Sanghuangporus sanghuang extract extended the lifespan and healthspan of Caenorhabditis elegans via DAF-16/SIR-2.1.

Sanghuangporus Sanghuang is a fungus species. As a traditional Chinese medicine, it is known for antitumor, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. However, the antiaging effect of S. Sanghuang has not been deeply studied. In this study, the effects of S. Sanghuang extract (SSE) supernatants on the changes of nematode indicators were investigated. The results showed that different concentrations of SSE prolonged the lifespans of nematodes and substantially increased these by 26.41%. In addition, accumulations of lipofuscin were also visibly reduced. The treatment using SSE also played a role in increasing stress resistance, decreasing ROS accumulations and obesity, and enhancing the physique. RT-PCR analysis showed that the SSE treatment upregulated the transcription of daf-16, sir-2.1, daf-2, sod-3 and hsp-16.2, increased the expression of these genes in the insulin/IGF-1 signalling pathway and prolonged the lifespans of nematodes. This study reveals the new role of S. Sanghuang in promoting longevity and inhibiting stress and provides a theoretical basis for the application of S. Sanghuang in anti-ageing treatments.

Zymolytic grain extract facilitates the conversion of liver tumor cells to hepatocyte-like cells through hepatocyte nuclear factors.

At present, malignant tumors are an urgent global threat to human health. Conversion of cancer cells to normal-like or normal cells will open new therapeutic avenues for eradicating cancer. It has been reported that compounds extracted from grains display biological activities, such as antioxidant, antiviral and antitumor activities. In this study, we identified clear changes in a liver tumor cell line (HepG2) after stimulation with zymolytic grain extract (ZGE) supernatants. The expression levels of hepatocyte nuclear factor 1A (HNF1A), hepatocyte nuclear factor 4A (HNF4A) and forkhead box protein A3 (FOXA3) were significantly increased. Eukaryotic transcriptome analyses revealed that trends in the transcriptional changes for genes were similar in HepG2 cells stimulated with ZGE (zHeps) and the normal hepatocyte cell line L02. Changes in the expression levels of genes involved in drug transport, metabolism and the malignant characteristics of cancer cells in nude mice further indicated that ZGE regulated the expression of HNF1A, HNF4A and FOXA3, which altered the expression of a series of hepatocyte-specific genes. It was also confirmed that zHeps acquired some of the characteristics of hepatocyte-like cells. Our results not only provide new ideas for the treatment of liver tumors but also lay a solid foundation for the application of combination therapy.

Optimization of culture medium for Sanghuangporus vaninii and a study on its therapeutic effects on gout.

The increasing incidence of gout poses a very challenging management problem. However, the currently available drugs often have various toxic side effects. As a traditional edible and medicinal macrofungus, Sanghuangporus vaninii presents high medical research value. Therefore, to improve fermentation efficiency and identify novel anti-gout drugs, we optimized the culture medium of S. vaninii with lignin and further investigated its anti-gout effects. The results indicated that 0.06 g/L of lignin was most favorable for S. vaninii growth. In the hyperuricemia cell model, we found that S. vaninii could significantly induce the downregulation of xanthine oxidoreductase and the upregulation of hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase. Furthermore, following oral administration of the extracts, the serum uric acid levels of mice with hyperuricemia were effectively reduced. In a gouty arthritis rat model, S. vaninii also achieved strong suppression of synovial swelling, indicating its anti-inflammatory activity. In addition, the antioxidant assays suggested that S. vaninii shows a strong free radical scavenging capacity and can effectively alleviate cellular oxidative stress. This activity further enhances its anti-inflammatory activity and reduces the incidence of comorbidities. In summary, our results provide the basis for the utilization of S. vaninii to develop anti-gout drugs.