Objective: To study on the correlation between microscopic characteristic index of Menispermi Rhizoma and their chemical components. Method: Capacity analysis method was adopted to determine the quantify the microscopic characteristic index of Menispermi Rhizoma; high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method was used to determine the contents of four alkaloid components:sinomenine

daurisoline

dauricine and tetrandrine; the content of total alkaloid was determined by UV spectrophotometry. The above data were then analyzed for correlation. Result: The stone cell microscopic characteristic indexes were significantly correlated with the contents of daurisoline

dauricine and total alkaloid in Menispermi Rhizoma

but neither correlated with the content of sinomenine nor tetrandrine. Conclusion: This research established a new method and technique preliminarily based on the determination of the stone cell microscopic characteristic index

which could be applied for the quality assessment of Menispermi Rhizoma and providing references for developing its quality standard.