Exploring the mechanism of action of Shuangyang houbitong granules in the treatment of acute pharyngitis based on network pharmacology and molecular docking.

BACKGROUND: Acute pharyngitis (AP) refers to the acute inflammation of the pharynx, characterized by swelling and pain in the throat. Shuangyang houbitong granules (SHG), a traditional Chinese medicine compound, have been found to be effective in providing relief from symptoms associated with AP. METHODS: The chemical components of SHG were screened using Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology database, HERB database, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure. The targets of the granules were predicted using SwissTargetPrediction database. A network was constructed based on the targets of AP obtained from Genecards database, and protein-protein interaction analysis was performed on the intersection targets using STRING database. Key targets were screened for Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes enrichment analysis, and the binding activity of components and targets was predicted using AutoDockTools-1.5.7. RESULTS: A total of 65 components of SHG that met the screening criteria were retrieved, resulting in 867 corresponding targets. Additionally, 1086 AP target genes were retrieved, and 272 gene targets were obtained from the intersection as potential targets for SHG in the treatment of AP. Molecular docking results showed that the core components genkwanin, acacetin, apigenin, quercetin can stably bind to the core targets glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase, interleukin 6, tumor necrosis factor, serine/threonine protein kinase, tumor protein 53, and epidermal growth factor receptor. CONCLUSION: The research results preliminarily predict and verify the mechanism of action of SHG in the treatment of AP, providing insights for further in-depth research.

Systematic review and meta-analysis on the efficacy and safety of Injectable Lentinan combined with chemotherapy in the treatment of gastric cancer.

BACKGROUND: This study employed a meta-analysis to evaluate the efficacy and safety of adjunctive treatment with injectable Lentinan (LNT) in combination with chemotherapy for gastric cancer (GC). METHODS: Computer-based searches of 6 databases were performed to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) relevant to the treatment of GC with LNT through mid-March 2023. Two independent researchers performed risk of bias assessment and trial sequential analysis(TSA), extracted the data and used Revman 5.3 software for data analysis. The certainty of evidence was graded based on the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation) approach. RESULTS: A total of 31 RCTs with 2729 patients were included in the analysis. The results revealed that adjunctive therapy with LNT was associated with improved treatment efficacy (RR = 1.48, 95%CI: 1.36 ∼ 1.61, p < 0.00001), improvement in clusters of differentiation (CD3+, CD4+, and CD4+/CD8+), natural killer (NK) cells, and quality of life assessment (RR = 1.32, 95%CI: 1.20 ∼ 1.45, p < 0.00001) compared to using chemotherapy alone. In addition, there was a reduction in CD8+ levels, incidence of white blood cell decline, gastrointestinal reactions, and platelet decline. TSA results indicated that there was sufficient evidence to draw firm conclusions about these outcomes, and the GRADE scores showed 'high' or 'moderate' quality of evidence for these outcomes. CONCLUSION: The efficacy of treatment of GC with LNT in combination with chemotherapy was found to be better than chemotherapy alone. And no serious adverse effects were observed. However, further RCTs are needed to further validate the results of this study.

Lipidomics Revealed Alteration of the Sphingolipid Metabolism in the Liver of Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis Mice Treated with Scoparone.

Perturbation in sphingolipid metabolism has been regarded as a risk factor for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) development, predisposing to inflammation, insulin resistance, and weight gain. Scoparone can regulate the level of ceramide in primary hepatocytes and effectively ameliorate hepatic inflammation, apoptosis, steatosis, and fibrogenesis in a mice model of NASH. Nevertheless, the potential effects of scoparone in sphingolipid metabolism, which is dysregulated in NASH, have not been explored so far. To uncover the impact of scoparone on sphingolipid metabolism in NASH and potential therapeutic targets for treating NASH, the liver tissue samples were collected and lipidomics analysis based on UPLC-QTRAP-MRM/MS was carried out. The collected raw data was handled with multivariate data treatment to discover the potential biomarkers in sphingolipid metabolism. Compared to the control group, 22 potential sphingolipid biomarkers were discovered in the NASH group, of which 10 were downregulated and 12 were upregulated. Orally administrated scoparone contributed to the reversal of the levels of these potential biomarkers. Ten differential metabolites showed a tendency of recovery compared to the control group and may be potential targets for scoparone to treat NASH. This study indicated that lipidomics can detect the perturbed sphingolipids to unravel the therapeutic effects of scoparone on NASH.