Dioscorea nipponica Makino: A comprehensive review of its chemical composition and pharmacology on chronic kidney disease.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a widespread ailment that significantly impacts global health. It is characterized by high prevalence, poor prognosis, and substantial healthcare costs, making it a major public health concern. The current clinical treatments for CKD are not entirely satisfactory, leading to a high demand for alternative therapeutic options. Chinese herbal medicine, with its long history, diverse varieties, and proven efficacy, offers a promising avenue for exploration. One such Chinese herbal medicine, Dioscorea nipponica Makino (DNM), is frequently used to treat kidney diseases. In this review, we have compiled studies examining the mechanisms of action of DNM in the context of CKD, focusing on five primary areas: improvement of oxidative stress, inhibition of renal fibrosis, regulation of metabolism, reduction of inflammatory response, and regulation of autophagy.

Research progress on Cornus officinalis and its active compounds in the treatment of diabetic nephropathy.

Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a kidney disorder secondary to diabetes and is one of the main diabetic microvascular complications. As the number of diabetic patients grows, DN has become the leading cause of chronic kidney disease in China. Unfortunately, no definitive cure currently exists for DN. Cornus officinalis (CO), frequently utilized in clinical settings for diabetes mellitus treatment, has proven vital in both preventing and treating DN. This article explores the pathogenesis of DN and how CO and its active compounds regulate glucose and lipid metabolism, exhibit anti-inflammatory properties, inhibit oxidative stress, regulate podocytes, and manage autophagy. The mechanism and role of and its active compounds in the treatment of DN are discussed.

Therapeutic effects of traditional Chinese medicine on gouty nephropathy: Based on NF-κB signalingpathways.

As the final product of purine metabolism, excess serum uric acid (SUA) aggravates the process of some metabolic diseases. SUA causes renal tubule damage, interstitial fibrosis, and glomerular hardening, leading to gouty nephropathy (GN). A growing number of investigations have shown that NF-κB mediated inflammation and oxidative stress have been directly involved in the pathogenesis of GN. Traditional Chinese medicine's treatment methods of GN have amassed a wealth of treatment experience. In this review, we first describe the mechanism of NF-κB signaling pathways in GN. Subsequently, we highlight traditional Chinese medicine that can treat GN through NF-κB pathways. Finally, commenting on promising candidate targets of herbal medicine for GN treatment via suppressing NF-κB signaling pathways was summarized.

Morroniside Promotes PGC-1α-Mediated Cholesterol Efflux in Sodium Palmitate or High Glucose-Induced Mouse Renal Tubular Epithelial Cells.

Lipid deposition is an etiology of renal damage caused by lipid metabolism disorder in diabetic nephropathy (DN). Thus, reducing lipid deposition is a feasible strategy for the treatment of DN. Morroniside (MOR), an iridoid glycoside isolated from the Chinese herb Cornus officinalis Sieb. et Zucc., is considered to be an effective drug in inhibiting oxidative stress, reducing inflammatory response, and countering apoptosis. To explore the protective mechanism of MOR in attenuating renal lipotoxicity in DN, we investigated the effect of MOR on an in vitro model of lipid metabolism disorder of DN established by stimulating mouse renal tubular epithelial cells (mRTECs) with sodium palmitate (PA) or high glucose (HG). Oil Red O and filipin cholesterol staining assays were used to determine intracellular lipid accumulation status. Results revealed that PA or HG stimulation inhibited the expressions of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator 1α (PGC-1α), liver X receptors (LXR), ATP-binding cassette subfamily A member 1 (ABCA1), ABCG1, and apolipoprotein E (ApoE) in mRTECs as evidenced by western blot and quantitative real-time PCR, resulting in increased intracellular lipid deposition. Interestingly, MOR upregulated expressions of PGC-1α, LXR, ABCA1, ABCG1, and ApoE, thus reducing cholesterol accumulation in mRTECs, suggesting that MOR might promote cholesterol efflux from mRTECs via the PGC-1α/LXR pathway. Of note, silencing PGC-1α reversed the promotive effect of MOR on PA- or HG-induced cellular cholesterol accumulation. In conclusion, our results suggest that MOR has a protective effect on mRTECs under high lipid or high glucose conditions, which may be related to the promotion of intracellular cholesterol efflux mediated by PGC-1α.

Effect of shenyan xiaobai granule on nephrin and podocin of adriamycin-induced renal injury: A randomised controlled trial.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: ShenYanXiaoBai granules is a traditional Chinese herbal medicine, It is used widely for the treatment of proteinuria caused by various kidney diseases. AIM OF THE STUDY: This study investigated the mechanism of Shenyan Xiaobai Granule in the treatment of nephritis proteinuria. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 100 male wistar rats were divided into a blank group (n = 20) and a nephropathy group (n = 80) using random number table after 1 week adaptive feeded. Rats were injected with adriamycin (6.5 mg/kg) via the tail vein to induce nephropathy except for blank group. Every rat's urine protein was checked with urine protein dipstick test after three days that showed all rats in nephropathy group were successful modelled. Nephropathy group was divided into model group, benazepril group, ShenYanXiaoBai low dose group, ShenYanXiaoBai high dose group equally. Blank and model group were given distilled water 2 ml as control, then benazepril group received benazepril 0.90 mg/kg, ShenYanXiaoBai low dose group received ShenYanXiaoBai granules 1.80 g/kg as high dose group was given 3.60 g/kg, gavage for 6 days a week last for seven weeks. Urinary albumin/urinary creatinine were measured in seventh day every week. Three rats were randomly selected from each group to be executed in 3th and 5th weekend to detect the mRNA and protein expression level in kidney. The rest rats were as well. CONCLUSIONS: The therapeutic effect of ShenYanXiaoBai high dose group was better than the two other treated groups from the 5th week to the 7th week, the comparison had a significant difference. The therapeutic effect of benazepril group was better than the ShenYanXiaoBai low dose group in the 7 weeks and the comparison had a significant difference.