The impact of mulberry leaf extract at three different levels on reducing the glycemic index of white bread.

In this study, the influences of mulberry leaf extract (MLE) addition on the physicochemical properties including the specific volume, texture and sensory features of white bread (WB) were evaluated by the sensory analysis technology. A double-blind, randomised, repeat-measure design was used to study the impact of MLE addition on the postprandial blood glucose response as well as the satiety index of WB. Results showed that the addition of MLE showed no significant effects on the physicochemical properties of WB except for the slight changes of color and bitterness. The addition of MLE significantly reduced the total blood glucose rise after ingestion of WB over 120 minutes, and reduced the GI value of WB in a dose-effect relationship. When the concentration of MLE reached 1.5 g per 100 g available carbohydrate, the GI value of WB could be reduced from 77 to 43. This study provides important information in terms of the appropriateness of MLE when added to more complex real food, the dose-dependent relationship could supply a reference for the application of MLE.

The relationship of publication language, study population, risk of bias, and treatment effects in acupuncture related systematic reviews: a meta-epidemiologic study.

BACKGROUND: There are debates in acupuncture related systematic reviews and meta-analyses on whether searching Chinese databases to get more Chinese-language studies may increase the risk of bias and overestimate the effect size, and whether the treatment effects of acupuncture differ between Chinese and non-Chinese populations. METHODS: In this meta-epidemiological study, we searched the Cochrane library from its inception until December 2021, and identified systematic reviews and meta-analyses with acupuncture as one of the interventions. Paired reviewers independently screened the reviews and extracted the information. We repeated the meta-analysis of the selected outcomes to separately pool the results of Chinese- and non-Chinese-language acupuncture studies and presented the pooled estimates as odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI). We calculated the Ratio of ORs (ROR) by dividing the OR of the Chinese-language trials by the OR of the non-Chinese-language trials, and the ROR by dividing the OR of trials addressing Chinese population by the OR of trials addressing non-Chinese population. We explored whether the impact of a high risk of bias on the effect size differed between studies published in Chinese- and in non-Chinese-language, and whether the treatment effects of acupuncture differed between Chinese and non-Chinese population. RESULTS: We identified 84 Cochrane acupuncture reviews involving 33 Cochrane groups, of which 31 reviews (37%) searched Chinese databases. Searching versus not searching Chinese databases significantly increased the contribution of Chinese-language literature both to the total number of included trials (54% vs. 15%) and the sample size (40% vs. 15%). When compared with non-Chinese-language trials, Chinese-language trials were associated with a larger effect size (pooled ROR 0.51, 95% CI 0.29 to 0.91). We also observed a higher risk of bias in Chinese-language trials in blinding of participants and personnel (97% vs. 51%) and blinding of outcome assessment (93% vs. 47%). The higher risk of bias was associated with a larger effect estimate in both Chinese-language (allocation concealment: high/unclear risk vs. low risk, ROR 0.43, 95% CI 0.21 to 0.87) and non-Chinese-language studies (blinding of participants and personnel: high/unclear risk vs. low risk, ROR 0.41, 95% CI 0.23 to 0.74). However, we found no evidence that the higher risk of bias would increase the effect size of acupuncture in Chinese-language studies more often than in non-Chinese-language studies (the confidence intervals of all ROR in the high-risk group included 1, Table 3). We further found acupuncture appeared to be more effective in Chinese than in non-Chinese population (Table 4). CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this study suggest the higher risk of bias may lead to an overestimation of the treatment effects of acupuncture but would not increase the treatment effects in Chinese-language studies more often than in other language studies. The difference in treatment effects of acupuncture was probably associated with differences in population characteristics. TRIAL REGISTRATION: We registered our protocol on the Open Science Framework (OSF) ( https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/PZ6XR ).

Umbelliferone Inhibits Migration, Invasion and Inflammation of Rheumatoid Arthritis Fibroblast-Like Synoviocytes and Relieves Adjuvant-Induced Arthritis in Rats by Blockade of Wnt/ß-Catenin Signaling Pathway.

Umbelliferone (UMB), a natural coumarin compound, has been reported to possess anti-rheumatic effects on rheumatoid arthritis (RA) experimental models, but its potential role of UMB in regulating migration, invasion and inflammation of RA fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLS) remain unclear. Herein, MTT assay was performed to confirm the non-cytotoxic concentrations (10, 20, and 40[Formula: see text][Formula: see text]M) and the treatment time (24[Formula: see text]h) of UMB on TNF-[Formula: see text]-stimulated RA FLS (MH7A cells) in vitro. Results of wound-healing, transwell and phalloidin staining assays revealed that UMB inhibited TNF-[Formula: see text]-induced migration, invasion and F-actin cytoskeletal reorganization in MH7A. Results of ELISA, western blot and gelatin zymography indicated that UMB decreased the productions of pro-inflammatory factors, including IL-1[Formula: see text], IL-6, IL-8, MMP-2 and MMP-9, and inhibited MMP-2 activity in TNF-[Formula: see text]-stimulated MH7A cells. In vivo, UMB (25[Formula: see text]mg/kg and 50[Formula: see text]mg/kg) relieved the joint damage and synovial inflammation in rats with adjuvant-induced arthritis (AIA). Mechanistically, UMB could suppress Wnt/[Formula: see text]-catenin signaling both in TNF-[Formula: see text]-induced MH7A cells and in AIA rat synovium, evidenced by decreasing Wnt1 protein level, activating GSK-3[Formula: see text] kinase by blocking GSK-3[Formula: see text] (Ser9) phosphorylation, and reducing the protein level and nuclear translocation of [Formula: see text]-catenin. Importantly, combined use of lithium chloride (a Wnt/[Formula: see text]-catenin signaling agonist) eliminated the inhibitory effects of UMB on migration, invasion and inflammation in vitro and the anti-arthritic effects of UMB in vivo. We concluded that UMB inhibited TNF-[Formula: see text]-induced migration, invasion and inflammation of RA FLS and attenuated the severity of rat AIA through its ability to block Wnt/[Formula: see text]-catenin signaling pathway.

Comparative study of nanosecond electric fields in vitro and in vivo on hepatocellular carcinoma indicate macrophage infiltration contribute to tumor ablation in vivo.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Recurrence and metastasis are associated with poor prognosis in hepatocellular carcinoma even in the patients who have undergone radical resection. Therefore, effective treatment is urgently needed for improvement of patients' survival. Previously, we reported that nanosecond pulse electric fields (nsPEFs) can ablate melanoma by induction of apoptosis and inhibition of angiogenesis. This study aims to investigate the in vivo ablation strategy by comparing the dose effect of nanosecond electric fields in vitro and in vivo on hepatocellular carcinoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Four hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines HepG2, SMMC7721, Hep1-6, and HCCLM3 were pulsed to test the anti-proliferation and anti-migration ability of 100 ns nsPEFs in vitro. The animal model of human subdermal xenograft HCCLM3 cells into BALB/c nude mouse was used to test the anti-tumor growth and macrophage infiltration in vivo. RESULTS: In vitro assays showed anti-tumor effect of nsPEFs is dose-dependant. But the in vivo study showed the strategy of low dose and multiple treatments is superior to high dose single treatment. The macrophages infiltration significantly increased in the tumors which were treated by multiple low dose nsPEFs. CONCLUSION: The low dose multiple nsPEFs application is more efficient than high dose single treatment in inhibiting the tumor volume in vivo, which is quite different from the dose-effect relationship in vitro. Beside the electric field strength, the macrophage involvement must be considered to account for effect variability and toxicology in vivo.

Neuroprotective effects of resveratrol on damages of mouse cortical neurons induced by ß-amyloid through activation of SIRT1/Akt1 pathway.

Resveratrol (3,5,4'-tihydroxy-trans-stilbene), a polyphenolic phytoalexin found in the skin and seeds of grapes, has been reported to possess a wide range of biological and pharmacological activities including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimutagenic effects. The present study intended to explore the neuroprotective effects of resveratrol against Aß25-35 -induced neurotoxicity of cultured mouse cortical neurons and the possible mechanisms involved. For this purpose, mouse cortical neurons were cultured and exposed to 30 µM Aß25-35 in the absence or presence of resveratrol (5, 10, and 25 µM). In addition, the potential contribution of the SIRT1/Akt1 neuroprotective pathway in resveratrol-mediated protection against Aß25-35 -induced neurotoxicity was also investigated. The results showed that resveratrol dose-dependently increased cell viability and reduced the number of apoptotic cells as measured by 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity assay, reactive oxygen species (ROS) activity assay, and Hoechst/PI double staining. Further study revealed that resveratrol through activation of SIRT1/Akt1 to avert apoptosis. These findings raise the possibility that resveratrol may be a potent therapeutic compound against the neurodegenerative diseases.

Neuroprotective effects of Buyang Huanwu decoction against hydrogen peroxide induced oxidative injury in Schwann cells.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Buyang Huanwu decoction (BYHWD) is a traditional Chinese medicine and can be used to promote peripheral nerve regeneration. However the regenerative mechanism of BYHWD remains unclear. The objective of this study was to investigate the protective mechanisms of BYHWD in Schwann cells damaged by hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Schwann cells which were derived from neonatal sciatic nerves of rats were used in subsequent experiments. Schwann cells were injured by various concentrations of H(2)O(2) (0.25, 0.5 and 1mM final concentration). BYHWD (600 µg/ml final concentration) was added to the medium either simultaneously or 1h later after the addition of H(2)O(2). Subsequently, methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) assay was performed. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were also examined after 12h. The expression of Caspase 3 and the concentration of intercellular Ca(2+) ([Ca(2+)]i) were also determined. RESULTS: Among three concentrations of H(2)O(2), 0.5mM H(2)O(2) induced Schwann cells swelled and neuritis disappeared after 12h. In the presence of BYHWD, MTT assay showed that more cells were viable in comparison with the H(2)O(2) injury group. Moreover, the addition of BYHWD has also increased the SOD activity with decreased in MDA level. Furthermore, the concentration of [Ca(2+)]i and expression of Caspase 3 were decreased with the addition of BYHWD in culture. CONCLUSIONS: Our results revealed that BYHWD protected Schwann cells from oxidative injury. The mechanism of BYHWD promoting neural regeneration possibly associated with its anti-oxidative activity.