Mahuang-Xixin-Fuzi decoction reduces the infection of influenza A virus in Kidney-Yang deficiency syndrome mice.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Mahuang-Xixin-Fuzi Decoction (MXF) as a famous formula for the treatment of colds, fever, nasal congestion and headache with elder people, has always been widely used in traditional Chinese medicine. The present study is aimed at investigating the treatment effect of MXF on Kidney-Yang deficiency syndrome in mice simultaneously infected with H1N1 virus. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We employed the Kidney-Yang deficiency mouse model to investigate the effect of MXF against influenza A virus (A/FM/1/47, H1N1). Mice were infected with the virus after fifteen days Kidney-Yang deficiency syndrome was established (intraperitoneal injection of estradiol benzoate), while MXF was orally administrated with 1.2-4.7g/kg/d for 6 consecutive days after inoculation. Body weight, rectal temperature, morbidity, and mortality were recorded daily. Histopathologic changes, antioxidant activity of SOD and MDA were detected. Moreover, levels of inflammatory cytokines including IL-6, IL-10, MCP-1, TNF-α were measured in the sera of mice. RESULTS: We found that the extract of MXF at dosages of 2.3-4.7g/kg could effectively diminish mortality rate, ameliorate lung edema and inflammation. Administration of MXF decoction significantly depressed the expression of IL-6, MCP-1 and TNF-α, and markedly increased expression of IL-10 in serum. Simultaneously, the extract was also found to reduce MDA and increase SOD in the lung tissue of mice. CONCLUSION: These data support the notion that the extract of MXF could treat Kidney-Yang deficiency syndrome in mice simultaneously infected with influenza A virus by reducing inflammation and increasing antioxidant activities.

[Urine metabonomic study of intervention effects of Morinda officinalis how. on 'kidney-yang deficiency syndrome'].

To investigate the intervention effects of Morinda officinalis How. on 'Kidney-yang deficiency syndrome' induced by hydrocortisone in rats, the metabolic profiles of rat urine were characterized using proton nuclear magnetic resonance and principal component analysis (PCA) was applied to study the trajectory of urinary metabolic phenotype of rats with 'Kidney-yang deficiency syndrome' under administration of M. officinalis at different time points. Meanwhile, the intervention effects of M. officinalis on urinary metabolic potential biomarkers associated with 'Kidney-yang deficiency syndrome' were also discussed. The experimental results showed that in accordance to the increased time of administration, an obvious tendency was observed that clustering of the treatment group moved gradually closed to that of the control group. Eight potential biomarkers including citrate, succinate, alpha-ketoglutarate, lactate, betaine, sarcosine, alanine and taurine were definitely up- or down-regulated. In conclusion, the effectiveness of M. oficinalis on 'Kidney-yang deficiency syndrome' is proved using the established metabonomic method and the regulated metabolic pathways involve energy metabolism, transmethylation and transportation of amine. Meanwhile, the administration of M. officinalis can alleviate the kidney impairment induced by 'Kidney-yang deficiency syndrome'.

[Mathematical analysis of characteristics of glucocorticoid-induced yang deficiency or yin deficiency syndrome in animal models based on information entropy theory].

OBJECTIVE: Based on information entropy theory, this study analyzes the experimental indicators of glucocorticoid-induced traditional Chinese medicine yang deficiency or yin deficiency syndrome in animal models, thus laying the foundation of defining and interpreting the model state. METHODS: Data of biochemical indicators from 24 groups of animal models with different modeling conditions (type of modeling agent, dosage of modeling agent and modeling time) were collected. Information gain values for three study objects (type of modeling agent, dosage of modeling agent and modeling time) were calculated respectively after standardization, and then characteristics of yang deficiency or yin deficiency syndrome models were interpreted with these values and ranking map. RESULTS: Greatest information gain values of most indicators were got when the study object was the type of modeling agent, which is the most important factor in the differentiation of model state. With this study object, triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), total protein (TP), albumin (ALB), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and corticosteroid (CS) got larger information gain values than testosterone (T), lactic dehydrogenase (LDH), and cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP). This indicated that the former seven indicators may be significantly different between the two animal models induced by hydrocortisone and dexamethasone, respectively. In the study of the modeling time, AST may be affected more than others. In the study of the dosage of modeling agent, TC and ALB may be affected more in the model of hydrocortisone and no indicators were significantly affected by the dosage of modeling agent in the dexamethasone model. CONCLUSION: Mathematical method based on information entropy theory allows researchers to analyze experimental data in several experiments at the same time and to interpret the trend and stability of indicators. Based on this study and by analyzing the impacts of different modeling conditions on the indicators, elucidations of the characteristics of glucocorticoid-induced yang deficiency or yin deficiency syndrome in animal models and some biochemical indicators for model comparison are in need.

Metabonomic study on 'Kidney-Yang Deficiency syndrome' and intervention effects of Rhizoma Drynariae extracts in rats using ultra performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry.

This paper was designed to study metabonomic characters of the 'Kidney-Yang Deficiency syndrome' induced by high dose of hydrocortisone and the therapeutic effects of Rhizoma Drynariae, classic traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in treating the syndrome. A urinary metabonomics method based on ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (UPLC/MS) was developed. The significant difference in metabolic profiling was observed from model group (hydrocortisone-induced group) compared with the pre-dose group (rats before hydrocortisone inducing) by using the principal components analysis (PCA). The time-dependent regression tendency in Rhizoma Drynariae treatment group (hydrocortisone-induced rats followed by being administered with Rhizoma Drynariae ethanol extracts) from day 3 to 15 was obtained, indicating the time-dependent recovery effect of Rhizoma Drynariae on 'Kidney-Yang Deficiency syndrome' rats. Some significantly changed metabolites like phenylalanine, phenylacetylglycine, N(2)-succinyl-L-ornithine, L-proline, creatinine, hippurate and citrate have been identified. These biochemical changes are related to the disturbance in energy metabolism, amino acid metabolism and gut microflora, which are helpful to further understand the 'Kidney-Yang Deficiency syndrome' and the therapeutic mechanism of Rhizoma Drynariae. The work shows that the metabonomics method is a valuable tool for studying the essence of Chinese medicine's syndrome theory and therapeutic effect mechanism of TCM.

[Studies of gene networks and singal transduction of kidney deficiency syndrome by syndrome differentiation through drug effects].

Three kinds of networks were summarily described in this review including the small intracellular molecular networks, the middle-scale networks of hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal-thymus (HPAT) axis and the large network, neuroendocrine-immune (NEI) network, covering the whole organism and linking multiple systems together. The hypothesis was expressed that the "disease" or "syndrome" formed in the human body by the intervention from outside world is based on the changes of multi-molecular network. In this paper, the pattern and ability of signal transduction channel and the methods of studying changes in it were also described, and raised, herefrom, "to determine syndrome by drug effects (DSDE)" is the intervention means for studying syndrome in the light of systemic biological methods. We found Kidney-yang deficiency syndrome covered the NEI network and the regulating center located in hypothamus with Compound Bushen Recipe (CBR, Kidney-tonifying recipe). By intervention with EF, an effective component of CBR, it was found that EF can activate the immune system and the three networks, including growth axis, sex hormone axis and lymphocyte apoptosis network in HPAT axis through the downward pathway of NEI network to play its efficiency of molecular network. There are many regulation patterns of EF on networks. For example, in the network mechanism of lymphocyte apoptosis and proliferation, EF can reconstruct the balance of the opposite apoptosis related genes and proliferation related genes; EF can assemble and integrate co-stimulating molecules, transform growth factors (TGF), and several oncogenes to form an upstream factor network for initiating the proliferation and anti-apoptosis promotion; EF can simultaneously up-regulate the two opposite genes expression of IkappaB and NFkappaB in NIK/IKK/IkappaB/Rel/NFkappaB signal transduction channel, which could not only control the rising of NFkappaB in a moderate range, but also guarantee its predominant status to exert its hinge role in molecule regulating network, by which gene network regulation atlas in HPAT axis of Kidney-deficiency syndrome was observed.

[Effects of coumarins from cnidium monnieri on the function of pituitary-adrenocortical axis in kidney yang deficiency rats].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effect of Cnidium monnieri in Kidney Yang Deficiency rats. METHODS: Rats were injected intraperitoneally with hydrocortisone acetate to replicate the animal model of Kidney Yang Deficiency. Osthol, total-coumarins (TCR) from the fruit of Cnidium monnieri and positive control drug (PCD) were administered orally to model rats. The plasma levels of corticosterone (B), adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), renin (PRA), angiotensin-II (AT-II) and aldosterone (ALD) were determined by radioimmunoassay. RESULTS: Compared with those in normal rats, the levels of B and ACTH in the plasma of model rats lowered significantly (P < 0.01), the levels of B and ACTH of treatment groups were higher than those of model group, while the levels of PRA, AT-II and ALD had no significant difference (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The osthol, TCR have the effects in protecting and strengthening the function of pituitary-adrenocortex axis.

[Influence of stimulating zusanli with moxibustion of different quality and quantity on gastrointestinal motor function of reserpinized rats].

This article is focused on the observation of changes in body temperature, body weight, cholinesterase activity in blood, and gastrointestinal motility of reserpinized rats treated by stimulating Zusanli (ST 36) with moxibustion of different quality. (mugwort floss or pipe tobacco) and quantity (strong stimulation or weak stimulation). The experiment shows that better results are achieved with moxibustion not by burning tobacco; the result of strong stimulation with moxa-sticks is better than that of weak stimulation with the same material. Strong stimulation with moxa-sticks can obviously increase the activity of cholinesterase (P < 0.05), inhibit hyperactive gastrointestinal motility (P < 0.05), maintain normal body temperature (P < 0.05), and prevent body weight lossing. All these show that therapeutic results of moxibustion are closely related to the quality and quantity of moxibustion.