Study on Risk Management of Investment on Food and Drug Safety of Fiddlehead
Fiddlehead has been used in traditional Chinese medicine since Han Dynasty. However fiddlehead are still underutilized and hence wasted. In order to better utilize fiddlehead resources, the drug safety of benzene/alcohol extractives from fiddlehead were analyzed by GC/MS. Relative content of each component was determined by area normalization. The main ingredients of benzene/alcohol extractives of fiddlehead were toluene,2-furancarboxaldehyde, 5-(hydroxym ethyl)-, n1-(4-hydroxybutyl)-n3-methylguani dine acetate, 1,3-dihydroxyacetone dimer, sulfurous acid, cyclohexylmethyl hexadecyl ester, 1,4,7,10,13,16-hexaoxanonadecane, 18-propyl-, 1,6-anhydro-.beta.-d-glucopyranose(levoglucosan), oxirane, hexadecyl-, etc. The results obtained fully indicated that the benzene/alcohol extractives of fiddlehead had the great potential of noble natural biomedicines.
Application of Response Surface Methodology for Extraction Optimization of Water-soluble Polysaccharides from Pteridium aquilinum
The optimum conditions for the extraction of the water-soluble polysaccharides from Pteridium aquilinum were determined using response surface methodology (RSM). A central-composite experimental design (CCD) was used to investi-gate the interaction effects of three independent variables, namely liquid-solid ratio, extraction temperature and extraction time. Also, the antioxidant activity of the crude polysaccharides obtained from Pteridium aquilinum was investigated in this study. The optimum conditions are as follows: liquid-solid ratio 18.8:1 (V/W), extraction temperature 62.5 ℃ and extraction time 5.9 h. The crude polysaccharide shows excellent antioxidant activity according to FARP antioxidative assay.
Dating of Historical Manuscripts Using Spectrometric Methods: A Mini-Review
An overview is provided of spectrometric methods useful for age estimation of historical manuscripts (medieval ones in particular), in order to confirm their authenticity. Individual methods (infrared and Raman spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, atomic emission spectroscopy, X-ray spectroscopy, and electron scanning microscopy) are discussed and examples of their application described. The following general strategy can be recommended for dating and/or authenticating of historical manuscripts. First of all, the pigment analysis should be carried out using Raman spectroscopy (distinguishing the period and modern pigments), followed by PIXE ink analysis (solving the question of ink homogeneity). Finally, the radiocarbon dating of the writing support, potentially supplemented by the ink dating using scanning Auger microscopy should be performed.