Distinguishing Ophiopogon and Liriope tubers based on DNA sequences

Abstract

Ophiopogon japonicus is a herbaceous perennial plant in Liliaceae, and its tubers are used in traditional Japanese medicine as Bakumondo, prescribed for treating cough, sputum, and thirst. Liriope is a genus of ornamental plants related to Ophiopogon, and its tubers are used in folk medicine as well. Although tubers from both genera are traded in Korean and Chinese markets, only O. japonicus is defined as the plant of origin for Bakumondo in the Japanese Pharmacopoeia [1], and Liriope tubers cannot legally be used as Bakumondo in Japan. Ophiopogon plants can be distinguished clearly from Liriope by their fruit color and by the morphological characteristics of their flowers. However, the tubers of both species are greatly similar, making it very difficult to differentiate the two genera by the appearance of their tubers. We, therefore, investigated the most appropriate DNA regions to use for practical and accurate identification of Ophiopogon and Liriope tubers. The sequence of the gene for the large subunit of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (rbcL) was found to be suitable for discriminating Ophiopogon and Liriope tubers. The identification procedure was simplified using restriction enzyme digestion of the amplified rbcL fragment. The detection limit for Liriope contamination was estimated by performing the procedure using mixed samples of powdered Ophiopogon and Liriope tubers.

58-F, a flavanone from Ophiopogon japonicus, prevents hepatocyte death by decreasing lysosomal membrane permeability

“…5,8-Dimethoxy-6-methyl-7-hydroxy-3-3(2-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzyl)chroman-4-one (58-F) is a flavanone and a novel compound extracted from the traditional Chinese herb Ophiopogon japonicas, which is widely distributed and used clinically in mainland China1011.…”

HMGB1 release by H2O2-induced hepatocytes is regulated through calcium overload and 58-F interference

“…Oxidative stress sensitizes hepatocytes to either calcium overload 29 or HMGB1 release. 30 Although HMGB1 and calcium have been separately reported to be important mediators of oxidative stress-induced injury, the potential relationship between them remains unknown.…”

“…Our findings support this hypothesis, demonstrating that SOCE activation leads to a cytosolic calcium increase and HMGB1 release from cells after H 2 O 2 treatment. In addition, the compound 5,8-dimethoxy-6-methyl-7-hydroxy-3-3(2-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzyl) chroman-4-one (58-F) is a flavanone extracted from Ophiopogon japonicas, which has been widely distributed and used clinically in mainland China, 29,31 and we recently reported that 58-F protects against ROS-induced liver injury. 32 In the present study, we explore the protective contribution of 58-F to H 2 O 2 -induced calcium homoeostasis and HMGB1 release.…”

De novo assembly and annotation of the Zhe-Maidong (Ophiopogon japonicus (L.f.) Ker-Gawl) transcriptome in different growth stages

“…For ZMD, genomic and transcriptomic studies have not yet been reported; only a study discriminating O . japonicus and Liriope spicata (“shanmaidong”) has been published, which used DNA sequences 23, 24 and EST-SSR markers 25 or SCAR markers 26 to study molecular diversity in the two species. ZMD usually requires three years from planting to harvest; according to the history of planting, ZMD tubers will gradually decay and disappear after three years.…”