Metals/bisulfite system involved generation of 24-sulfonic-25-ene ginsenoside Rg1, a potential quality control marker for sulfur-fumigated ginseng.

Ginseng is a most popular health-promoting food with ginsenosides as its main bioactive ingredients. Illegal sulfur-fumigation causes ginsenosides convert to toxic sulfur-containing derivatives, and reduced the efficacy/safety of ginseng. 24-sulfo-25-ene ginsenoside Rg1 (25-ene SRg1), one of the sulfur-containing derivatives, is a potential quality control marker of fumigated ginseng, but with low accessibility owing to its unknown generation mechanism. In this study, metals/bisulfite system involved generation mechanism was investigated and verified. The generation of 25-ene SRg1 in sulfur-fumigated ginseng is that SO2, formed during sulfur-fumigation, reacted with water and ionized into HSO3-. On the one hand, under the metals/bisulfite system, HSO3- generates HSO5- and free radicals which converted ginsenoside Rg1 to 24,25-epoxide Rg1; on the other hand, as a nucleophilic group, HSO3- reacted with 24,25-epoxide Rg1 and further dehydrated to 25-ene SRg1. This study provided a technical support for the promotion of 25-ene SRg1 as the characteristic quality control marker of sulfur-fumigated ginseng.

Comparing steamed and wine-stewed Rehmanniae Radix in terms of Yin-nourishing effects via metabolomics and microbiome analysis.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Rehmanniae Radix Praeparata (RRP), the processed root of Rehmannia glutinosa, has been widely used to treat Yin deficiency syndrome in traditional Chinese medicine. RRP is available in two forms: processed by steaming with water (SRR) or processed by stewing with yellow rice wine (WRR). Previous work has documented chemical differences in the secondary metabolomes and glycomes of SRR and WRR. AIM OF THE STUDY: This study aimed to compare SRR and WRR in terms of Yin-nourishing effects via metabolomics and microbiome analysis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: ICR mice were orally administered with thyroxine for 14 d to induce Yin deficiency. Changes in biochemical indices and histopathology were detected. Serum metabolomics analysis and microbial 16S rRNA sequencing were performed to compare the therapeutic effects and mechanisms between SRR and WRR in treating thyroxine-induced Yin deficiency. RESULTS: Both SRR and WRR decreased serum T3, T4 and MDA levels, and increased SOD activity. SRR more effectively decreased serum Cr, and ameliorated kidney injury, while WRR showed better regulation on ratio of cAMP/cGMP and serum TSH, and relieved thyroid injury. Both SRR and WRR regulated tyrosine, glycerophospholipid, and linoleic acid metabolism and the citric acid cycle. Additionally, SRR regulated fatty acid metabolism, while WRR influenced alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism, and bile acid biosynthesis. SRR significantly enriched the genera Staphylococcus and Bifidobacterium in the gut microbiome, while WRR significantly enriched the genera Akkermansia, Bacteroides and Parabacteroides, and decreased the abundance of Lactobacillus. CONCLUSIONS: SRR displayed better protective effects on kidney, while WRR showed stronger effects on thyroid in thyroxine-induced Yin deficient mice. These differences might be due to different regulating effects of SRR and WRR on the metabolome and gut microbiota.

2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine capturing combined with mass defect filtering strategy to identify aliphatic aldehydes in biological samples.

Aliphatic aldehydes are toxic substances that correlate with the onset of many diseases. However, up to date, the methods to identify aliphatic aldehydes in biological samples are less selectivity and/or robustness. In this study, a strategy based on 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine (DNPH) capturing combined with mass defect filtering (MDF) was established and validated to identify aliphatic aldehydes in two biological samples (serum of immunosuppressed rats and oxidative damaged cells). Firstly, the mass spectrometric characteristic ions (m/z 163.01, 163.02 and 191.04) and fragmentation pathways of aldehyde-DNPHs were acquired through analyzing the standard references. Then, biological samples were derivatized by DNPH, a routine reagent, and subsequently assessed on an ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTOF-MS/MS). Thirdly, the raw chromatogram was processed by MDF method to obtain interference-free chromatogram. Fourthly, the aldehyde-DNPHs were characterized through investigating the mass spectrometric information of each peak referred to the identified characteristic ions and fragmentation pathways. Finally, 6 and 8 aliphatic aldehydes were exclusively identified in serum of immunosuppressed rats and supernatant of oxidative damaged cells. Among which, propanal and butanal were positively correlate with immunosuppression, while formalin was more relevant to oxidative stress. The results demonstrated that the established strategy could robustly characterize the aliphatic aldehydes in biological samples, which would be helpful to evaluate the physical conditions of subjects.

Co-existing polysaccharides affect the systemic exposure of major bioactive ingredients in Chang-Kang-Fang, a multi-herb prescription for treatment of irritable bowel syndrome.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Chang-Kang-Fang (CKF) is a traditional Chinese herbal formula used for treatment of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) in China. Decoction is the administration form of CKF in clinical practice. Previously, CKF has been confirmed with activities of releasing pain and reversing disorders of intestinal propulsion. And alkaloids, monoglycosides, chromones were found as the main bioactive components potentially contributing to the efficacy of CKF. Polysaccharide was also a major constituent in CKF. But if and how polysaccharides influence the systemic exposure of bioactive components in CKF is unknown. AIM OF THE STUDY: In this study, we aimed to demonstrate the contribution of the co-existed polysaccharides on the systemic exposure of the major bioactive components from CKF in normal and IBS model rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An UPLC-TQ-MS with multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) scan method was developed and validated for quantifying six major small molecular bioactive ingredients of CKF in the plasma samples, including magnoflorine (MAG), berberine (BBR), albiflorin (ALB), paeoniflorin (PAE), 5-O-methylvisamminol (5-OM) and prim-O-glucosylcimifugin (POG). The rats received CKF decoction (CKF) and CKF small molecule portion (knockout of polysaccharides, CKFSM), respectively. IBS model rats were induced by daily bondage and gavage of Sennae Folium decoction (derived from the leaf of Cassia angustifolia Vahl). The effects of the co-existing polysaccharides on the pharmacokinetic parameters of six small molecular bioactive components in normal and IBS model rats were systematically evaluated. The potential gut microbiota involved mechanisms of the effects was validated by broad-spectrum antibiotic (ABX) treatment. RESULTS: The selectivity, precision, accuracy, recovery and matrix effect of the established quantification method were all within acceptable limits of biological sample. In normal rats, the co-existing polysaccharides significantly reduced the AUC(0-t) of MAG and PAE compared with CKFSM group. The Cmax and AUC(0-t) of other four compound were not influenced by co-existing polysaccharides. However, in IBS model rats, compared with CKFSM group, the Cmax and AUC(0-t) of the six ingredients significantly increased in CKF group. For CKF + ABX group, the Cmax of six ingredients decreased significantly when compared with CKF group, and the AUC(0-t) of MAG, BBR, ALB, PAE also reduced with significant differences. CONCLUSIONS: A reliable and sensitive UPLC-TQ-MS method was successfully developed and validated for evaluating influence of co-existing polysaccharides on pharmacokinetic behavior of six major small molecules components in CKF. The co-existing polysaccharides enhanced the systemic exposure of six bioactive small molecules in CKF under IBS pathological state potentially via gut microbiota involvement.

Effects of sulfur-fumigated ginseng on the global quality of Si-Jun-Zi decoction, a traditional ginseng-containing multi-herb prescription, evaluated by metabolomics and glycomics strategies.

Si-Jun-Zi decoction (SJZD) with ginseng as the principal medicinal herb is a traditional Chinese Medicine multi-herb prescription that commonly employed to treat colorectal cancer etc. Previous studies showed that nearly half of the commercial ginseng was sulfur-fumigated, one of the postharvest processing methods that commonly causes sulfur-dioxide (SO2) residue and chemical composition transformation in medical herbs. In this study, the effect of sulfur-fumigated ginseng on global quality of SJZD was evaluated by UPLC-QTOF-MS/MS based metabolomics and multiple chromatographic techniques based glycomics strategies. For non-saccharides components, sulfur-fumigated ginseng led to the emergence of sulfur-containing derivatives and alteration of saponins and flavonoids in SJZD. For saccharide components, sulfur-fumigated ginseng decreased the total contents and molecular weights of polysaccharides, changed the monosaccharide composition of polysaccharides, and increased the contents of oligosaccharides and free monosaccharides of SJZD. The alterations of SJZD were aggravated with the sulfur-fumigated content of ginseng. Those phenomena might be attributed to 1) sulfur-fumigation caused the generation of sulfur-containing derivatives in ginseng, which further transferred to SJZD, and 2) sulfur-fumigation caused the residue of SO2 in ginseng, which reduced the pH value and further changed the dissolution of saponins and flavonoids and accelerated the degradation of the polysaccharides to oligosaccharides and/or monosaccharides in SJZD. Furthermore, although storage reduced the SO2 residue in sulfur-fumigated ginseng, it couldn't recover the alterations of chemical profiles in SJZD. In conclusion, sulfur-fumigated ginseng altered the global quality of SJZD, which promoted that extra attention must be paid during the application of herbal formulas that containing sulfur-fumigated herbs.

Effects and contributory factors of sulfur-fumigation on the efficacy and safety of medicinal herbs evaluated by meta-analysis.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Sulfur-fumigation undoubtedly alters the chemical and metabolic profiles, but controversially affects the efficacy and safety of medicinal herbs. AIM OF THE STUDY: To comprehensively evaluate the effects of sulfur-fumigation on the efficacy and safety of medicinal herbs using a meta-analysis approach and further investigate the potential contributory factors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Literatures were retrieved on PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chinese VIP Information and Wanfang, and the outcomes involved activities and toxicities were extracted using standard data extraction forms. The effects of sulfur-fumigation on the efficacy and safety of medicinal herbs were evaluated by meta-analysis approaches. RESULTS: A total of sixteen studies were included in this study. Sulfur-fumigation reduced the efficacies of medicinal herbs with immune activity [thymus index (SMD = -1.81; P < 0.00001); spleen index (SMD = -1.11; P < 0.0001)], anti-oxidative activity [MDA (SMD = 2.60; P = 0.04); SOD (SMD = -2.21; P < 0.00001)], analgesic activity [heat tolerate time (SMD = -2.51; P = 0.001); writhing time (SMD = 0.36; P = 0.006)], anti-platelet aggregation activity (SMD = -1.84; P = 0.001), and anti-inflammatory activity [ear swelling degree (SMD = 0.47; P = 0.006)]. The reductions might be ascribed to sulfur-fumigation significantly reduced the contents of active ingredients in medicinal herbs, leading to dramatic decrease in the absorption of these ingredients and their metabolites in vivo. Furthermore, sulfur-fumigation induced the toxicities of medicinal herbs, mainly on hepatotoxicity, which might due to fumigation-induced residues of sulfur dioxide and heavy metal, and generations of sulfur-containing derivatives and toxic metabolites. Besides, administrated with sulfur-fumigated medicinal herbs with high sulfur ratio and/or higher dosage showed more significant toxicity. CONCLUSION: Sulfur-fumigation reduced the efficacy and safety of medicinal herbs, indicating sulfur-fumigation might not a feasible approach to process medicinal herbs. However, with obvious limitations, much more rigorous designed-trials are still needed to confirm the conclusion.

Gut Microbiota Mediates the Protective Effects of Traditional Chinese Medicine Formula Qiong-Yu-Gao against Cisplatin-Induced Acute Kidney Injury.

Our previous study found that Qiong-Yu-Gao (QYG), a traditional Chinese medicine formula derived from Rehmanniae Radix, Poria, and Ginseng Radix, has protective effects against cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury (AKI), but the underlying mechanisms remain unknown. In the present study, the potential role of gut microbiota in the nephroprotective effects of QYG was investigated. We found that QYG treatment significantly attenuated cisplatin-induced AKI and gut dysbiosis, altered the levels of bacterial metabolites, with short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) such as acetic acid and butyric acid increasing and uremic toxins such as indoxyl sulfate and p-cresyl sulfate reducing, and suppressed histone deacetylase expression and activity. Spearman's correlation analysis found that QYG-enriched fecal bacterial genera Akkermansia, Faecalibaculum, Bifidobacterium, and Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group were correlated with the altered metabolites, and these metabolites were also correlated with the biomarkers of AKI, as well as the indicators of fibrosis and inflammation. The essential role of gut microbiota was further verified by both the diminished protective effects with antibiotics-induced gut microbiota depletion and the transferable renal protection with fecal microbiota transplantation. All these results suggested that gut microbiota mediates the nephroprotective effects of QYG against cisplatin-induced AKI, potentially via increasing the production of SCFAs, thus suppressing histone deacetylase expression and activity, and reducing the accumulation of uremic toxins, thereby alleviating fibrosis, inflammation, and apoptosis in renal tissue. IMPORTANCE Cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury is the main limiting factor restricting cisplatin's clinical application. Accumulating evidence indicated the important role of gut microbiota in pathogenesis of acute kidney injury. In the present study, we have demonstrated that gut microbiota mediates the protective effects of traditional Chinese medicine formula Qiong-Yu-Gao against cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury. The outputs of this study would provide scientific basis for future clinical applications of QYG as prebiotics to treat cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury, and gut microbiota may be a promising therapeutic target for chemotherapy-induced nephrotoxicity.

Optimization and validation of direct gas chromatography-mass spectrometry method for simultaneous quantification of ten short-chain fatty acids in rat feces.

Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) play key roles in maintaining health and treating disease. Quantification of important fecal SCFAs is necessary to facilitate the clarification of their biological roles. However, the existing quantifying methods mainly depend on complicated precolumn derivatization, and/or are unable to determine formic acid, a SCFA commonly associated with toxicity. In this study, a direct gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) method for simultaneous quantification of ten SCFAs including formic acid in rat feces was developed. The approach was optimized in terms of chromatographic and spectrometric conditions as well as sample preparation. DB-FFAP capillary column with temperature programming was used to get baseline separation and symmetrical peak shape of SCFAs without precolumn derivatization in a relatively short running time (8 min). Multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) scan mode was employed to enhance the sensitivity and selectivity of SCFAs. Acidification with 50% HCl and immediate extraction with diethyl ether were utilized to achieve sample preparation of ten SCFAs from feces. Furthermore, the developed method was validated with wide linear range, high sensitivity and precision, low matrix effect and acceptable accuracy. The established method was successfully applied to compare the contents of fecal SCFAs between normal and immunosuppressed animal models.

Holistic quality evaluation of commercial Agastache rugosa by multiple chromatographic and chemometric analysis.

In present study, a comprehensive strategy integrating multiple chromatographic and chemometric methods to simultaneously characterize the volatile and non-volatile components was developed for the holistic quality evaluation of commercial Agastache rugosa (AR), a common edible and medicinal herb, collected in China. The volatile components and the non-volatile components were characterized by GC-MS and UPLC-QTOF-MS/MS, respectively. And the data were analyzed either independently or integratively by multivariate statistical analysis (MVS) for the quality assessment of commercial samples. The results revealed that the commercial AR samples were different in both the composition and the content of volatile components. However, the compositions of non-volatile components in commercial AR were generally similar, whereas the contents of some components were different. All the results indicated that the holistic quality of commercial AR was inconsistent, and the commercial samples collected could be classified into two main groups, the volatile components were majorly responsible for the classification. Whether or not the holistic quality variations affect the efficacy of AR deserves further investigation.

Efficacy and safety of transcatheter arterial chemoembolization combined with ginsenosides in hepatocellular carcinoma treatment.

BACKGROUND: Transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) is a standard therapy to treat hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but often limited for its complications. Ginsenosides, including total ginsenosides (GS), Rg3, Rh2 and CK, have been clinically used as adjuvants of TACE in HCC therapy. However, partial clinical observations concerning the efficacy and safety of the combinational treatment were contradictory. PURPOSE: To investigate the efficacy and safety of TACE and ginsenosides combination for HCC therapy. METHODS: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) regarding TACE and ginsenosides for HCC up to May 2021 were screened from six databases (PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chinese VIP Information and Web of Science). The outcomes of tumor response, adverse reactions (ADRs), quality of life (QOL), survival rates (OS) and liver function were extracted and evaluated by meta-analysis, respectively. RESULTS: A total of 18 RCTs with 1308 HCC patients were enrolled, and most of the eligible studies had unclear bias risk. Compared with TACE, combining ginsenosides improved objective response rate [ORR, risk ratio (RR) 1.39, 95% confidence intervals (CI) 1.20∼1.61], disease control rate (DCR, RR 1.21, 95% CI 1.12∼1.30), QOL (RR 1.54, 95% CI 1.25∼1.90), one- (RR 1.37, 95% CI 1.16∼1.62) and two- (RR 1.43, 95% CI 1.06∼1.95) year OS, and A level of Child-pugh, as well as reduced the risks of nausea and vomiting, pyrexia, ache, hyperbilirubinemia, anorexia, fatigue, leukopenia, thrombocytopenia and myelosuppression. Subgroup analyses showed that both short- and long- treatment durations of ginsenosides enhanced the A level of Child-pugh, and reduced nausea and vomiting, ache and hyperbilirubinemia. Besides, combining Rg3 benefited DCR, ORR and QOL, and alleviated nausea and vomiting, hyperbilirubinemia, leukopenia, myelosuppression, thrombocytopenia and α-fetoprotein, while combining GS alleviated nausea and vomiting, ache and hyperbilirubinemia, combining Rh2 alleviated thrombocytopenia, and combining CK alleviated nausea and vomiting, pyrexia, ache and leukopenia, respectively. CONCLUSION: The results suggested that combining ginsenosides could continuously benefit the efficacy and safety of TACE in HCC treatment, and Rg3 is the prior selection during the combination.

Efficacy of ginseng and its ingredients as adjuvants to chemotherapy in non-small cell lung cancer.

Chemotherapy is applied to treat non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but often limited due to its unstable therapeutic effects and adverse reactions (ADRs). Ginseng and its main ingredients (ginsenosides and polysaccharides) have been clinically used as adjuvants to chemotherapy. However, their efficacies were based on individual trials with relatively small sample sizes, and it is difficult to draw a valid conclusion. In this study, eligible randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were searched in six international and Chinese databases (PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chinese VIP Information and Wanfang). The outcomes of the objective response rate (ORR), disease control rate (DCR), ADRs, quality of life (QOL), survival rates and immunity were extracted using standard data extraction forms. The efficacies of ginseng and its ingredients as adjuvants to chemotherapy in NSCLC were investigated and compared by meta-analysis and subgroup meta-analysis, respectively. A total of 28 RCTs including 2503 subjects were enrolled, and most of the eligible studies were of low-to-moderate quality. For the evaluation of ginseng and its ingredients as adjuvants to chemotherapy, the risk ratio (RR) or standardized mean difference (SMD) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of the ORR, DCR, leucopenia, thrombocytopenia, myelosuppression, hepatotoxicity, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, CD4+/CD8+ and one- and two-year survival rates, and QOL were 1.35 (1.21,1.50), 1.20 (1.14,1.28), 0.59 (0.50, 0.70), 0.53 (0.37, 0.76), 0.30 (0.17, 0.53), 0.67 (0.52, 0.87), 0.67 (0.53, 0.86), 0.42 (0.19, 0.96), 1.39 (0.63, 2.16), 1.35 (1.13, 1.60), 3.21 (1.51, 6.81) and 1.31 (1.22, 1.41) with significant differences. Subgroup analysis showed that ginseng enhanced nausea and vomiting and QOL, ginsenosides increased ORR, DCR, QOL, leucopenia, thrombocytopenia, myelosuppression, hepatotoxicity, diarrhea, CD4+/CD8+, and one- and two-year survival rates, while polysaccharides improved ORR, DCR, leucopenia, thrombocytopenia, myelosuppression, hepatotoxicity and nausea and vomiting during chemotherapy. In conclusion, ginseng and its ingredients facilitated the therapeutic effects of chemotherapy on NSCLC patients. Ginseng had beneficial effects on alleviating ADRs and enhancing QOL, ginsenosides demonstrated beneficial effects on enhancing therapeutic effects, reducing ADRs, improving immunity, prolonging survival rates and promoting QOL, while polysaccharides showed beneficial effects on promoting therapeutic effects and reducing ADRs.

Differences in Intestinal Metabolism of Ginseng Between Normal and Immunosuppressed Rats.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Ginseng is usually consumed as a dietary supplement for health care in the normal state or prescribed as a herbal medicine in pathologic conditions. Although metabolic studies of ginseng are commonly performed on healthy organisms, the metabolic characteristics in pathologic organisms remain unexplored. This study aimed to uncover the difference in intestinal metabolism of ginseng between normal and cyclophosphamide-induced immunosuppressed rats and further discuss the potential mechanisms involved. METHODS: Twelve Sprague-Dawley rats (6-8 weeks old) were randomly divided into two groups: the normal group (NG) and immunosuppressed group (ISG). Rats in the NG and ISG groups were intraperitoneally administered normal saline and cyclophosphamide injections (40 mg/kg) on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 10th days; on the 12th day, all rats were intragastrically administered ginseng water extract (900 mg/kg). The difference in intestinal metabolism of ginseng was compared using an ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadruple time-of-flight mass spectrometry-based metabolomics approach, and the diversities of gut microbiota were analyzed by 16S rRNA gene sequencing between the two groups. RESULTS: The intestinal metabolomic characteristics of ginseng were significantly different between the normal and immunosuppressed rats, with the ginsenoside F2 (F2), 20S-ginsenoside Rg3 (20(S)-Rg3), pseudo-ginsenoside Rt5 (Pseudo-Rt5), ginsenoside Rd (Rd), ginsenoside Rh1 (Rh1), 20S-ginsenoside Rg1 (20(S)-Rg1), ginsenoside compound K (CK), ginsenoside Rg2 (Rg2) and 20S-panaxatriol (S-PPT) more abundant in immunosuppressed ones (P < 0.05). Additionally, the composition of gut microbiota was remarkably altered in the two groups, with some specific bacterial communities such as Bacteroides spp., Eubacterium spp. and Lachnospiraceae_UCG-010 spp. increased and Bifidobacterium spp. decreased in immunosuppressed rats compared with normal ones. CONCLUSION: The intestinal metabolism of ginseng in immunosuppressed rats was significantly different from that in normal ones, which might be partly attributed to the changes in the intensity of specific gut bacteria. The outcomes of this study could provide scientific data for rationalization of ginseng use as both a dietary supplement and herbal medicine.

Systematic metabolite profiling of N-acetyldopamine oligomers from Cicadae Periostracum in rats by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

Cicadae Periostracum (CP), the cast-off shell of Cryptotympana atrata, is specified in Chinese Pharmacopoeia for relieving fever and eliminating ulcer. N-acetyldopamine oligomers are the major characteristic bioactive components with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities that may be responsible for the efficacy of CP. However, the exposed components and metabolites of N-acetyldopamine oligomers of CP (NOCP) in vivo are still unknown. In present study, the metabolic profile of total NOCP and N-acetyldopamine dimer B in rats were systematically investigated by ultra-high liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTOF-MS/MS). In biosamples of NOCP group, 34 prototypes and 15 metabolites were identified or tentatively characterized, including 5 metabolites in plasma, 3 prototype and 9 metabolites in urine, 2 metabolites in bile, 34 prototypes and 8 metabolites in feces, respectively. In dimer B group, the prototype and 8 metabolites were identified, including 2 metabolites in plasma, 4 metabolites in urine, 1 metabolite in bile and 5 metabolites in feces, respectively. Oxidation, and hydrogenation were supposed to be the major phase I reactions, while methylation, sulfation, and glucuronidation were the main phase II reactions of NOCP and dimer B. M10 and M13 might undergo enterohepatic circulation in rats. It is concluded that NOCP and dimer B were mainly absorbed in the form of metabolites, and metabolites are probably the major bioactive forms of NOCP and dimer B. The outcomes of this study provided helpful information for extensively elucidating biological and pharmacological mechanisms of NOCP.

Modulating macrophage responses to promote tissue regeneration by changing the formulation of bone extracellular matrix from filler particles to gel bioscaffolds.

Extracellular matrices (ECMs) derived from native tissues/organs have been used as biomaterials for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine in a wide range of preclinical and clinical settings. The success or failure of these applications is largely contingent on the host responses to the matrices in vivo. Despite retaining their native structural and functional proteins, bone ECM-based transplants have been reported to evoke adverse immune responses in many cases; thus, optimizing the immunomodulatory properties of bone ECMs is critical for ensuring downstream regenerative outcomes. Using a simple digestion-neutralization protocol, we transformed the commonly used bone-derived filler particles into gel bioscaffolds. Instead of inducing macrophages toward proinflammatory (M1) polarization, as reported in the literature and confirmed in the present study for ECM particles, the ECM gels were found to be more likely to polarize macrophages toward regulatory/anti-inflammatory (M2) phenotypes, leading to enhanced tissue regeneration in a rat periodontal defect model. The present work demonstrates a simple, practical and economical strategy to modify the immunomodulatory properties of bone ECMs before their in vivo transplantation and hence has important implications that may facilitate the use of ECM-based bioscaffolds derived from diverse sources of tissues for regenerative purposes.