[Research progress in prevention and treatment of radiation-induced intestinal injury by traditional Chinese medicine active components].

Radiation-induced intestinal injury(RIII), a common complication of radiotherapy for pelvic malignancies, affects the quality of life and the radiotherapy efficacy for cancer. Currently, the main clinical approaches for the prevention and treatment of RIII include drug therapy, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, and surgical treatment. Among these methods, drug therapy is cost-effective. Traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) containing a variety of active components demonstrates mild side effects and good efficacy in preventing and treating RIII. Studies have proven that TCM active components, such as flavonoids, terpenoids, phenylpropanoids, and alkaloids, can protect the intestine against RIII by inhibiting oxidative stress, regulating the expression of inflammatory cytokines, modulating the mitochondrial apoptosis pathway, adjusting intestinal flora, and suppressing cell apoptosis. These mechanisms can help alleviate the symptoms of RIII. The paper aims to provide a theoretical reference for the discovery of new drugs for the prevention and treatment of RIII by reviewing the literature on TCM active components in the last 10 years.

Protective effect of total flavonoids of Engelhardia roxburghiana Wall. leaves against radiation-induced intestinal injury in mice and its mechanism.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Irradiation-induced intestinal injury (RIII) often occurs during radiotherapy in patients, which would result in abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and even death. Engelhardia roxburghiana Wall. leaves, a traditional Chinese herb, has unique anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, antioxidant, and analgesic effects, is used to treat damp-heat diarrhea, hernia, and abdominal pain, and has the potential to protect against RIII. AIM OF THE STUDY: To explore the protective effects of the total flavonoids of Engelhardia roxburghiana Wall. leaves (TFERL) on RIII and provide some reference for the application of Engelhardia roxburghiana Wall. leaves in the field of radiation protection. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The effect of TFERL on the survival rate of mice was observed after a lethal radiation dose (7.2 Gy) by ionizing radiation (IR). To better observe the protective effects of the TFERL on RIII, a mice model of RIII induced by IR (13 Gy) was established. Small intestinal crypts, villi, intestinal stem cells (ISC) and the proliferation of ISC were observed by haematoxylin and eosin (H&E) and immunohistochemistry (IHC). Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) was used to detect the expression of genes related to intestinal integrity. Superoxide dismutase (SOD), reduced glutathione (GSH), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in the serum of mice were assessed. In vitro, cell models of RIII induced by IR (2, 4, 6, 8 Gy) were established. Normal human intestinal epithelial cells HIEC-6 cells were treated with TFERL/Vehicle, and the radiation protective effect of TFERL on HIEC-6 cells was detected by clone formation assay. DNA damage was detected by comet assay and immunofluorescence assay. Reactive oxygen species (ROS), cell cycle and apoptosis rate were detected by flow cytometry. Oxidative stress, apoptosis and ferroptosis-related proteins were detected by western blot. Finally, the colony formation assay was used to detect the effect of TFERL on the radiosensitivity of colorectal cancer cells. RESULTS: TFERL treatment can increase the survival rate and time of the mice after a lethal radiation dose. In the mice model of RIII induced by IR, TFERL alleviated RIII by reducing intestinal crypt/villi structural damage, increasing the number and proliferation of ISC, and maintaining the integrity of the intestinal epithelium after total abdominal irradiation. Moreover, TFERL promoted the proliferation of irradiated HIEC-6 cells, and reduced radiation-induced apoptosis and DNA damage. Mechanism studies have found that TFERL promotes the expression of NRF2 and its downstream antioxidant proteins, and silencing NRF2 resulted in the loss of radioprotection by TFERL, suggesting that TFERL exerts radiation protection by activating the NRF2 pathway. Surprisingly, TFERL reduced the number of clones of colon cancer cells after irradiation, suggesting that TFERL can increase the radiosensitivity of colon cancer cells. CONCLUSION: Our data showed that TFERL inhibited oxidative stress, reduced DNA damage, reduced apoptosis and ferroptosis, and improved IR-induced RIII. This study may offer a fresh approach to using Chinese herbs for radioprotection.

Target Characteristics and Voltage Mapping of the Matrix in Idiopathic Premature Ventricular Contractions Originating from the Right Ventricular Outflow Tract.

BACKGROUND: The study was aimed at exploring the electrophysiological characteristics (EPS) of the optimal ablation site and its relationship with electroanatomic voltage mapping (EVM) in idiopathic premature ventricular contractions (PVCs) originating from the right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT). METHODS: A total of 28 patients with idiopathic RVOT PVCs underwent successful ablation and EVM using a 3D electroanatomical mapping (CARTO) system. RESULTS: Both bipolar and unipolar EVM showed a similar band-like lower-voltage area (LVA) under the pulmonary valve in all the patients; 21.4% of the targets were located in the band-like LVA. 42.9% of the targets were at the border of the band-like LVA on the bipolar voltage map, but unipolar mapping showed that 53.6% of the targets were located in the band-like LVA, and 35.7% of the targets at the border of the band-like LVA. A significant difference was found in both unipolar and bipolar voltage values between the regions within 0-5 mm above the optimal ablation site and the other regions. A similar difference was observed only in unipolar voltage values below the optimal ablation site. At the ablation site, there were frequent occurrences of a fragmented wave and voltage reversion in the bipolar electrograms, frustrated falling limbs, W bottom, and a QS configuration width > 150 ms in the unipolar electrograms. CONCLUSIONS: EVM showed that the band-like LVA was an interesting area for the search of the optimal ablation sites of idiopathic RVOT-PVCs, especially the border area. There was focal microscarring around the ablation targets; some characteristics of EPS proved significant for successful ablation.

[Determination of tomatine in Solanum cathayanum by RP-HPLC].

OBJECTIVE: To develop an HPLC method for determination of tomatine in the dried Solanum cathayanum of China Hubei Enshi. METHOD: The analysis was performed on a YMC-Pack ODS-AA column (4. 6 mm x 150 mm, 5 microm) eluted with acetonitrile and water in gradient mode. The concentration of acetonitrile in the mobile phase changes from 20% to 100% within 60 minutes. The detection wavelength was set 203 nm. The flow rate was 1.0 mL x min(-1) and column temperature was set at 30 degrees C. RESULT: The linear relationship of tomatine was determined within the range from 0.1-0.6 g x L(-1) (r = 0.999 7). The average recovery as 98.93% with RSD 1.2%. CONCLUSION: A convenient and reliable method was developed to determine the content of tomatine in the dried S. cathayanum.