• Guo-Yuan Zhang, Li Shen, Jia Shi, Zhe Deng, Jun Zhang, Yue-Sheng Wang, and An Liu.
• Institute of Chinese Materia Medica,China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences Beijing 100700,China.
• Zhongguo Zhong Yao Za Zhi. 2019 Aug 1; 44 (15): 3268-3274.

AbstractThe grade classification of Chinese herbal medicines and their decoction pieces has always been a hot issue in the industry. In the trading history of Chinese herbal medicine,buyers and sellers often determine the price according to quality,so the naturally formed specifications and grades are changing with the change of technology and the increasing demand of the public for medical care.The planting,processing and circulation methods of Chinese medicinal materials have also changed greatly. Under the mode of pursuing yield and short-term benefit,the traditional rating evaluation method has been difficult to be used in the current quality status of prepared slices. Aurantii Fructus Immaturus is a genuine medicinal material of Jiangxi province,which is widely used,but has different quality levels on the market. In this paper,the quality levels were evaluated by the mass constant method. A set of grading method of Aurantii Fructus Immaturus slices was established,laying a foundation for " high quality and high price" Aurantii Fructus Immaturus slices. The grading method of Chinese herbal slices with quality constant was applied to 16 batches of Aurantii Fructus Immaturus slices collected form the market,and the final assessment results were as follows for different piece shapes( hemispherical type and thin type)respectively. The hemispherical Aurantii Fructus Immaturus pieces: quality constant ≥1. 11 for the first grade,< 1. 11 but ≥0. 69 for the second grade,and <0. 69 for the third grade. The thin type Aurantii Fructus Immaturus pieces: quality constant ≥0. 024 for the first grade,<0. 024 but ≥0. 015 for the second grade,and <0. 015 for the third grade. This work indicated that the quality constants grading method can be used to objectively classify the grades of traditional Chinese medicine,providing basis for standardizing market behavior and providing useful reference for grading of hemispherical or thin Aurantii Fructus Immaturus pieces.

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