The water extract of Amydrium sinense (Engl.) H. Li ameliorates Isoproterenol-induced cardiac hypertrophy through inhibiting the NF-κB signaling pathway.

OBJECTIVE: Pathologic cardiac hypertrophy (PCH) is a precursor to heart failure. Amydrium sinense (Engl.) H. Li (AS), a traditional Chinese medicinal plant, has been extensively utilized to treat chronic inflammatory diseases. However, the therapeutic effect of ASWE on PCH and its underlying mechanisms are still not fully understood. METHODS: A cardiac hypertrophy model was established by treating C57BL/6 J mice and neonatal rat cardiomyocytes (NRCMs) in vitro with isoprenaline (ISO) in this study. The antihypertrophic effects of AS water extract (ASWE) on cardiac function, histopathologic manifestations, cell surface area and expression levels of hypertrophic biomarkers were examined. Subsequently, the impact of ASWE on inflammatory factors, p65 nuclear translocation and NF-κB activation was investigated to elucidate the underlying mechanisms. RESULTS: In the present study, we observed that oral administration of ASWE effectively improved ISO-induced cardiac hypertrophy in mice, as evidenced by histopathological manifestations and the expression levels of hypertrophic markers. Furthermore, the in vitro experiments demonstrated that ASWE treatment inhibited cardiac hypertrophy and suppressed inflammation response in ISO-treated NRCMs. Mechanically, our findings provided evidence that ASWE suppressed inflammation response by repressing p65 nuclear translocation and NF-κB activation. ASWE was found to possess the capability of inhibiting inflammation response and cardiac hypertrophy induced by ISO. CONCLUSION: To sum up, ASWE treatment was shown to attenuate ISO-induced cardiac hypertrophy by inhibiting cardiac inflammation via preventing the activation of the NF-kB signaling pathway. These findings provided scientific evidence for the development of ASWE as a novel therapeutic drug for PCH treatment.

Comparative Analysis of the Metabolites and Biological Activity of Cultivated and Wild Lignosus rhinocerotis.

In this paper, Lignosus rhinocerotis (Cooke) Ryvarden (L. rhinocerotis) cultivated in rice medium (LRR) and in sawdust medium (LRS) was harvested. Then, in terms of the LRR, LRS, and wild L. rhinocerotis (LRW), the total flavonoid contents, total polyphenol contents, total polysaccharide contents, and metabolites were detected; antioxidants of their aqueous extracts and anti-inflammatory of their polysaccharides were performed. In addition, the possible mechanism of the polysaccharides of L. rhinocerotis inhibiting lung damage was elucidated. The results showed that 32 compounds were characterized in L. rhinocerotis, including flavonoids, terpenoids, lignans, and steroids and there were 20 compounds in cultivated and wild L. rhinocerotis; LRR has the highest total polyphenol and flavonoid contents, as well as ABTS and DPPH scavenging capacity. The total polysaccharide contents and the FRAP scavenging capacity of wild L. rhinocerotis were higher than those of cultivated L. rhinocerotis. The inhibition of polysaccharides of LRW (PLRW) on LPS-induced MRC-5 damage was stronger than that of the polysaccharides from cultivated L. rhinocerotis. The PLRW may alleviate lung damage by inhibiting the NLRP3 pathway and thereby suppressing the inflammatory response. In summary, both cultivated and wild L. rhinocerotis are abundant in bioactive components and have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities.

Yao medicine Amydrium hainanense suppresses hepatic fibrosis by repressing hepatic stellate cell activation via STAT3 signaling.

Ethnopharmacological relevance: Hepatic fibrosis (HF) occurs in response to chronic liver injury and may easily develop into irreversible liver cirrhosis or even liver cancer. Amydrium hainanense water extract (AHWE) is a water-soluble component extracted from the Yao medicine Amydrium hainanense (H.Li, Y.Shiao & S.L.Tseng) H.Li, which is commonly used for treating inflammatory diseases in folk. Previous evidence suggested that AHWE significantly inhibited hepatic stellate cell activation. However, little is known regarding the therapeutic effect of AHWE in HF and its underlying action mechanism. Objective: Investigation of the therapeutic effect of AHWE in HF and its underlying mechanism. Methods: The therapeutic effect of AHWE was tested in vivo using an HF mouse model via an intraperitoneal injection of carbon tetrachloride (CCl4). Histological evaluation of liver injury and fibrosis were tested by H&E staining and Masson's trichrome staining. Serum levels of ALT, AST, collagen type I (Col I), and hydroxyproline (HYP) were measured. The mRNA expression of liver fibrotic and inflammatory genes were tested, and the protein levels of alpha smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) and signal transducers and activators of transcription 3 (STAT3) were analyzed. The in vitro experiments were conducted using HSC-T6 and RAW264.7 cell lines. Results: Treatment with AHWE significantly reversed histopathological liver damage and liver function abnormalities in CCl4 mouse model. Also, the serum levels of ALT, AST, Col I, and HYP in CCl4-induced HF mice were improved in AHWE treatment. Further, AHWE showed a remarkable inhibitory effect on the expression of fibrosis markers (Acta2, Col1a1, and Col3a1) and inflammatory factors (Stat3, Tnfa, Il6, and Il1b) induced by CCl4. The results of in vitro experiments were consistent with those obtained in vivo. In addition, it is shown that STAT3 signaling was involved in the anti-fibrotic effects of AHWE as evidenced by STAT3 overexpression. Conclusion: The present study proposed a novel ethnomedicine for HF and suggested the underlying role of STAT3 signaling pathway regulation in this anti-fibrotic effect of the proposed medicine. These findings would serve as solid scientific evidence in support of the development of AHWE as a novel alternative or complementary therapy for HF prevention and treatment.

The Potential Antioxidant Activity and Characterization of Bioactive Compounds of Stahlianthus involucratus.

Stahlianthus involucratus (S. involucratus) has anti-inflammatory, antinociceptive, and antipyretic activities; however, there are no literature reports on its antioxidant capacity. This study presents a comparative assessment of the polyphenols contents, flavonoids contents, and antioxidant activity of the aqueous and methanol extracts of S. involucratus (ASI and MSI). Moreover, the expression of oxidative stress-related genes in H2O2-induced H9c2 cells pretreated with the MSI was measured by RT-qPCR, and furthermore, MSI were characterized by UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap-MS/MS. The results indicated that the MSI had higher antioxidant contents and antioxidant capacity, and MSI could inhibit H2O2-induced oxidative stress in H9c2 cells by activating the Nrf2/HO-1 pathway. UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap-MS/MS characterized 15 phenolic compounds from the MSI. In conclusion, S. involucratus has the potential antioxidant capacity.