title: Identification of maca (Lepidium meyenii Walp.) and its adulterants by a DNA-barcoding approach based on the ITS sequence.
abstract: Maca (Lepidium meyenii) is an herbaceous plant that grows in high plateaus and has been used as both food and folk medicine for centuries because of its benefits to human health. In the present study, ITS (internal transcribed spacer) sequences of forty-three maca samples, collected from different regions or vendors, were amplified and analyzed. The ITS sequences of nineteen potential adulterants of maca were also collected and analyzed. The results indicated that the ITS sequence of maca was consistent in all samples and unique when compared with its adulterants. Therefore, this DNA-barcoding approach based on the ITS sequence can be used for the molecular identification of maca and its adulterants.
authors.affiliation: National Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
authors.forename: Jin-Jin
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: National Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
authors.forename: Qing-Sheng
authors.initials: QS
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: National Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
authors.forename: Yi-Lan
authors.initials: YL
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: National Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Beijing Tong Ren Tang Health Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Beijing 100062, China.
authors.forename: Sheng-Hua
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Zha
authors.affiliation: National Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China. Electronic address: bzhao@ipe.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Bing
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhao
mesh_terms: D058893:DNA Barcoding, Taxonomic / Q000379:methods; D021901:DNA, Intergenic / Q000032:analysis*; D018744:DNA, Plant / Q000032:analysis*; D004340:Drug Contamination / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D029686:Lepidium / Q000235:genetics*; D008517:Phytotherapy
chemical_list: D021901:DNA, Intergenic; D018744:DNA, Plant
keywords: DNA-barcoding; ITS; Lepidium meyenii; Maca; Molecular identification