Natural Resource Letter
Survey of Phellodendron amurense Habitats in Nara Prefecture and Trends in Berberine-type Alkaloid Content
2020 Volume 74 Issue 2 Pages 98-105
Details
2020 Volume 74 Issue 2 Pages 98-105
Phellodendron amurense is a broad-leaved tree in the citrus family. The bark, excluding the pericarp, of Phellodendron amurense Ruprecht or Phellodendron chinense Schneider (Rutaseae), is used as an herbal medicine. It is used as a raw material for many gastrointestinal drugs, including “Daranisuke.” which has been produced in the Yoshino region of Nara since ancient times.
The demand for domestically grown Phellodendri cortex by pharmaceutical companies inside and outside of Nara Prefecture has been increasing. Phellodendron amurense trees that were planted more than 20 years ago are distributed throughout Nara Prefecture but are now abandoned.
To capitalize on the availability of the desired compounds in the trees already present we investigated the habitats of Phellodendron amurense present in Nara Prefecture and created a data map using the Global Positioning System (GPS) as a way to convey the growth point and growth situation of the plants. Furthermore, we measured berberine-type alkaloids in the Phellodendri cortex obtained at each survey site, and there was a correlation between the content of berberine and jatrorrhizine in male trees.
