Authentication of Arctii Fructus from its Adulteration Based on Differences of their Morphology, Histology and HPLC Fingerprint

Arctii Fructus is the seeds of Arctium lappa and generally used as an herbal medicine in traditional Chinese medicine. Our explorations indicated that one third of the samples of A. Fructus, commercially obtained in China, were found to be adulterated with fruit of five other species, Arctium tomrntosum, Onopordum acanthium, Aucklandia lappa and Silybum marianum of the family Compositae, possessing achenes, and Amorpha fruticosa of the family Leguminosae possessing a legume. Ar. Tomentosum fruit was the most frequent adulterant. These five fruit were distinguished from the fruit of Arctium lappa, the original A. Fructus, by the macroscopic characteristics such as the size, color, presence or absence of ridge, spots and pits, remains of the style and pappus scar circle at one end, and by the microscopic characteristics such as outline of outer pericarp, presence or absence and the shape of crystals in the epicarp and endocarp, presence or absence of oil sac in the mesocarp, size and color of the palisade cells in the outer seed coat, presence or absence and the shape of crystals in the inner seed coat and cotyledon. In addition their profiles of HPLC fingerprints also show obvious difference.