Chinese Pharmacopoeia

Zhan [61] reported the use of an oscillopolarographic method for the determination of primaquine phosphate and other drugs in pure form and in pharmaceutical preparations. The sample solution was mixed with potassium bromide and 6 M hydrochloric acid and the mixture was titrated with 0.1 M sodium nitrite. A micro platinum electrode and a platinum electrode were used as indicators and reference electrodes, respectively. The mean recoveries were 96.88-99.88%. Results agreed well with those obtained by the Chinese Pharmacopoeia method. 

The Chinese pharmacopoeia is extensive. Some of the active ingredients from Chinese herbs have been used in Western drugs for example, reserpine... 

The ancient Chinese wrote extensively on medical subjects. The Pen Tsao, for instance, was written about 2700 B.c. and contained classifications of individual medicinal plants as well as compilations of plant mixtures to be used for medical purposes. The Chinese doctrine of signatures (like used to treat like) enables us to understand why medicines of animal origin were of such great importance in the Chinese pharmacopoeia. 

The medicinal properties of Astragalus species are also described in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia [7], Astragalus species are used in Chinese... 

It is officially listed in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia and used mainly as a tonic and for treatment of nephritis and diabetes. The herb has a sweet taste and the roots are sun-dried and then processed into a fine powder of encapsulation, tablets or capsules (2-3 per day). Textbooks of Chinese herbs recommend taking 9-15 g of the cmde herb per day in decoction form. A decoction is made by boiling the root in water for a few minutes and then brewing the tea. Sometimes 3-5 ml of tincture three times per day are often recommended. 

There are no Biblical references to cacao. Romans and Greeks celebrated their festivals without the foaming bowl of chocolate. The Egyptians and Hindus lay no claim to its use. Although so many other literary references go back to the ancient Chinese pharmacopoeia, that source fails to bridge the gap with either myth or fact in the case of cacao. Medieval literature is deadly silent. 

Society of Pharmacopoeia of Hygiene Department. Chinese Pharmacopoeia (Part I) Chemical Industry Press, Beijing, 2000. 

It was found that the CL emission generated from the oxidation of luminol with K3Fe(CN)6 could be enhanced significantly in the presence of thiamine. The experimental variables that affected the CL reaction were optimized and a simple and sensitive FI-CL method for the determination of thiamine was established. The proposed method was applied to the determination of thiamine in pharmaceutical preparations and the results compared well with those obtained by Chinese pharmacopoeia method. ... 

The recorded history of using medicinal herbs by Chinese people in treating diseases can be traced to thousands of years ago. Back in 1590, the prominent Chinese doctor Li Shi-zhen summarized a total of 1,892 Chinese medicines and a total of 11,096 formulae in his famous "Compendium of Materia Medica" (Ben-Cao-Gang-Mu). Today, a total of 12,807 Chinese medicines are officially documented, among which 11,146 are from plant source 1,581 from animal source, and 80 from mineral source [1]. The number of the most commonly used Chinese medicines, however, is about 500. Most of them are included in the volume I of the Chinese Pharmacopoeia (1995 edition). 

As a consequence of the toxicity related to the presence of aristolochic acid in plant preparations, several health institutions, such as the US Food and Drug Administration, Therapeutic Goods Administration have recently published safety information to prevent further cases of intoxication (information available at web address http //www.cfsan.fda. gov/ dms/ds-bot.html) [471], So detecting aristolochic acids in plant species that could be used in herbal remedies, and also in herbal preparations of uncertain composition, has attracted great priority in recent years to help prevent future adverse reactions. Aristolochic acids present in medicinal plants or herbs are analyzed by soxhlet extraction followed by TLC in the Chinese pharmacopoeia [412]. Another report used multiple ultrasonic extraction followed by HPLC analysis [472]. Ong s laboratory reported a method using a home made pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) system in dynamic mode to extract aristolochic acid in medicinal plants, followed by gradient elution HPLC [473]. Several scientific communities described various analytical methods for... 

The source of purified water shall meet the standards of drinking water. Purified water and water for injection shall comply with the specification of Chinese Pharmacopoeia, and if necessary, the number of microorganisms in purified water shall be checked. 

The first Chinese pharmacopoeia (2800 bc) warns against and makes recommendations on bal-loonfish consumption [2]. Nevertheless, we can assume that humankind knew of the red tide dangers before the written word, given the discovery of the 26-million-year-old fossil Gonyaulax polyedra. 

The new Chinese Pharmacopoeia 2005 (CP 2005) [24], which came into effect on 1 July 2005, provides guidance for stability testing. In principle, these testing conditions are in accordance with the ICH stability guideline Q1A(R2) specified for countries in Climatic Zone II [25]. The key elements of these conditions are summarised as follows and the difference to the ICH guideline is highlighted ... 

Traditional use This is one of the three species of Ephedra that is officially used in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia as a source of ma huang, a stimulant and antiasthmatic that has been used for at least 2,000 years (Abourashed et al. 2003). 

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