Research and application of leek roots in medicinal field.

Some Chinese herbs have been used to prevent and treat diseases, and are also used as common food ingredients. These Chinese herbs are potential resource for research and development of new drugs. Leek roots is a typical medicine of food and medicine continuum. It has a long history of medicinal applications and edible food in China. In this paper, the origin, biological active components, pharmacological action and clinical application of leek roots were introduced. We hope that this review will contribute to the development of leek roots for pharmaceutical research and clinical applications, as well as related health products.

Shengjiang San alleviated sepsis-induced lung injury through its bidirectional regulatory effect.

BACKGROUND: Sepsis is a life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by dysregulated host responses to infection, for which effective therapeutic strategies are still absent. Shengjiang San (SJS), a well-known Traditional Chinese Medicine formula, has been widely used clinically. However, its role in sepsis-induced lung injury remains unclear. METHODS: To explore its specific mechanism, we firstly established a sepsis animal model using cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) and treated MH-S cells with LPS plus ATP. Then, UPLC/Q-TOF-MS/MS was utilized to identify its active ingredients. Network pharmacology analysis was performed to uncover the potential mechanism. HE staining and biochemical analysis were conducted to validate its therapeutic effect. ELISA was applied to detect the release of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines. Western blot was utilized to detect the protein levels of GSDMD, NLRP3, P65, ASC and caspase-1. RESULTS: SJS could dramatically increase the survival rate of sepsis. In addition, it is able to inhibit the pro-inflammatory cytokines release at day 1 post CLP while promote their production at day 7, indicating SJS could attenuate uncontrolled inflammatory response in the early stage and improve immunosuppression in the late phase. Network pharmacology analysis showed that pyroptosis is the crucial action SJS exerted in the protection of sepsis-induced lung injury. Western blot data implicated SJS could attenuate pyroptosis in early sepsis while enhance in the late phase. CONCLUSIONS: SJS acted to alleviate sepsis-induced lung injury through its bidirectional regulatory effect.

A flavone, Wogonin from Scutellaria baicalensis inhibits the proliferation of human colorectal cancer cells by inducing of autophagy, apoptosis and G2/M cell cycle arrest via modulating the PI3K/AKT and STAT3 signalling pathways.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine the anticancer effects of a flavone from Scutellaria baicalensis wogonin against a panel of colorectal cancer cells. METHODS: The SW1417, SW48, DLD-1, HCT-15, LS-180 and CCD-18Co cell lines were used for the evaluation of the anticancer effects of wogonin. WST-1 and colony formation assays were used for cell viability assessment. Cell cycle analysis was assessed by flow cytometry. Autophagy was detected by electron microscopy. Apoptosis was detected by acridine orange (AO)/ethidium bromide (EB) staining. Cell protein expression was checked by western blotting. RESULTS: The cytotoxic effects of wogonin were comparatively negligible against the normal CCD-18Co cells with an IC50 of >100 µM. Investigation of the mechanism of action revealed that wogonin exerts growth inhibitory effects on the SW48 colorectal cancer cells by autophagic and apoptotic cell death. This was also accompanied with upregulation of autophagic proteins such as LC3II and Beclin 1 as well as the apoptotic proteins such as caspase 3, 8 and 9 and Bax expressions. Wogonin also induced arrest of the SW48 cells at the G2/M check point of the cell cycle. In addition, wogonin could also inhibit the PI3K/AKT and STAT3 signal transduction pathways. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that wogonin exerts potent anticancer effects on colorectal cancer cells and may prove essential in the management of colorectal cancer.

Transcriptional profiling of Auricularia cornea in selenium accumulation.

Auricularia cornea is a widely cultivated edible fungus with substantial nutritive value. This study aimed to enrich the multifunctional bionutrient element selenium in A. cornea to improve its quality and explore the accumulation of selenium in the fungus using high-throughput RNA-Seq technology. In general, the treatment group with a 100 µg/g supply of selenium outperformed the other treatment groups in terms of high yield, rich crude polysaccharides and a high total selenium concentration. Additional evidences demonstrated the budding and mature phases were two typical growth stages of A. cornea and were important for the accumulation of selenium. Therefore, the budding and mature phase tissues of A. cornea in the treatment group with a 100 µg/g supply of selenium were used for transcriptome analysis and compared to those of a control group that lacked additional selenium. A total of 2.56 × 105 unigenes from A. cornea transcriptome were assembled and annotated to five frequently used databases including NR, GO, KEGG, eggNOG and SwissProt. GO and KEGG pathway analysis revealed that genes involved in metabolic process and translation were up-expressed at the budding stage in response to selenium supplementation, including amino acid metabolism, lipid metabolism, ribosome. In addition, the differential gene expression patterns of A. cornea suggested that the up-expressed genes were more likely to be detected at the budding stage than at the mature stage. These results provide insights into the transcriptional response of A. cornea to selenium accumulation.

Shenfu Injection Attenuates Bile Duct Injury in Rats with Acute Obstructive Cholangitis.

Background: We investigated the effect of Shenfu injection (SFI) in Wistar rats with acute obstructive cholangitis (AOC) and considered the possible molecular mechanisms of the effects. Methods: The 96 rats were divided randomly into three groups. In one group, the common bile duct was subjected to ligation (BDL), and 0.2 mL of saline was injected into the proximal bile ducts. To create AOC, again, the common bile duct was ligated, and 0.2 mL of lipopolysaccharide (LPS)) (2 mg/mL) was injected into the proximal ducts. In the Shenfu injection (SFI) group, the material (10 mg/kg) was injected into the tail vein 2 hours before induction of AOC. The hepatic histopathologic changes were observed under a light microscope. The endotoxin, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), alanine transaminase (ALT), and total bilirubin (TB) concentrations in the serum were measured at different time points (0, 4, 8, and 16 hours) after ligation. The expression of nuclear transcription factor-κB (NF-κB) and CD14 in Kupffer cells also was analyzed at different times by Western blotting. Results: The TNF-α, ALT, and TB concentrations in the serum and the expression of CD14 and NF-κB in Kupffer cells were significantly higher in the SFI group than in the BDL group, but all were significantly lower than in the AOC group. Compared with the AOC group, the edema of cholangiocytes was alleviated in the SFI group, and the infiltration of inflammatory cells around cholangiocytes was reduced. Conclusion: Shenfu injection significantly alleviated bile duct injury. The potential mechanism may be associated with inhibition of CD14 expression and prevention of NF-κB activation in Kupffer cells.

The cardioprotective properties and the involved mechanisms of NaoXinTong Capsule.

NaoXinTong Capsule (NXT), a prescribed traditional Chinese medicine, is made up of 16 natural herbal materials with more than 200 identified bioactive compounds. Multiple protective effects of NXT on cardiovascular diseases including atherosclerosis, coronary artery disease, acute coronary syndrome, coronary microembolization, myocardial infarction, ischemic stroke and ischemia-reperfusion injury, have been reported by both clinical and basic studies. Biologically, these cardioprotective effects can be correlated to the actions of NXT on inflammation, apoptosis, oxidative stress, neovascularization, insulin sensitivity and lipid/glucose metabolism. NXT alone or in combination with the conventional interventions has been demonstrated potent therapeutic effects on cardiovascular diseases without causing significant adverse events, like the major bleeding. Compared with the conventional drugs, patients have a good tolerance and little resistance to NXT treatment. With the data and evidence reported from lab benches to clinical beds, we will update the cardioprotective properties of NXT and the involved mechanisms in this review. We hope the information provided in this review can help readers to better understand the insights for the long practice of this traditional Chinese medicine, and offer fresh perspectives.

NaoXinTong Enhances Atorvastatin-induced Plaque Stability While Ameliorating Atorvastatin-induced Hepatic Inflammation.

Buchang NaoXinTong (NXT) is a Chinese medicine that has been used for many years for treatment of patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) in China. Statins substantially reduce hypercholesterolemia and CHD mortality and morbidity. However, there is still a lot of CHD patients who do not respond well to statin therapy. Herein, we report the effects of NXT on atorvastatin-inhibited atherosclerosis and atorvastatin-induced hepatic side effects. After 10 weeks of high-fat diet (HFD) feeding, apoE-deficient mice were randomly divided into 4 groups and received the following treatment for another 8 weeks: group 1, HFD; group 2, HFD containing NXT; group 3, HFD containing atorvastatin; and group 4, HFD containing both NXT and atorvastatin. After treatment, serum lipid profiles, atherosclerotic lesions, and hepatic lipid content and inflammation were determined. NXT moderately increased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, although had little effect on atorvastatin-induced reduction of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. Both NXT and atorvastatin reduced en face lesions and sinus lesions of aortic root. In addition, NXT enhanced atorvastatin-induced lesion plaque stability by increasing smooth muscle cell/collagen content and reducing macrophage accumulation and calcification in lesion areas. The co-treatment of NXT and atorvastatin further reduced hepatic triglyceride levels by downregulating acyl-CoA:diacylglycerol acyltransferase 1 while activating hormone-sensitive lipase, adipose triglyceride lipase, and comparative gene identification-58 expression. The AMPKα pathway was also further activated by the co-treatment. More importantly, the liver injuries caused by atorvastatin, such as hepatic inflammation and elevated serum aminotransferase activities, were substantially attenuated by NXT. Therefore, our study demonstrates that NXT enhances atorvastatin-induced plaque stability and ameliorates atorvastatin-induced hepatic side effects.

TANGLE: two-level support vector regression approach for protein backbone torsion angle prediction from primary sequences.

Protein backbone torsion angles (Phi) and (Psi) involve two rotation angles rotating around the C(α)-N bond (Phi) and the C(α)-C bond (Psi). Due to the planarity of the linked rigid peptide bonds, these two angles can essentially determine the backbone geometry of proteins. Accordingly, the accurate prediction of protein backbone torsion angle from sequence information can assist the prediction of protein structures. In this study, we develop a new approach called TANGLE (Torsion ANGLE predictor) to predict the protein backbone torsion angles from amino acid sequences. TANGLE uses a two-level support vector regression approach to perform real-value torsion angle prediction using a variety of features derived from amino acid sequences, including the evolutionary profiles in the form of position-specific scoring matrices, predicted secondary structure, solvent accessibility and natively disordered region as well as other global sequence features. When evaluated based on a large benchmark dataset of 1,526 non-homologous proteins, the mean absolute errors (MAEs) of the Phi and Psi angle prediction are 27.8° and 44.6°, respectively, which are 1% and 3% respectively lower than that using one of the state-of-the-art prediction tools ANGLOR. Moreover, the prediction of TANGLE is significantly better than a random predictor that was built on the amino acid-specific basis, with the p-value<1.46e-147 and 7.97e-150, respectively by the Wilcoxon signed rank test. As a complementary approach to the current torsion angle prediction algorithms, TANGLE should prove useful in predicting protein structural properties and assisting protein fold recognition by applying the predicted torsion angles as useful restraints. TANGLE is freely accessible at http://sunflower.kuicr.kyoto-u.ac.jp/~sjn/TANGLE/.

Investigation of anatomical thalamo-cortical connectivity and FMRI activation in schizophrenia.

The purpose of this study was to examine measures of anatomical connectivity between the thalamus and lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC) in schizophrenia and to assess their functional implications. We measured thalamocortical connectivity with diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and probabilistic tractography in 15 patients with schizophrenia and 22 age- and sex-matched controls. The relationship between thalamocortical connectivity and prefrontal cortical blood-oxygenation-level-dependent (BOLD) functional activity as well as behavioral performance during working memory was examined in a subsample of 9 patients and 18 controls. Compared with controls, schizophrenia patients showed reduced total connectivity of the thalamus to only one of six cortical regions, the LPFC. The size of the thalamic region with at least 25% of model fibers reaching the LPFC was also reduced in patients compared with controls. The total thalamocortical connectivity to the LPFC predicted working memory task performance and also correlated with LPFC BOLD activation. Notably, the correlation with BOLD activation was accentuated in patients as compared with controls in the ventral LPFC. These results suggest that thalamocortical connectivity to the LPFC is altered in schizophrenia with functional consequences on working memory processing in LPFC.

Effect of fluoride exposure on bone metabolism indicators ALP, BALP, and BGP.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the changes in serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and bone alkaline phosphatase (BALP) activity and changes in osteocalcin (BGP) content following fluoride exposure and, thereby, determine the reference indications of fluoride-induced changes in bone metabolism. METHODS: In the animal study, rats were allowed free access to drinking water containing different concentrations (10, 150, or 400 mg/L) of sodium fluoride. Serum ALP and BALP activity and serum BGP content were assessed at three exposure time-points. In the spot study, serum ALP and BALP activity and serum BGP content were assessed in workers exposed to fluoride in their working environment for different periods of time. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, on days 15 and 30, the activity of serum ALP in the low- and medium-dose group was significantly higher (p < 0.05), while in the high-dose group it was significantly lower (p < 0.05). Only on day 30 was the activity of serum BALP in the medium-dose group significantly higher than that of the control group (p < 0.05). BGP content was lower in the high-dose group than in the control group (p < 0.05) on days 30 and 90, but it was higher in the medium-dose group on day 90. Compared with the control group, BGP content in the fluoride-exposed group was higher (p < 0.05). In the spot study, serum ALP activity and serum BGP content in the medium working-age group were higher than that in the short working-age group (p < 0.05). However, serum ALP activity and serum BGP content were lower in the long working-age group than in the medium working-age group (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that serum fluoride and urinary fluoride can be used as reference indications to provide an overall reflection of the body's fluoride-load and fluoride exposure level. Serum ALP activity and serum BGP content can be used as important reference indications for diagnosing bone metabolism changes resulting from fluoride exposure.

Resveratrol as a novel agent for treatment of multiple myeloma with matrix metalloproteinase inhibitory activity.

AIM: To examine the in vitro antitumor activity of resveratrol against multiple myeloma (MM) cell lines (RPMI 8226, U266, and KM3), and the mechanisms involved. METHODS: The growth inhibition of resveratrol was determined by 3-(4, 5-dimethyl-2-thiazyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. The effect of resveratrol on the apoptosis was investigated by combined annexin V-propidium iodide staining. The effect of resveratrol on the invasion through Matrigel matrix was detected by transwell invasion analyses. The activity of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 and -9 proteins were determined by gelatin zymography analysis. The expression of MMP-2, MMP-9, Bcl-2, Bcl-x(L), XIAP and Bax protein were detected using Western blotting analysis. RESULTS: Resveratrol inhibited proliferation of MM cells in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Incubation of MM cells with resveratrol resulted in apoptotic cell death. Resveratrol down-regulated the expression of the antiapoptotic proteins Bcl-2, Bcl-x(L) and XIAP and up-regulated the expression of the proapoptotic protein Bax. Furthermore, resveratrol inhibited invasion of RPMI 8226, U266, and KM3 cells with IC50 values of 64+/-8 micromol/L, 93+/-11 micromol/L, and 153+/-11 micromol/L, respectively. Resveratrol inhibited the constitutive expression of MMP-2 and -9 proteins of MM cells and suppressed its gelatinolytic activity. CONCLUSION: Resveratrol inhibits the proliferation of MM cells by inducing apoptotic cell death. Resveratrol also inhibits MM cell invasion. The inhibition of invasion may be associated with the attenuation of the enzymatic activities of MMP-2 and -9.