Rokujo（鹿茸，Antler Velvet, Cornu Cervi Pantotrichum） is described in The Japanese Standards for Non-Pharmacopoeial Crude Drugs 2018 as “The young unossified antler of male Cervus nippon Temminck, C. elaphus Linne, C. canadensis Erxleben or congeners （Cervidae）.” The mature antler is called Rokkaku and has a different medicinal effect from that of Rokujo. The young antler of Tonakai （Rangifer tarandus Linne, also known as Junroku 馴鹿） of the same Cervidae family may be misused as a raw material of Rokujo because their antlers have been used as a crude drug in some regions other than Japan.

The first step in assuring the quality of crude drugs is to use the correct raw materials. To guarantee the quality of the raw materials, it is important to establish a test method that uses objective criteria to evaluate product quality. In this study to differentiate Rokujo, we attempted not only morphological observation, but also a catalase reaction test that can easily and quickly discriminate blood tissues present. Furthermore, because these antlers possess a slight autofluorescence, we also attempted their fluorescence microscope observation and measurement of their fluorescence fingerprints. The combination of these tests revealed that one market product of Rokujo used young antlers of R. tarandus as a raw material.

So, we concluded that the proper combination of these tests is the best way to discriminate between Rokujo, Rokkaku, and young antler of Tonakai. Additionally, this is a good method that can be applied even to powdered samples.

’Sanshishi (SS)’ is the dried fruit of Gardenia jasminoides Ellis and is an important herbal medicine in Kampo. Geniposide, an iridoid glycoside, which is the active component of Kampo, is an important compound not only in pharmacy but also in industry as a raw material for blue pigment. A simple and rapid procedure was developed for the isolation of geniposide by the treatment of water extracts of SS with an absorbent, DIAION^® HP-20 followed by silica gel column chromatography (SGCC). In the TLC analysis of samples during the SGCC purification, a characteristic blue spot was observed near the geniposide on the TLC plate by spraying dilute sulfuric acid followed by heating. This compound was isolated, and NMR analysis elucidated its structure as gardenoside, whose additional hydroxyl group was suggested to provide the property of acid-induced blue pigmentation. The findings were applied to the chemical laboratory practice (LP) of pharmacognosy for pharmaceutical students, and the students with and without the structural information about blue pigmentation on TLC plate were assessed. Analysis of student reports indicated an increase in the number of students describing mechanistic consideration on pigmentation, leading to the improved overall quality of LP results in the group with the structural information. This study serves as a model case to show that the application of new findings from basic research to student LP is useful in improving the learning effectiveness in pharmaceutical education.

Rheum palmatum L., one of the source plants of the crude drug Rhei Rhizoma, is native to mountainous regions of China. Since R. palmatum needs four to five years from sowing to harvest, and prefers a cool climate in summer, selecting suitable locations is crucial for large-scale domestic production in Japan. Hokkaido, an important agricultural region with relatively cool temperatures, has 83,424 km² of land area surrounded by different ocean currents, which generates a variety of climatic and soil conditions. To clarify the relationships between plant growth, harvest yield of R. palmatum, and environmental factors, we produced seedlings of R. palmatum, and cultivated them with uniform planting density and fertilization at six locations in Hokkaido. The dry weights of the harvested rhizome and root after a five-year cultivation were 389.9-1,406.2 g and 915.8-1,896.6 g per plant, respectively. Both the growing duration and the location had a significant （p<0.0001） effect on the dry weights of the harvested rhizome and root, and an interaction effect was also found between them （p<0.01）. A strong and positive correlation （r=0.9504） was found between the dry weight of the above-ground part and that of the harvested rhizome and root of the plants, which indicates that above-ground growth affects the underground harvest yield. Considering actual climatic and soil data, we conclude that the following factors are advantageous for growing R. palmatum: as few days as possible with a mean temperature over 25°C; moderate wind strength; no frozen ground in winter; high water retention but well-drained soil; and pH 6.0-7.0 humus-rich soil. In addition to searching for an optimal geographical location, using appropriate cultivation measures will also be beneficial for successful cultivation of R. palmatum.

The survey on the variety, amount and producing countries of crude drugs for medicinal use was conducted among member companies belonging to Japan Kampo Medicines Manufacturers Association in fiscal 2017 and 2018. The results showed that total amount of use and number of items of crude drugs were 25,326 tons of 263 items in 2017, and 26,391 tons of 264 items in 2018, respectively. Comparing production ratios among countries, Japan, China and the other countries produced 10.0%, 83.2% and 6.8% of total amount of use in 2017, respectively. Similarly, each ratio turned to 10.4%, 83.6% and 6.0% in 2018.