Molecular Application to Identify Corydalis Tubers

Corydalis Tubers have been traditionally used as an analgesic or antispasmodic to treat various symptoms in Asian countries, such as Korea, China and Japan. Tubers of Corydalis ternata Nakai and closely related species of the genus Corydalis are defined as Corydalis Tuber in Korean Pharmacopoeia, whereas tubers of C. yanhusuo (Y.H. Chou &C.C. Hsu) W.T. Wang ex Z.Y. Su & C.Y. Wu are used as Rhizoma Corydalis in China. The sequences of psbA-trnH IGS region of chloroplast DNA for 65 individuals of 27 species were determined to estimate phylogenetic relationships in the genus. In addition, 22 samples of Corydalis Tuber obtained from Korean markets were analyzed to identify their botanical origins. Phylogenetic analyses separated the Korean Corydalis into four distinctive groups, which precisely correspond to four sections recognized in the traditional taxonomic views based on morphological features. In the molecular phylogenetic trees, C. ternate and C. yanhsuo are placed in different sections. It has been also reported that they are considerably different in biological activities as well as chemical compositions. Since the tubers of C. yanhusuo are imported as Corydalis Tuber from China for Korean markets, crude drugs distributed as Corydalis Tuber in current Korean markets should be monitored for their botanical origins. Due to the distant relationship in the genus and the differences in chemical composition as well as biological activities between C. ternata and C. yanhusuo, their tubers should be treated as different crude drugs. This study strongly suggests that the present definition of Corydalis Tuber in Korean Pharmacopoeia should be revised to specify Corydalis Tuber with the tubers of C. ternata or closely related species in Corydalis section Duplotuber, which C. ternata belongs to. Acknowledgements: This work was supported by the Global Leading Technology Program of the Office of Strategic R&D Planning (10039320) funded by the Ministry of Knowledge Economy, Republic of Korea. References: [1] Ding D, et al. (2007)J Pharmaceut Biomed 45: 219–226. [2] Lee K H, et al. (2005) Exp Mol Med 37: 371–377.