Mixture of Corni Fructus and Schisandrae Fructus improves testosterone-induced benign prostatic hyperplasia through regulating 5α-reductase 2 and androgen receptor.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) characterized by an enlarged prostate gland is common in elderly men. Corni Fructus (CF) and Schisandrae Fructus (SF) are known to have various pharmacological effects, including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. In this study, we evaluated the inhibitory efficacy of CF, SF, and their mixture (MIX) on the development of BPH using an in vivo model of testosterone-induced BPH. MATERIALS/METHODS: Six-week-old male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into seven groups. To induce BPH, testosterone propionate (TP) was injected to rats except for those in the control group. Finasteride, saw palmetto (SP), CF, SF, and MIX were orally administered along with TP injection. At the end of treatment, histological changes in the prostate and the level of various biomarkers related to BPH were evaluated. RESULTS: Our results showed that BPH induced by TP led to prostate weight and histological changes. Treatment with MIX effectively improved TP-induced BPH by reducing prostate index, lumen area, epithelial thickness, and expression of BPH biomarkers such as 5α-reductase type 2, prostate-specific antigen, androgen receptor, and proliferating cell nuclear antigen compared to treatment with CF or SF alone. Moreover, MIX further reduced levels of elevated serum testosterone, dihydrotestosterone, and prostate-specific antigen in BPH compared to the SP, a positive control. BPH was also improved more by MIX than by CF or SF alone. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the results, MIX is a potential natural therapeutic candidate for BPH by regulating 5α-reductase and AR signaling pathway.

Efficient method for iodine radioisotope labeling of cyclooctyne-containing molecules using strain-promoted copper-free click reaction.

Herein we report an efficient method for iodine radioisotope labeling of cyclooctyne-containing molecules using copper-free click reaction. For this study, radioiodination using the tin precursor 2 was carried out at room temperature to give (125)I-labeled azide ([(125)I]1) with high radiochemical yield (85%) and excellent radiochemical purity. Dibenzocyclooctyne (DBCO) containing cRGD peptide and gold nanoparticle were labeled with [(125)I]1 at 37°C for 30min to give triazoles with good radiochemical yields (67-95%). We next carried out tissue biodistribution study of [(125)I]1 in normal ICR mice to investigate the level of organ accumulation which needs to be considered for pre-targeted in vivo imaging. Large amount of [(125)I]1 distributed rapidly in liver and kidney from bloodstream and underwent rapid renal and hepatobiliary clearance. Moreover [(125)I]1 was found to be highly stable (>92%) in mouse serum for 24h. Therefore [(125)I]1 could be used as a potentially useful radiotracer for pre-targeted imaging. Those results clearly indicated that the present radiolabeling method using copper free click reaction would be quite useful for both in vitro and in vivo labeling of DBCO group containing molecules with iodine radioisotopes.