Two New Isospirostanol-Type Saponins from the Bulbs of Lilium Brownii and Their Anti-Hepatocarcinogenic Activity.

Bulbs of Lilium brownii, commonly known as "Bai-he" in China, serve both edible and medicinal purposes in clinical practice. In this study, two new isospirostanol-type saponins were isolated from L. brownii, and their structures were identified by spectroscopic method, and absolute configurations were elucidated by comprehensive analysis of spectral data obtained from combined acid hydrolysis. Two compounds were finally identified as 3-O-[α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1→2)-ß-D-glucopyranoside]-(22R,25R)-5α-spirosolane-3ß-ol (1) and 3-O-{α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1→2)-[ß-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→4)]-ß-D-glucopyranoside}-(22R,25R)-5α-spirosolane-3ß-ol (2), respectively. Further, we found that compound 2 significantly suppressed the proliferation of SMMC-7721 and HepG2 cells with IC50 values of 26.3±1.08 µM and 30.9±1.59 µM, whereas compound 1 didn't inhibit both of the two hepatocellular carcinoma. Subsequently, compound 2 effectively decreased the levels of interleukin-1ß and tumor necrosis factor-α and the expression of Bcl-2, and increased the expression of Bax and Caspase-3 proteins. Which indicated that the anti-hepatocellular carcinoma effect of compound 2 involves reducing the level of inflammation and inducing apoptosis.

Phellodendronoside A Exerts Anticancer Effects Depending on Inducing Apoptosis Through ROS/Nrf2/Notch Pathway and Modulating Metabolite Profiles in Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Purpose: To reveal the potential mechanism of PDA on hepatocellular carcinoma SMMC-7721 cells in vitro. Methods: The cytotoxic activity, colony formation, cell cycle distribution, apoptosis and their associated protein analysis, intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) and Ca2+ levels, proteins in Nrf2 and Ntoch pathways and metabolite profiles of PDA against hepatocellular carcinoma were investigated. Results: PDA with cytotoxic activity inhibited cell proliferation and migration, increased intracellular ROS, Ca2+ levels and MCUR1 protein expression in a dose-dependent manner, caused cell cycle arrest in the S phase and induced apoptosis via adjusting the levels of Bcl-2, Bax, and Caspase 3 proteins, and inhibited the activation of Notch1, Jagged, Hes1, Nrf2 and HO-1 proteins. Metabonomics data showed that PDA significantly regulated 144 metabolite levels tend to be normal level, especially carnitine derivatives, bile acid metabolites associated with hepatocellular carcinoma, and mainly enriched in ABC transporter, arginine and proline metabolism, primary bile acid biosynthesis, Notch signaling pathway, etc, and proved that PDA markedly adjusted Notch signaling pathway. Conclusion: PDA exhibited the proliferation inhibition of SMMC-7721 cells by inhibiting ROS/Nrf2/Notch signaling pathway and significantly affected the metabolic profile, suggesting PDA could be a potential therapeutic agent for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.

Chemical constituents from Abies chensiensis and their antifungal activity.

One new (1) and six known cycloartane triterpenoids (2-7), along with seven reported abietane diterpenoids (8-14), were isolated from the bark of the branches of Abies chensiensis, of which compounds 2-14 were also received for the first time from the genus of Abies. Structural elucidation of all the compounds was carried out by extensive spectroscopic analyses. Additionally, the antifungal activity of isolated compounds 2-13 was evaluated by inhibiting the growth of fungal mycelium. Among them, compounds 8 and 10 demonstrated obvious inhibitory activity against plant pathogens Fusarium avenaceum and Bipolaris sorokiniana.

Cytotoxic ent-Kaurane Diterpenoids from Rabdosia Rubescens.

One new (1) and 11 reported ent-kaurane diterpenoids (2-12) were received from the ethanol extract of the air-dried aerial parts of Rabdosia rubescens collected in Jiyuan. Their structures were determined in accordance with high resolution electrospray ionization mass spectroscopy, one dimensional (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) NMR spectroscopy and the data published in the literature. The cytotoxic activity of these isolated compounds was assessed against SMMC-7721, A-549, H-1299 and SW-480 cancer cell lines. Compounds 2-6 revealed significant cytotoxic activity on lung cancer cell lines A549 with IC50 values from 6.2 to 28.1 µM. Analysis of structure-activity relationship of these tested compounds indicated the carbonyl at C-15 and hydroxy at C-1 together could be crucial groups for inhibiting lung cancer cell lines A549 proliferation.

Extract of Corallodiscus flabellata attenuates renal fibrosis in SAMP8 mice via the Wnt/ß-catenin/RAS signaling pathway.

BACKGROUND: Fibrosis is one of the most common pathological features of the aging process of the kidney, and fibrosis in aging kidneys also aggravates the process of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Corallodiscus flabellata B. L. Burtt (C. flabellata, CF) is a commonly used botanical drug in Chinese folklore. However, few studies have reported its pharmacological effects. This study aimed to explore the effect of CF ethanol extract on renal fibrosis in SAMP8 mice and identify potentially active compounds. METHODS: Senescence-accelerated mouse-prone 8 (SAMP8) were used as animal models, and different doses of CF were given by gavage for one month. To observe the degree of renal aging in mice using ß-galactosidase staining. Masson staining and the expression levels of Col-I, α-SMA, and FN were used to evaluate the renal fibrosis in mice. The protein expression levels of Nrf2 pathway and Wnt/ß-catenin/RAS pathway in the kidney were measured. And ß-galactosidase (ß-gal) induced NRK-52E cells as an in vitro model to screen the active components of CF. RESULTS: The CF ethanol extract significantly inhibited the activity of renal ß-galactosidase and the expression levels of Col-I, α-SMA, and FN in SAMP8 mice, and improved Masson staining in SAMP8 mice. CF remarkably reduced urinary protein, creatinine, urea nitrogen and serum levels of TNF-α and IL-1ß in SAMP8 mice, and significantly increased the levels of SOD and GSH-Px. Moreover, CF activated the Nrf2 pathway and blocked the Wnt/ß-catenin/RAS pathway in the kidneys of mice. Besides, 3,4-dihydroxyphenylethanol (SDC-0-14, 16) and (3,4-dihydroxyphenylethanol-8-O-[4-O-trans-caffeoyl-ß-D-apiofuranosyl-(1→3)-ß-D-glucopyranosyl (1→6)]-ß-D-glucopyranoside (SDC-1-8) were isolated from CF, which reduced the senescence of NRK-52E cells, and maybe the active ingredients of CF playing the anti-aging role. CONCLUSIONS: Our experiments illuminated that CF ethanol extract may ameliorate renal fibrosis in SAMP8 mice via the Wnt/ß-catenin/RAS pathway. And SDC-0-14,16 and SDC-1-8 may be the material basis for CF to exert anti-renal senescence-related effects.

A comprehensive study on the relieving effect of Lilium brownii on the intestinal flora and metabolic disorder in p-chlorphenylalanine induced insomnia rats.

CONTEXT: The bulb of Lilium brownii F. E. Brown (Liliaceae) (LB) is a common Chinese medicine to relieve insomnia. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the molecular mechanism of LB relieving insomnia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Insomnia model was induced by intraperitoneally injection p-chlorophenylalanine (PCPA) in Wistar rats. Rats were divided into three groups: Control, PCPA (400 mg/kg, i.p. 2 days), LB (598.64 mg/kg, oral 7 days). The levels of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), norepinephrine (NE), melatonin (MT), and the expression of GABAA, 5-HT1A and MT receptors, as well as pathological changes in hypothalamus, were evaluated. 16S rDNA sequencing and UPLC-MS/MS were used to reveal the change of the intestinal flora and metabolic profile. RESULTS: The adverse changes in the abundance and diversity of intestinal flora and faecal metabolic phenotype altered by PCPA in rats were reversed after LB treatment, accompanied by the up-regulated levels of 5-HT as 8.14 ng/mL, MT as 16.16 pg/mL, 5-HT1A R and GABAA R, down-regulated level of NE as 0.47 ng/mL, and the improvement of pathological phenomena of cells in the hypothalamus. And the arachidonic acid metabolism and tryptophan metabolism pathway most significantly altered by PCPA were markedly regulated by LB. Besides, it was also found that LB reduced the levels of kynurenic acid related to psychiatric disorders and trimethylamine-N-oxide associated with cardiovascular disease. CONCLUSION: The mechanism of LB relieving insomnia involves regulating flora and metabolites to resemble the control group. As a medicinal and edible herb, LB could be considered for development as a health-care food to relieve increasing insomniacs in the future.

Comprehensive 16S rDNA Sequencing and LC-MS/MS-Based Metabolomics to Investigate Intestinal Flora and Metabolic Profiles of the Serum, Hypothalamus and Hippocampus in p­Chlorophenylalanine-Induced Insomnia Rats Treated with Lilium brownie.

Gut microbiota homeostasis in the organism and insomnia have been reported to influence each other. In the study, a method of 16S rRNA gene sequencing combined with ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-mass/mass spectrometry was adopted to evaluate the effects of Lilium brownie (LB) on intestinal flora and metabolic profiles of serum, hypothalamus and hippocampus in insomnia rat induced by p­chlorophenylalanine (PCPA). It was observed that the imbalance in the diversity and abundance of gut microbiota induced by PCPA was restored after LB intervention. Among these, the Porphyromonadaceae, Lactobacillus and Escherichia were significantly adjusted at the genus level by PCPA and LB, respectively. It was also found that the most of metabolic phenotypes in serum, hypothalamus and hippocampus perturbed by PCPA were regulated towards normal after LB intervention, especially 5-hydroxy-L-tryptophan of the hypothalamus involving in 5-HT metabolism. Moreover, the arachidonic acid metabolism in serum, hypothalamus and hippocampus, and the serotonergic synapse in hypothalamus and hippocampus were the most fundamentally and significantly affected pathways after LB intervention. The results of correlation analysis showed that several floras including Pseudoruegeria have an outstanding contribution to the change of differential metabolites. In brief, the results confirm that gut microbiota is significantly returned to normal and may interact with the corresponding metabolites to relieve insomnia under LB intervention.

Isolation and characterization of phellodendronoside A, a new isoquinoline alkaloid glycoside with anti-inflammatory activity from Phellodendron chinense Schneid.

Bark of Phellodendron chinense Schneid. (Rutaceae), called "Huang Bai" in China, is one of the 50 most used Chinese medicines in clinical practice. In this paper, a new isoquinoline alkaloid glycoside was isolated from P. chinense, and its structure was elucidated using spectroscopic method. The compound was eventually identified as (1S, 3"S)-1, 2, 3, 4-tetrahydro-7-hydroxy-1-[(4-hydroxybenzyl) methyl]-2-methyl-8-O-isoquinolinyl-[3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl]-ß-D-glucopyranoside and named as Phellodendronoside A (PDA). The results of molecular docking showed that PDA could stably bind to an extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), stress-activated protein kinase (JNK) and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38MAPK) proteins that are closely related to inflammation. Further, the anti-inflammatory activity of PDA was evaluated using the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induced RAW264.7 macrophage model. We observed that PDA can effectively reduce the levels of nitric oxide (NO), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and decrease the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2). Moreover, we found that PDA inhibits the activation of ERK, JNK and p38MAPK proteins in the MAPK signaling pathway. Collectively, the present study demonstrates that PDA has excellent anti-inflammatory effect in vitro by inhibiting the overproduction of pro-inflammatory mediators, and its mechanism of action involves suppressing the activation of MAPK pathways, suggesting that PDA may be a potential agent for the treatment of inflammatory illness.

A UPLC-Q-TOF/MS-Based Metabolomics Study on the Effect of Corallodiscus flabellatus (Craib) B. L. Burtt Extract on Alzheimer's Disease.

A UPLC-Q-TOF/MS-based metabolomics study was carried out to explore the intervening mechanism of Corallodiscus flabellatus (Craib) B. L. Burtt (CF) extract on Alzheimer's disease (AD). The AD model group consisted of senescence-accelerated mouse prone 8 (SAMP8) mice, and the control group consisted of senescence-accelerated mouse resistant 1 (SAMR1) mice. UPLC-Q-TOF/MS detection, multivariate statistical analysis, and pathway enrichment were jointly performed to research the change in metabolite profiling in the urine of AD mice. The result suggested that the metabolite profiling of SAMP8 mice significantly changed at the sixth month compared with SAMR1 mice of the same age, and the principal component analysis (PCA) score scatter plots of the CF group closely resembled those of the control and positive drug (huperzine A, HA) group. A total of 28 metabolites were considered potential biomarkers associated with the metabolism of beta-alanine, glycine, serine, threonine, cysteine, methionine, arginine, proline, and purines in AD mice. Furthermore, the CF group was clustered with the control and positive group and was clearly separated from the model group in the heat map. In conclusion, significant anti-AD effects were firstly observed in mice after treatment with the CF extract, and the urinary metabolomics approach assisted with dissecting the underlying mechanism.

A Review on Classification and Biological Activities of Alkaloids from the Genus Zanthoxylum Species.

Many plants in the genus Zanthoxylum, belonging to the Rutaceae family, are used as folk medicines for the treatment of various diseases, which have gained much attention for their phytochemical and pharmacological activity investigations. Alkaloids are the largest secondary metabolites with structurally diverse types found in this genus and they demonstrate a wide range of biological activities. The aim of this review is to provide a summary on the isolation, classification, and biological properties of alkaloids from Zanthoxylum species, which also will bring more attention to other researchers for further biological study on alkaloids for the new drug development.

Lilium davidii extract alleviates p­chlorophenylalanine­induced insomnia in rats through modification of the hypothalamic-related neurotransmitters, melatonin and homeostasis of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis.

CONTEXT: Lilium davidii var. unicolour Cotton (Lilium genus, Liliaceae) is an edible plant and a herb used in China to alleviate insomnia. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the alleviating insomnia mechanism of L. davidii (LD). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Wistar rats were intraperitoneally injected with p-chlorophenylalanine (PCPA) to establish an insomnia model. Rats were divided into six groups (n = 8): Control, PCPA, Estazolam (0.5 mg/kg), LD extract in low, medium and high doses (185.22, 370.44, 740.88 mg/kg). Serum hormone levels of the HPA axis, levels of 5-HT, NE and MT, and the expression of GABAA and 5-HT1A receptors in hypothalamus were determined. Moreover, behavioural and pathological changes in the hypothalamus were evaluated. RESULTS: After LD administration, body weight and brain coefficient increased by 2.74% and 8.22%, respectively, and the adrenal coefficient decreased by 25%, compared with PCPA group. Elevation of the serum hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis hormone CRH (11.24 ± 3.16 ng/mL), ACTH (565.87 ± 103.44 pg/mL) and CORT (44.28 ± 8.73 ng/mL) in the PCPA group was reversed after LD treatment. Furthermore, abnormal excitatory behaviour [5 min movement distance (2096.34 ± 259.51 cm), central exercise time (5.28 ± 1.08 s)] of insomnia rats in the PCPA group was also relieved. LD extract increased 5-HT and MT levels, reduced NE level in the hypothalamus, and upregulated the expression of GABAA R and 5-HT1A. Moreover, LD extract may improve the pathology of neurons in the hypothalamus. CONCLUSIONS: LD can be considered to develop health-care food or novel drugs to cope with the increasing number of insomniacs.

Integrated metabolomics and 16S rRNA sequencing to investigate the regulation of Chinese yam on antibiotic-induced intestinal dysbiosis in rats.

Objective: Antibiotics have saved hundreds of millions of patient's lives, but there are also many side effects. This paper mainly studies the regulation of Chinese yam on antibiotic-induced gut dysbiosis in rats. Methods: Male Wistar rats were divided into three groups, normal control group, antibiotic group, and Chinese yam group. In the antibiotic group and the yam group, a rat model of intestinal dysfunction was established by intragastric administration of imipenem/cilastatin sodium (antibiotic) for 21 days. The yam group was also given yam decoction for intervention. The fecal samples of each group of rats were analyzed using an ultra-performance liquid chromatography quadrupole/time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF/MS) method to find potential biomarkers. The DNA in the feces was extracted, and analyzed using 16S rDNA method to find the differential flora. Spearman correlation analysis was performed on differential flora and differential metabolites to determine the main metabolic pathways of the host after intestinal flora dysregulation. Results: The administration of antibiotics can lead to disorders of intestinal flora, decreased microbial diversity, and changes in host metabolic phenotype. Chinese yam can significantly improve the intestinal flora, making the host's metabolic phenotype tend toward normal. Conclusion: Long-term use of Imipenem/cilastatin sodium can cause disturbance of intestinal flora in normal rats. Chinese yam may regulate intestinal flora disorder and have potential prebiotic effects.