Integrating Constituents Absorbed into Blood, Network Pharmacology, and Quantitative Analysis to Reveal the Active Components in Rubus chingii var. suavissimus that Regulate Lipid Metabolism Disorder.

Rubus chingii var. suavissimus (S. K. Lee) L. T. Lu (RS)-a sweet plant also known as Tiancha distributed in the south of China where it is used as a beverage-recently gained extensive attention as adjuvant therapy of diabetes and hypertension. Although pharmacological studies indicate that RS has beneficial effects in regulating lipid metabolism disorder characteristics, the active chemicals responsible for this effect remains unclear. The present study aims to predict the effective substances of RS on regulating lipid metabolism disorder through the analysis of the chemical profile of RS, the absorbed prototype components in rat plasma, and network pharmacology. Also, a UPLC method able to quantify the screened potential effective chemicals of RS products was established. First, a total of 69 components-including diterpene, triterpenoids, flavonoids, polyphenols, and lignans-were systematically characterized in RS. Of those, 50 compounds were detected in the plasma of rats administered with RS extract. Through network pharmacology, 9 potential effective components, 71 target genes, and 20 pathways were predicted to be involved in RS-mediated regulation of lipid metabolism disorder. The quantitative analysis suggested that the contents of potential effective components varied among samples from different marketplaces. In conclusion, the presented results provide a chemical basis for further research of Rubus chingii var. suavissimus.

Saussurea involucrata: A review of the botany, phytochemistry and ethnopharmacology of a rare traditional herbal medicine.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Saussurea involucrata Matsum. & Koidz. is an endangered species of the Asteraceae family, growing in the high mountains of central Asia. It has been, and is, widely used in traditional Uyghur, Mongolian and Kazakhstan medicine as well as in Traditional Chinese Medicine as Tianshan Snow Lotus (Chinese: ). In traditional medical theory, S. involucrata can promote blood circulation, thereby alleviating all symptoms associated with poor circulation. It also reputedly eliminates cold and dampness from the body, diminishes inflammation, invigorates, and strengthens Yin and Yang. It has long been used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, cough with cold, stomach ache, dysmenorrhea, and altitude sickness in Uyghur and Chinese medicine. AIM OF THE REVIEW: To comprehensively summarize the miscellaneous research that has been done regarding the botany, ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, biological activity, and toxicology of S. involucrata. METHOD: An extensive review of the literature was carried out. Apart from different electronic databases including SciFinder, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), ScienceDirect that were sourced for information, abstracts, full-text articles and books written in English and Chinese, including those traditional records tracing back to the Qing Dynasty. Pharmacopoeia of China and other local herbal records in Uighur, Mongolian and Kazakhstan ethnomedicines were investigated and compared for pertinent information. RESULTS: The phytochemistry of S. involucrata has been comprehensively investigated. More than 70 compounds have been isolated and identified; they include phenylpropanoids, flavonoids, coumarins, lignans, sesquiterpenes, steroids, ceramides, polysaccharides. Scientific studies on the biological activity of S. involucrata are equally numerous. The herb has been shown to have anti-neoplastic, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, anti-oxidative, anti-fatigue, anti-aging, anti-hypoxic, neuroprotective and immunomodulating effects. Many have shown correlations to the traditional clinical applications in Traditional Chinese Medicine and medicines. The possible mechanisms of S. involucrata in treating various cancers are revealed in the article, these include inhibition of cancer cells by affecting their growth, adhesion, migration, aggregation and invasion, inhibition of epidermal growth factor receptor signaling in cancer cells, hindrance of cancer cell proliferation, causing cytotoxicity to cancer cells and promoting expression of tumor suppressor genes. Dosage efficacy is found to be generally concentration- and time-dependent. However, studies on the correlation between particular chemical constituents and specific bioactivities are limited. CONCLUSION: In this review, we have documented the existing traditional uses of S. involucrata and summarized recent research into the phytochemistry and pharmacology of S. involucrata. Many of the traditional uses have been validated by phytochemical and modern pharmacological studies but there are still some areas where the current knowledge could be improved. Although studies have confirmed that S. involucrata has a broad range of bioactivities, further in-depth studies on the exact bioactive molecules and the mechanism of action are expected. Whether we should use this herb independently or in combination deserves to be clarified. The exact quality control as well as the toxicology studies is necessary to guarantee the stability and safety of the clinic use. The sustainable use of this endangered resource was also addressed. In conclusion, this review was anticipated to highlight the importance of S. involucrata and provides some directions for the future development of this plant.

Comparative analysis of EPA and DHA in fish oil nutritional capsules by GC-MS.

BACKGROUND: Fish oil is a popular nutritional product consumed in Hong Kong. Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) are the two main bioactive components responsible for the health benefits of fish oil. Market survey in Hong Kong demonstrated that various fish oil capsules with different origins and prices are sold simultaneously. However, these capsules are labelled with same ingredient levels, namely EPA 180 mg/g and DHA 120 mg/g. This situation makes the consumers very confused. To evaluate the quality of various fish oil capsules, a comparative analysis of the contents of EPA and DHA in fish oil is crucial. METHODS: A gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) method was developed for identification and determination of EPA and DHA in fish oil capsules. A comprehensive validation of the developed method was conducted. Ten batches of fish oil capsules samples purchased from drugstores of Hong Kong were analyzed by using the developed method. RESULTS: The present method presented good sensitivity, precision and accuracy. The limits of detection (LOD) for EPA and DHA were 0.08 ng and 0.21 ng, respectively. The relative standard deviation (RSD) values of EPA and DHA for repeatability tests were both less than 1.05%; and the recovery for accuracy test of EPA and DHA were 100.50% and 103.83%, respectively. In ten fish oil samples, the contents of EPA ranged from 39.52 mg/g to 509.16 mg/g, and the contents of DHA ranged from 35.14 mg/g to 645.70 mg/g. CONCLUSION: The present method is suitable for the quantitative analysis of EPA and DHA in fish oil capsules. There is a significant variation in the contents of the quantified components in fish oil samples, and there is not a linear relationship between price and contents of EPA and DHA. Strict supervision of the labelling of the fish oil capsules is urgently needed.

Apoptosis sensitization by Euphorbia factor L1 in ABCB1-mediated multidrug resistant K562/ADR cells.

In this article, reversal activities of Euphorbia factor L1 (EFL1) against ABCB1-mediated multidrug resistance (MDR) and apoptosis sensitization in K562/ADR cells are reported. EFL1 decreased the IC50 values of anticancer agents in K562/ADR cells over-expressing ABCB1. However, EFL1 did not affect the IC50 values of anticancer agents in sensitive K562 cells. Additionally, EFL1 increased the intracellular accumulation of rhodamine 123 and doxorubicin in K562/ADR cells without affecting their accumulation in K562 cells. Furthermore, EFL1 sensitized the apoptosis triggered by vincristine in K562/ADR cells via mitochondrial pathway, as confirmed by Annexin V-FITC/PI detection and western blot. At the same time, EFL1 did not influence the apoptosis induced by vincristine in K562 cells. Western blot results showed that EFL1 did not affect the phosphorylation level of AKT and ERK in K562 and K562/ADR cells. Finally, EFL1 did not down-regulate protein expression of ABCB1.