Quality Analysis of Curcumae Radix From Different Sources Based on the Three‐Dimensional Evaluation System of “Morphology–Composition–Efficacy”

INTRODUCTION: A major limitation in current Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) research lies in its overreliance on single-factor analyses of chemical composition or pharmacodynamics, or simplistic combined models. While these approaches partially elucidate TCM characteristics, they fail to comprehensively capture its holistic complexity and inherent quality. OBJECTIVES: The three-dimensional comprehensive evaluation method of "morphology-composition-efficacy (MCE)" was creatively introduced in this study, and the quality of four different varieties of Curcumae Radix was deeply and meticulously studied. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Curcumae Radix from different sources was collected, and its external morphology (volume and weight, color and smell), internal composition (extract, fingerprint and literature knowledge network diagram) and drug effect (efficacy of zebrafish on improving qi stagnation and blood stasis) were analyzed. The differences in composition and morphology of four kinds of Curcumae Radix were studied by HPLC fingerprint, chromaticity identification model, and BP-ANN classification model. Secondly, through the experiment of zebrafish "qi stagnation and blood stasis" model, the improvement effect of four kinds of turmeric on "qi stagnation and blood stasis" was explored. Finally, the relationship between the three dimensions of MCE of Curcumae Radix was discussed through Pearson analysis. RESULTS: The pharmacodynamic experiment of zebrafish confirmed that all four kinds of Curcumae Radix showed the activity of treating "qi stagnation and blood stasis" and Curcuma phaeocaulis Val. (LSYJ) had the best effect comprehensively. And through Pearson analysis, it can be concluded that the smaller the external volume and weight of Curcumae Radix, the stronger the characteristic odor (W5S, W1W, and W2W), the closer the powder color is to red and yellow, the higher the internal extract (JCW) content of Curcumae Radix, the higher the contents of germacrone (JMT), furanodiene (FNEX), and β-elemene (β-LXX), and the better the efficacy of improving the disease of "qi stagnation and blood stasis," among which JMT is the key drug component. CONCLUSION: The research demonstrates the value of a three-dimensional evaluation system for TCM quality assessment, providing insights into the relationship between morphology, composition, and efficacy. It offers a new perspective for quality control and evaluation of Curcumae Radix and provides a scientific basis for the clinical treatment of "qi stagnation and blood stasis" related diseases.