer BALB/cnu mice. Liu[24]established a transplanted tumor model， and observed the effects of L. procumbens extractions and its complex extractions on H22 liver cancer ascites lump and Lewis lung cancer and on C57BL/6 mice organ index such as spleen and thymus. The results showed that L. procumbens extractions and its complex extractions had the tendency to prolong the lifecycle of mice bore H22， and also inhibited C57BL/6 mice Lewis lung cancer， and the inhibition rate was over 30%. Compared with the negative control， no statistical difference was found on C57BL/6 mice organ index such as spleen and thymus. Pan[25]established S180 tumor carneus and EL4 lymphoma transplanted tumor models to experimentally study L. procumbens and its complex extractions on transplantable tumor. The results showed that L. procumbens in all dose and its complex extractions in high and moderate dose level could inhibit the growth of S180 tumor， and the inhibition rate was over 40.0% （P<0.05）. The tumor inhibition rate was 21.5% （P>0.05） in low dose. The inhibition rates of L. procumbens and its complex extractions on EL4 lymphoma was over 30.0%. No statistical difference on organ index such as spleen and thymus was found between the extractions and the negative control. L. procumbens and its complex extractions could significantly inhibit the growth of S180 and EL4 with no dosedependence.

Clinical Application

Tan[26]soaked 1 kg of L. ciliatain in 4.5 kg of 38° Guilin flower wine， and drank 30-50 ml per night for 113 d， which cured his leg and foot joint pain. Lan[27]from the Health Center of Chengguan Commune in Yunxiao County， Fujian Province treated light infant diarrhea （simple dyspepsia） by decocting the fresh herb （50-100 g） in water， giving the decoction which was taken twice a day， one dose per day. In the case of severe infant diarrhea （toxic dyspepsia）， 100 g of fresh herb was decocted， the decoction was taken two doses daily， and the disease could be cured after three days of treatment. Liang[6]repeatedly interviewed the Yao people in Jinxiu County， and "Jinxiu County Folk Medicine Status Survey" summarized the clinical manifestations and treatment of the Sha syndrome. It was found that the L. ruellioides was used for the treatment of Miaoshe Sha （Mahuang Sha）， Yangmao Sha and Chen Sha as a Yao medicine. Li[28]used L. crustacea to treat 100 cases of snake bites， and received satisfactory results.

Summary and Outlook

In Guangxi Province， there are 16 Lindernia medicinal plants， which are widely used as Zhuang and Yao national medicines in the folk， indicating that they have certain medicinal value. However， the development and utilization of Lindernia plants is still in its infancy， and few studies have been conducted on their components， pharmacological effects and clinical application. Further research is needed in the future to provide an experimental basis for the development and utilization of these medicinal plants in Lindernia All.

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