[Advances on cyclopeptides of plants].

Cyclopeptides isolated from a variety of plants are a class of cyclic nitrogen-containing compounds, and they are primarily formed by peptide bonds between amino acids, generally containing 2 to 37 L-configuration encoded or non-encoded amino acid residues. Cyclopeptides have significant values in scientific research as natural small-molecule metabolites produced by plants. The available studies have revealed that such natural products are ubiquitous in plants, which mainly include cyclic dipeptides, cyclic tetrapeptides, cyclic pentapeptides, cyclic hexapeptides, cyclic heptapeptides, cyclic octapeptides, cyclic nonapeptides, and cyclic decapeptides. Among them, cyclic dipeptides, cyclic hexapeptides, and cyclic octapeptides are the major active compounds. It has been reported that plant cyclopeptides have novel and unique chemical structures. They possess diverse pharmacological activities, such as antineoplastic, antimicrobial, antimalarial, anti-inflammatory, and antiviral activities. This paper summarizes the research achievements of plant cyclopeptides since 2006, aiming to provide theoretical reference for the research and application of plant cyclopeptides in medicine, health, and agriculture fields.

Inhibition of the INa/K and the activation of peak INa contribute to the arrhythmogenic effects of aconitine and mesaconitine in guinea pigs.

Aconitine (ACO), a main active ingredient of Aconitum, is well-known for its cardiotoxicity. However, the mechanisms of toxic action of ACO remain unclear. In the current study, we investigated the cardiac effects of ACO and mesaconitine (MACO), a structurally related analog of ACO identified in Aconitum with undocumented cardiotoxicity in guinea pigs. We showed that intravenous administration of ACO or MACO (25 µg/kg) to guinea pigs caused various types of arrhythmias in electrocardiogram (ECG) recording, including ventricular premature beats (VPB), atrioventricular blockade (AVB), ventricular tachycardia (VT), and ventricular fibrillation (VF). MACO displayed more potent arrhythmogenic effect than ACO. We conducted whole-cell patch-clamp recording in isolated guinea pig ventricular myocytes, and observed that treatment with ACO (0.3, 3 µM) or MACO (0.1, 0.3 µM) depolarized the resting membrane potential (RMP) and reduced the action potential amplitude (APA) and durations (APDs) in a concentration-dependent manner. The ACO- and MACO-induced AP remodeling was largely abolished by an INa blocker tetrodotoxin (2 µM) and partly abolished by a specific Na+/K+ pump (NKP) blocker ouabain (0.1 µM). Furthermore, we observed that treatment with ACO or MACO attenuated NKP current (INa/K) and increased peak INa by accelerating the sodium channel activation with the EC50 of 8.36 ± 1.89 and 1.33 ± 0.16 µM, respectively. Incubation of ventricular myocytes with ACO or MACO concentration-dependently increased intracellular Na+ and Ca2+ concentrations. In conclusion, the current study demonstrates strong arrhythmogenic effects of ACO and MACO resulted from increasing the peak INa via accelerating sodium channel activation and inhibiting the INa/K. These results may help to improve our understanding of cardiotoxic mechanisms of ACO and MACO, and identify potential novel therapeutic targets for Aconitum poisoning.

Exogenous melatonin for sleep disorders in neurodegenerative diseases: a meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials.

The purpose of this work is to investigate the efficacy of exogenous melatonin in the treatment of sleep disorders in patients with neurodegenerative disease. We searched Pubmed, the Cochrane Library, and ClinicalTrials.gov, from inception to July 2015. We included randomized clinical trials (RCTs) that compared melatonin with placebo and that had the primary aim of improving sleep in people with neurodegenerative diseases, particularly Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD). We pooled data with the weighted mean difference in sleep outcomes. To assess heterogeneity in results of individual studies, we used Cochran's Q statistic and the I (2) statistic. 9 RCTs were included in this research. We found that the treatment with exogenous melatonin has positive effects on sleep quality as assessed by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) in PD patients (MD: 4.20, 95 % CI: 0.92-7.48; P = 0.01), and by changes in PSQI component 4 in AD patients (MD: 0.67, 95 % CI: 0.04-1.30; P = 0.04), but not on objective sleep outcomes in both AD and PD patients. Treatment with melatonin effectively improved the clinical and neurophysiological aspects of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder (RBD), especially elderly individuals with underlying neurodegenerative disorders. This meta-analysis provided some evidence that melatonin improves sleep quality in patients with AD and PD, and melatonin can be considered as a possible sole or add-on therapy in neurodegenerative disorders patients with RBD.

Binding of PLCdelta1PH-GFP to PtdIns(4,5)P2 prevents inhibition of phospholipase C-mediated hydrolysis of PtdIns(4,5)P2 by neomycin.

AIM: To investigate the effects of the pleckstrin homology (PH) domain of phospholipase C(delta1) (PLC(delta1)PH) on inhibition of phospholipase C (PLC)-mediated hydrolysis of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate [PtdIns(4,5)P2] by neomycin. METHODS: A fusion construct of green fluorescent protein (GFP) and PLC (delta1)PH (PLC(delta1)PH-GFP), which is known to bind PtdIns(4,5)P2 specifically, together with laser-scanning confocal microscopy, was used to trace PtdIns(4,5)P2 translocation. RESULTS: Stimulation of the type 1 muscarinic receptor and the bradykinin 2 receptor induced a reversible PLC(delta1)PH-GFP translocation from the membrane to the cytosol in COS-7 cells. PLC inhibitor U73122 blocked the translocation. Wortmannin, a known PtdIns kinase inhibitor, did not affect the translocation induced by ACh, but blocked recovery after translocation, indicating that PtdIns(4,5)P2 hydrolysis occurs through receptor-mediated PLC activation. Neomycin, a commonly used phospholipase C blocker, failed to block the receptor-induced PLCd1PH-GFP translocation, indicating that neomycin is unable to block PLC-mediated PtdIns(4,5)P2 hydrolysis. However, in the absence of PLCd1PH-GFP expression, neomycin abolished the receptor-induced hydrolysis of PtdIns(4,5)P2 by PLC. CONCLUSION: Although PLCd1PH and neomycin bind to PtdIns(4,5)P2 in a similar way, they have distinct effects on receptor-mediated activation of PLC and PtdIns(4,5)P2 hydrolysis.

Mechanism of anti-apoptotic action of dipfluzine on neuronal damage of the rat hippocampal CA1 region subjected to transient forebrain ischemia.

AIM: To explore the relations between anti-apoptotic role of dipfluzine (DIP) and the death signaling transduction pathway initiated by CD95 molecules, and the transcription factor involved in the transcription regulation of CD95 molecules in the hippocampal CA1 region after transient forebrain ischemia. METHODS: The rat forebrain transient ischemia model was established through 15 min ischemia followed by 3 days reperfusion by using the four-vessel method. The rats were divided randomly into five groups: sham control group, ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) group, DIP treated groups (20, 40 and 80 mg x kg(-1) body weight, ig, separately). Western blotting and RT-PCR were performed to detect the expression changes of Fas, FasL, caspase 10 p20, caspase 8, I-kappaB-alpha, and p-I-kappaB-alpha molecules in protein and mRNA levels, separately, and immunohistochemistry for molecular localization of Fas and FasL in rat hippocampus. RESULTS: The expression of Fas, FasL, and caspase 10 p20 in protein and mRNA levels increased after I/R, which was inhibited significantly after treatment with 20 and 40 mg x kg(-1) of DIP (P < 0.01). In 80 mg x kg(-1) of DIP group, the expression of Fas and FasL protein was not significantly different from that of I/R group (P > 0.05). The expression of caspase 8 and I-kappaB-alpha showed no significant differences in all groups (P > 0.05), and no gene expression was observed for p-I-kappaB-alpha protein in the study. DIP significantly affected molecular distribution of Fas and FasL protein in CA1 subregion of hippocampus. CONCLUSION: DIP inhibits the death signaling transduction pathway initiated by CD95 molecules in rat hippocampal CA1 subregion, and NF-kappaB transcription factor may not be involved in the transcription regulation of CD95 molecules after transient forebrain ischemia.