Long-term exercise training down-regulates m6A RNA demethylase FTO expression in the hippocampus and hypothalamus: an effective intervention for epigenetic modification.

BACKGROUND: Exercise boosts the health of some brain parts, such as the hippocampus and hypothalamus. Several studies show that long-term exercise improves spatial learning and memory, enhances hypothalamic leptin sensitivity, and regulates energy balance. However, the effect of exercise on the hippocampus and hypothalamus is not fully understood. The study aimed to find epigenetic modifications or changes in gene expression of the hippocampus and hypothalamus due to exercise. METHODS: Male C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into sedentary and exercise groups. All mice in the exercise group were subjected to treadmill exercise 5 days per week for 1 h each day. After the 12-week exercise intervention, the hippocampus and hypothalamus tissue were used for RNA-sequencing or molecular biology experiments. RESULTS: In both groups, numerous differentially expressed genes of the hippocampus (up-regulated: 53, down-regulated: 49) and hypothalamus (up-regulated: 24, down-regulated: 40) were observed. In the exercise group, increased level of N6-methyladenosine (m6A) was observed in the hippocampus and hypothalamus (p < 0.05). Furthermore, the fat mass and obesity-associated gene (FTO) of the hippocampus and hypothalamus were down-regulated in the exercise group (p < 0.001). In addition, the Fto co-expression genes of the mouse brain were studied and analyzed using database to determine the potential roles of exercise-downregulated FTO in the brain. CONCLUSION: The findings demonstrate that long-term exercise might elevates the levels of m6A-tagged transcripts in the hippocampus and hypothalamus via down-regulation of FTO. Hence, exercise might be an effective intervention for epigenetic modification.

Efficacy and safety of Chinese herbal medicine for pneumonia convalescence in children: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) has advantages in treating sequela symptoms of pediatric pneumonia convalescence. Hence, this study aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of CHM using a meta-analysis approach. Methods: The randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that met the search strategy were selected from seven databases from the inception date to December 17, 2021. Based on the Cochrane handbook, the quality of the selected studies was assessed using the risk of bias. Data were expressed as relative risk (RR) or mean difference (MD) and with 95% confidence interval (CI). Subgroup analyses and sensitivity analyses were performed. The Grading Recommendation Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) method was used to assess the evidence certainty. Result: Twenty RCTs with 2,241 participants were identified using the search criteria. CHMs included Danshen injection, Liujunzi decoction, Qingfei Tongluo decoction, Yiqi Huoxue decoction, Yupingfeng granule, XiaoErFeiKe granule, Sha-Sheng-Mai-Dong decoction, and so on. Results indicated that CHM combined with Western medicine (WM) or CHM alone improved the total clinical effective rate (RR = 1.22; 95% CI: 1.15-1.29), reduced cough relief time (MD = -2.16; 95% CI: -2.46 to -1.85), lung rales disappearance time (MD = -1.82; 95% CI: -2.17 to -1.47), and length of hospital stay (MD = -2.01, 95% CI: -3.81 to -0.22) in the treatment of pneumonia convalescence in children. However, there was no significant statistical difference regarding the incidence of adverse reactions (RR = 0.57; 95% CI: 0.23-1.43). Systematic Review Registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/; Identifier CRD42022298936.

Electro-Acupuncture Regulates Metabolic Disorders of the Liver and Kidney in Premature Ovarian Failure Mice.

As per the theory of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), the liver and kidney dysfunction are important pathogenies for premature ovarian failure (POF). POF is a common gynecological disease that reduced the pregnancy rate. Electro-acupuncture (EA) is a useful non-pharmaceutical therapy that supposedly regulates the function of the liver and kidney in the treatment of POF with TCM. However, the underlying mechanism of EA in the treatment of POF has not been adequately studied through metabonomics with reference to the theory of TCM. Accordingly, we investigated the effect of EA on the liver and kidney metabolites in POF mice through metabolomics. POF mice were established via intraperitoneal injection of cisplatin. Both Sanyinjiao (SP6) and Guanyuan (CV4) were stimulated by EA for 3 weeks. The biological samples (including the serum and the ovary, liver, and kidney tissues) were evaluated by histopathology, molecular biology, and hydrogen-1 nuclear magnetic resonance (1HNMR)-based metabolomics to assess the efficacy of EA. 1HNMR data were analyzed by the orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA). The results revealed that EA was beneficial to ovarian function and the menstrual cycle of POF. Both the energy metabolism and neurotransmitter metabolism in the liver and kidney were regulated by EA. Notably, EA played an important role in regulating energy-related metabolism in the kidney, and the better effect of neurotransmitter-related metabolism in the liver was regulated by EA. These findings indicated that the ovarian functions could be improved and the metabolic disorder of the liver and kidney caused by POF could be regulated by EA. Our study results thus suggested that the EA therapy, based on the results for the liver and kidney, were related to POF in TCM, as preliminarily confirmed through metabolomics.