Ethanol extract of Herpetospermum caudigerum Wall ameliorates psoriasis-like skin inflammation and promotes degradation of keratinocyte-derived ICAM-1 and CXCL9 / 中西医结合学报

OBJECTIVE@#To explore whether the ethanol extract of Herpetospermum caudigerum Wall (EHC), a Xizang medicinal plant traditionally used for treating liver diseases, can improve imiquimod-induced psoriasis-like skin inflammation.@*METHODS@#Immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence staining were used to determine the effects of topical EHC use in vivo on the skin pathology of imiquimod-induced psoriasis in mice. The protein levels of interferon-γ (IFN-γ), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and interleukin-17A (IL-17A) in mouse skin samples were examined using immunohistochemical staining. In vitro, IFN-γ-induced HaCaT cells with or without EHC treatment were used to evaluate the expression of keratinocyte-derived intercellular cell adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) and chemokine CXC ligand 9 (CXCL9) using Western blotting and reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction. The protein synthesis inhibitor cycloheximide and proteasome inhibitor MG132 were utilized to validate the EHC-mediated mechanism underlying degradation of ICAM-1 and CXCL9.@*RESULTS@#EHC improved inflammation in the imiquimod-induced psoriasis mouse model and reduced the levels of IFN-γ, TNF-α, and IL-17A in psoriatic lesions. Treatment with EHC also suppressed ICAM-1 and CXCL9 in epidermal keratinocytes. Further mechanistic studies revealed that EHC suppressed keratinocyte-derived ICAM-1 and CXCL9 by promoting ubiquitin-proteasome-mediated protein degradation rather than transcriptional repression. Seven primary compounds including ehletianol C, dehydrodiconiferyl alcohol, herpetrione, herpetin, herpetotriol, herpetetrone and herpetetrol were identified from the EHC using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time of flight-mass spectrometry.@*CONCLUSION@#Topical application of EHC ameliorates psoriasis-like skin symptoms and improves the inflammation at the lesion sites. Please cite this article as: Zhong Y, Zhang BW, Li JT, Zeng X, Pei JX, Zhang YM, Yang YX, Li FL, Deng Y, Zhao Q. Ethanol extract of Herpetospermum caudigerum Wall ameliorates psoriasis-like skin inflammation and promotes degradation of keratinocyte-derived ICAM-1 and CXCL9. J Integr Med. 2023; 21(6): 584-592.

Analysis of drug resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa in ICU and its characteristic of TCM syndrome / 中华中医药杂志

Objective: To assess the relationship between the characteristic of drug resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa and the syndrome of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)in ICU.Methods: The 73 strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa were isolated from sputum specimenpatients of in-patients in our ICU from March 2005 to February 2006.The data of the drug sensitivity test in vitro was analysised.The relation between the syndrome of TCM and drug resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa was probed.Results: The 73 strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa were drug resistant to majority kinds of anti-infective except Piperacillin-Tazobactam,Piperacillin,Cefoperazone-Sulbactam,and Amikacin.The mains syndromes of TCM of all patients infected Pseudomonas aeruginosa were deficiency-excess complex(虚实夹杂证) and excess pattern(实证)(97.26%).The mains of deficiency-excess complex(虚实夹杂证) were Qi vacuity and phlegm obstruction(气虚痰阻证)and Yin vacuity internal heat(阴虚热郁证).The mains of excess pattern(实证) were phlegm-heat(痰热郁阻证)and phlegm-stasis(痰瘀互阻证).Conclusions: Combined ?-lactam antibiotics and aminoglycoside antibiotics is the first selection to treat the multidrugresistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa.Indentifing patterns and determining treatment in TCM could be tried in the treatment of patients infected Pseudomonas aeruginosa.