NIR-II emissive AIEgen photosensitizers enable ultrasensitive imaging-guided surgery and phototherapy to fully inhibit orthotopic hepatic tumors.

Accurate diagnosis and effective treatment of primary liver tumors are of great significance, and optical imaging has been widely employed in clinical imaging-guided surgery for liver tumors. The second near-infrared window (NIR-II) emissive AIEgen photosensitizers have attracted a lot of attention with higher-resolution bioimaging and deeper penetration. NIR-II aggregation-induced emission-based luminogen (AIEgen) photosensitizers have better phototherapeutic effects and accuracy of the image-guided surgery/phototherapy. Herein, an NIR-II AIEgen phototheranostic dot was proposed for NIR-II imaging-guided resection surgery and phototherapy for orthotopic hepatic tumors. Compared with indocyanine green (ICG), the AIEgen dots showed bright and sharp NIR-II emission at 1250 nm, which extended to 1600 nm with high photostability. Moreover, the AIEgen dots efficiently generated reactive oxygen species (ROS) for photodynamic therapy. Investigations of orthotopic liver tumors in vitro and in vivo demonstrated that AIEgen dots could be employed both for imaging-guided tumor surgery of early-stage tumors and for 'downstaging' intention to reduce the size. Moreover, the therapeutic strategy induced complete inhibition of orthotopic tumors without recurrence and with few side effects.

Biological activities of salvianolic acid B from Salvia miltiorrhiza on type 2 diabetes induced by high-fat diet and streptozotocin.

CONTEXT: Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge. (Labiatae) has been widely used for treating diabetes for centuries. Salvianolic acid B (SalB) is the main bioactive component in Salvia miltiorrhiza; however, its antidiabetic activity and possible mechanism are not yet clear. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of SalB on glycometabolism, lipid metabolism, insulin resistance, oxidative stress, and glycogen synthesis in type 2 diabetic rat model. MATERIALS AND METHODS: High-fat diet (HFD) and streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats were randomly divided into model group, SalB subgroups (50, 100, and 200 mg/kg), and rosiglitazone group. RESULTS: Compared with the model group, SalB (100 and 200 mg/kg) significantly decreased blood glucose (by 23.8 and 21.7%; p < 0.05 and p < 0.01) and insulin (by 31.3 and 26.6%; p < 0.05), and increased insulin sensitivity index (by 10.9 and 9.3%; p < 0.05). They also significantly decreased total cholesterol (by 24.9 and 27.9%; p < 0.01), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (by 56.2 and 64.6%; p < 0.01), non-esterified fatty acids (by 32.1 and 37.9%; p < 0.01), hepatic glycogen (by 41.3 and 60.5%; p < 0.01), and muscle glycogen (by 33.2 and 38.6%; p < 0.05), and increased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (by 50.0 and 61.4%; p < 0.05 and p < 0.01), which were originally altered by HFD and streptozotocin. In addition, SalB (200 mg/kg) markedly decreased triglyceride and malondialdehyde (by 31.5 and 29.0%; p < 0.05 and p < 0.01), and increased superoxide dismutase (by 56.6%; p < 0.01), which were originally altered by HFD and streptozotocin. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The results indicate that SalB can inhibit symptoms of diabetes mellitus in rats and these effects may partially be correlated with its insulin sensitivity, glycogen synthesis and antioxidant activities.

Qualitative and quantitative analysis of the major constituents in Jin-Mu-Gan-Mao tablet by high-performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detection and quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry.

Jin-Mu-Gan-Mao tablet is a well-known traditional Chinese medicinal preparation, which has been used to treat the common cold in China. In this study, a systematic method was established for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of the major constituents in Jin-Mu-Gan-Mao tablet. First, a method of high-performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detection and quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry was developed for identification of the multi-constituents. Thirty-one compounds including ten phenolic acids, 18 flavonoids, and three iridoid glycosides were clearly identified by comparison with the reference standards, and 11 compounds were deduced by comparison with the literature data. Second, a new quantitative analysis method of Jin-Mu-Gan-Mao tablet was established by high-performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detection. Twelve compounds, either with high contents or strong bioactivities, were chosen as marker components. This analytical method was validated through intra- and interday precision, repeatability, and stability, with respective relative standard deviations less than 1.74, 2.54, 2.44, and 2.48%. The limits of detection and quantification were less than 0.327 and 0.881 µg/mL, respectively. The overall recoveries ranged from 97.04-102.76% (relative standard deviation ≤ 2.91%). Then this validated method was applied to determine ten batches of Jin-Mu-Gan-Mao tablet. The results indicated that these new approaches can be applicable for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of Jin-Mu-Gan-Mao tablet.

Salvianolic acid B inhibited PPARγ expression and attenuated weight gain in mice with high-fat diet-induced obesity.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Obesity contributes to the development of cardiometabolic disorders such as type 2 diabetes, fatty liver disease and cardiovascular disease. Salvianolic acid B (Sal B) is a molecule derived from the root of Salvia miltiorrhiza (Danshen), which is a traditional Chinese medicine that is widely used to treat cardiovascular diseases. However, the role of Sal B in obesity and obesity-related metabolic disorders is unknown. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effects of Sal B on high-fat diet-induced obesity and determine the possible mechanisms involved. METHODS: Male C57BL/6J mice fed a high-fat diet for 12 weeks received a supplement of Sal B (100 mg/kg/day) by gavage for a further 8 weeks. These mice were compared to control mice fed an un-supplemented high-fat diet. 3T3-L1 preadipocytes were used in vitro studies. RESULTS: Sal B administration significantly decreased body weight, white adipose tissue weight, adipocyte size and lipid (triglyceride and total cholesterol) levels in obese mice. Eight weeks of Sal B administration also improved the intraperitoneal glucose tolerance test (IPGTT) and intraperitoneal insulin tolerance test (IPITT) scores in high-fat diet-induced obese mice. In 3T3-L1 preadipocytes that were cultured in vitro and induced to differentiate, Sal B reduced the accumulation of lipid droplets and lipid content in a dose-dependent manner. Immunoblotting indicated that Sal B decreased peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) and CCAAT/enhancer binding protein α (C/EBPα) expression but increased the expression of GATA binding protein 2 and 3 (GATA 2, GATA 3) both in vivo and in vitro. CONCLUSION: Our data suggest that Sal B may reduce obesity and obesity-related metabolic disorders by suppressing adipogenesis. The effects of Sal B in adipose tissue may be related to its action on PPARγ, C/EBPα, GATA-2 and GATA-3.