Pretreatment with the active fraction of Rhodiola tangutica (Maxim.) S.H. Fu rescues hypoxia-induced potassium channel inhibition in rat pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Previous studies have shown that the active fraction of Rhodiola tangutica (Maxim.) S.H. Fu (ACRT) dilates pulmonary arteries and thwarts pulmonary artery remodelling. The dilatation effect of ACRT on pulmonary artery vascular rings could be reduced by potassium (K+) channel blockers. However the exact mechanisms of ACRT on ion channels are still unclear. AIM OF THE STUDY: This study aimed to investigate whether the effect of ACRT on K+ channels inhibits cell proliferation after pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (PASMCs) are exposed to hypoxia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The whole-cell patch-clamp method was used to clarify the effect of ACRT on the K+ current (IK) of rat PASMCs exposed to hypoxia. The mRNA and protein expression levels were detected using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and western blotting, respectively. The intracellular calcium (Ca2+) concentration ([Ca2+]i) values in rat PASMCs were detected by laser scanning confocal microscopy. The cell cycle and cell proliferation were assessed using flow cytometry analysis and CCK-8 and EdU assays. RESULTS: ACRT pretreatment alleviated the inhibition of IK induced by hypoxia in rat PASMCs. Compared with hypoxia, ACRT upregulated voltage-dependent K+ channel (Kv) 1.5 and big-conductance calcium-activated K+ channel (BKCa) mRNA and protein expression and downregulated voltage-dependent Ca2+ channel (Cav) 1.2 mRNA and protein expression. ACRT decreased [Ca2+]i, inhibited the promotion of cyclin D1 and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) expression, and prevented the proliferation of rat PASMCs exposed to hypoxia. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, the present study demonstrated that ACRT plays a key role in restoring ion channel function and then inhibiting the proliferation of PASMCs under hypoxia, ACRT has preventive and therapeutic potential in hypoxic pulmonary hypertension.

Effects of the aqueous extract of a Tibetan herb, Rhodiola algida var. tangutica on proliferation and HIF-1α, HIF-2α expression in MCF-7 cells under hypoxic condition in vitro.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Rhodiola algida var. tangutica is a traditional Tibetan herb. Its root and rhizome have been successfully used as an effective clinical remedy for the prevention and treatment of cancer and high-altitude sickness. This study aimed to investigate the effect of Rhodiola algida var. tangutica on hypoxic MCF-7 breast cancer cells and the underlying mechanisms. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The antiproliferative effects of R. algida on MCF-7 breast cancer cells were compared in vitro under hypoxic and normal conditions by using MTT analysis. The influence of R. algida on cancer cell apoptosis was determined by flow cytometry. The expression levels of hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1α and HIF-2α were evaluated by western blot analysis. RESULTS: R. algida inhibited the proliferation of MCF-7 breast cancer cells in a dose- and time-dependent manner. The results of flow cytometry indicated that the antiproliferative effect of R. algida was mediated by apoptosis induction. Pretreatment with R. algida significantly suppressed the hypoxia-induced proliferation and expression of HIF-1α and HIF-2α in MCF-7 breast cancer cells. CONCLUSIONS: R. algida might exert an anti-carcinogenic effect on MCF-7 breast cancer cells by decreasing the protein levels of HIF-1α and HIF-2α, which are overexpressed under hypoxic conditions. This effect might be elicited by inhibiting the hypoxia-induced proliferation of MCF-7 breast cancer cells.

Guest editorial. Integrated healthcare information systems.

The use of integrated information systems for healthcare has been started more than a decade ago. In recent years, rapid advances in information integration methods have spurred tremendous growth in the use of integrated information systems in healthcare delivery. Various techniques have been used for probing such integrated systems. These techniques include service-oriented architecture (SOA), EAI, workflow management, grid computing, and others. Many applications require a combination of these techniques, which gives rise to the emergence of enterprise systems in healthcare. Development of the techniques originated from different disciplines has the potential to significantly improve the performance of enterprise systems in healthcare. This editorial paper briefly introduces the enterprise systems in the perspective of healthcare informatics.

[The antioxidative effect of Sanwei Tanxiang powder on rats' hearts against myocardial ischemia and reperfusion injury].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of Sanwei Tanxiang powder on myocardial pathologic change, myocardium lipid peroxidation and antioxidation on anesthetized rats' hearts against myocardial ischemia and reperfusion injury. METHODS: A model of regional myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (IR) was established by 30 min ligation of the left anterior descending coronary artery followed by 40 min reperfusion in hearts of anesthetized rats'. The experimental animals were randomly divided into the sham operation, IR model group, positive control group and two dose Sanwei Tanxiang powder groups. The changes of ECG, LDH, CK, SOD, GSH-Px and MDA in the heart were measured and ultrastructural pathological changes were observed. RESULTS: In Sanwei Tanxiang groups the displacement of ST segment reduced (P < 0.05), the activity of LDH, CK decreased (P < 0.05), the activities of SOD, GSH-Px significantly increased and the contents of MDA reduced (P < 0.05). Moreover, the development of ultrastructral pathological changes obviously improved compared with the IR model group. CONCLUSION: The protective effects of Sanwei Tanxiang powder on anesthetized rats' hearts against myocardial ischemia and reperfusion injury may be related to protecting the antioxidants and inhibiting the lipid peroxidation in the myocardium.

Simultaneous analysis of multiple bioactive constituents in Rheum tanguticum Maxim. ex Balf. by high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry.

A simple, rapid method was developed using on-line high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-diode array detection (DAD)/electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) to simultaneously analyze multiple bioactive constituents in the extract of Rheum tanguticum Maxim. ex Balf. (Dahuang), a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Many bioactive constituents gave prominent [M-H]- ions in the negative ion ESI mass spectra. Among them, 41 different constituents including 16 anthraquinone derivatives, 7 phenylbutanone glucopyranosides, 4 stilbenes and 14 tannins were unambiguously identified or tentatively characterized based on their retention times, UV spectra and mass spectra in comparison with the data from standards or references. Meanwhile, some principles of fragmentation behavior for different types of constituents were proposed, which could contribute to the elucidation of these constituents in Rheum tanguticum.

[Study of quality on rhubarb from different habitats in Qinghai Province].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of different habitats on rhubarb quality. METHOD: The rhubarb samples from various parts of Qinghai province were analysed by fingerprint. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The distribution and quality of wild Tangute rhubarb is better than Palmate sorrel rhubarb. The quality of high altitude sampes are better than low altitudes. The quality which from the grassland of plateau is better than chestnut soil area's, and the wild is better than that of planting.

Development of high-performance liquid chromatographic fingerprint for the quality control of Rheum tanguticum Maxim. ex Balf.

A novel, accurate and valid fingerprint method was developed by using high-performance liquid chromatography-photodiode array detection (HPLC-DAD) to control the quality of Rheum tanguticum Maxim. ex Balf. By comprehensively comparing chromatograms of all samples, our result revealed that the chromatographic fingerprint we developed combining similarity evaluation could efficiently identify and distinguish raw materials of R. tanguticum from different sources. Besides, 21 characteristic peaks in chromatogram of R. tanguticum were unambiguously confirmed by comparison of reference compounds based on their retention time (t(R)) and UV spectra.