[Objective] To observe the effects of different fractions from Cortex Eucommiae on oxidation resistance and anti-despondent of Extradiol-induced kidney-yang deficiency mice,and understand the modern scientific connotation of the properties theories about sweet-flavor,warm-nature,meridian tropism in liver and kidney.[Methods] Healthy adult male ICR mice were divided into six groups randomly:normal control group,model control group,positive control group(Guifudihuang),three groups of Cortex Eucommiae(water fraction,n-butanol fraction,and acetoacetate fraction).Kidney-yang deficiency mice model was established with intraperitoneal injection of estradiol benzoate.The determined indexes included oxidation resistance indexes(activity of SOD,GSH-Px,CAT,content of MDA),anti-despondent indexes(tail suspension,activity of MAO),and anti-fatigue ability.[Results] Oxidation resistance indexes:Three fractions of Cortex Eucommiae all could decrease content of MDA,enhance activeness of SOD.The water and n-butanol fraction could enhance activeness of CAT.The water and acetoacetate fraction could enhance activeness of GSH-Px.Anti-despondent indexes:The acetoacetate fraction of Cortex Eucommiae could lengthen the activity time in tail suspension test,and three fractions of Cortex Eucommiae all could decrease activeness of MAO.Three fractions of Cortex Eucommiae all could lengthen the running distance and time.[Conclusion] Cortex Eucommiae could improve aging and depression caused by kidney-yang deficiency.Oxidation resistance and anti-despondent effects could be an important part of the main effective groups about sweet-flavor,warm-nature,meridian tropism in liver and kidney.The effects of water extract and n-butanol extract were closer and stronger,which could be the main substance basis of common effective groups.

The incidence and its growth rate of hypertension are both very high. Its pathology and pathogenesis are complex and unclear,and it does serious harm to human health. Hypertension remains incurable. Chemical medicine has good effect on hypertension,but life-long application and multi-drug combination are required,with significant adverse reactions. Also,complications can′t be effectively alleviated. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM)guided by traditional theories,can lower blood pressure,improve metabolic abnormalities and reduce complications. Its advantages or potentials have not been fully exploited and clinical application is inadequate. Metabolic hypertension has become the main form of hypertension,and its formation mechanism is mainly related to metabolic abnormalities and insulin resistance,metabolic inflammation and other pathology and pathogenesis. A better understanding of the current status of antihypertensive pharmacology of TCM,especially devel?opment and application of metabolic hypertension models is of great significance for TCM treatment of hypertension,and for exploration of new approaches to hypertension.

OBJECTIVETo observe the effects of three traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) such as Amomi Fructus Rotundus, Perillae Folium and Angelicae Dahuricae Radix on lung-yang deficiency rats induced by compound factors.

METHODLung-yang deficiency rats were established with three-factor combination, such as smoking (exogenous evil effect on lung), swimming in common and ice water (cold body and exhaustoin) and drinking ice water (inhale cold). Meanwhile, rats were given water extracts of the three TCM by intragastric administration for 24 days everyday. Indexes such as general behavior, weight, rectal temperature, back temperature and grip strength were observed. Blood was collected to determine NO, IgG in blood serum. Lung and heart were dissected to measure organs index.

RESULTThe water extracts of Amomi Fructrs Rotundus, Perillae Folium and Angelicae Dahuricae Radix could markedly heighten weight, back temperature, grip strength, content of IgG in blood serum, reduce content of NO in blood serum, lung index and heart index. The water extracts of Amomi Fructrs Rotundus and Perillae Folium could heighten rectal temperature.

CONCLUSIONAmomi Fructrs Rotundus, Perillae Folium and Angelicae Dahuricae Radix were TCM with pungent-flavor, warm-nature and meridian tropism in lung, which could improve the symptoms of physique emaciation, aversion to cold of the back, weary and acratia and so on. It provides an important reference for the regularity of the properties theories about pungent-flavor, warm-nature and meridian tropism in lung.

Amomum ; chemistry ; Angelica ; chemistry ; Animals ; Body Temperature ; Disease Models, Animal ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; administration & dosage ; Enteral Nutrition ; Female ; Heart ; drug effects ; Immunoglobulin G ; blood ; Lung ; drug effects ; pathology ; Male ; Meridians ; Nitric Oxide ; blood ; Perilla ; chemistry ; Plant Extracts ; administration & dosage ; Rats ; Yang Deficiency ; drug therapy ; pathology

Background: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is characterized by high programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression and abundant infiltration of non-malignant lymphocytes, which renders patients potentially suitable candidates for immune checkpoint blockade therapies. Palate, lung, and nasal epithelium clone (PLUNC) inhibit the growth of NPC cells and enhance cellular apoptosis and differentiation. Currently, the relationship between PLUNC (as a tumor-suppressor) and PD-L1 in NPC is unclear. Methods: We collected clinical samples of NPC to verify the relationship between PLUNC and PD-L1. PLUNC plasmid was transfected into NPC cells, and the variation of PD-L1 was verified by western blot and immunofluorescence. In NPC cells, we verified the relationship of PD-L1, activating transcription factor 3 (ATF3), and β-catenin by western blot and immunofluorescence. Later, we further verified that PLUNC regulates PD-L1 through β-catenin. Finally, the effect of PLUNC on β-catenin was verified by co-immunoprecipitation (Co-IP). Results: We found that PLUNC expression was lower in NPC tissues than in paracancer tissues. PD-L1 expression was opposite to that of PLUNC. Western blot and immunofluorescence showed that β-catenin could upregulate ATF3 and PD-L1, while PLUNC could downregulate ATF3/PD-L1 by inhibiting the expression of β-catenin. PLUNC inhibits the entry of β-catenin into the nucleus. Co-IP experiments demonstrated that PLUNC inhibited the interaction of DEAD-box helicase 17 (DDX17) and β-catenin. Conclusions PLUNC downregulates the expression of PD-L1 by inhibiting the interaction of DDX17/β-catenin in NPC.

Background: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is characterized by high programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression and abundant infiltration of non-malignant lymphocytes, which renders patients potentially suitable candidates for immune checkpoint blockade therapies. Palate, lung, and nasal epithelium clone (PLUNC) inhibit the growth of NPC cells and enhance cellular apoptosis and differentiation. Currently, the relationship between PLUNC (as a tumor-suppressor) and PD-L1 in NPC is unclear. Methods: We collected clinical samples of NPC to verify the relationship between PLUNC and PD-L1. PLUNC plasmid was transfected into NPC cells, and the variation of PD-L1 was verified by western blot and immunofluorescence. In NPC cells, we verified the relationship of PD-L1, activating transcription factor 3 (ATF3), and β-catenin by western blot and immunofluorescence. Later, we further verified that PLUNC regulates PD-L1 through β-catenin. Finally, the effect of PLUNC on β-catenin was verified by co-immunoprecipitation (Co-IP). Results: We found that PLUNC expression was lower in NPC tissues than in paracancer tissues. PD-L1 expression was opposite to that of PLUNC. Western blot and immunofluorescence showed that β-catenin could upregulate ATF3 and PD-L1, while PLUNC could downregulate ATF3/PD-L1 by inhibiting the expression of β-catenin. PLUNC inhibits the entry of β-catenin into the nucleus. Co-IP experiments demonstrated that PLUNC inhibited the interaction of DEAD-box helicase 17 (DDX17) and β-catenin. Conclusions PLUNC downregulates the expression of PD-L1 by inhibiting the interaction of DDX17/β-catenin in NPC.

Background: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is characterized by high programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression and abundant infiltration of non-malignant lymphocytes, which renders patients potentially suitable candidates for immune checkpoint blockade therapies. Palate, lung, and nasal epithelium clone (PLUNC) inhibit the growth of NPC cells and enhance cellular apoptosis and differentiation. Currently, the relationship between PLUNC (as a tumor-suppressor) and PD-L1 in NPC is unclear. Methods: We collected clinical samples of NPC to verify the relationship between PLUNC and PD-L1. PLUNC plasmid was transfected into NPC cells, and the variation of PD-L1 was verified by western blot and immunofluorescence. In NPC cells, we verified the relationship of PD-L1, activating transcription factor 3 (ATF3), and β-catenin by western blot and immunofluorescence. Later, we further verified that PLUNC regulates PD-L1 through β-catenin. Finally, the effect of PLUNC on β-catenin was verified by co-immunoprecipitation (Co-IP). Results: We found that PLUNC expression was lower in NPC tissues than in paracancer tissues. PD-L1 expression was opposite to that of PLUNC. Western blot and immunofluorescence showed that β-catenin could upregulate ATF3 and PD-L1, while PLUNC could downregulate ATF3/PD-L1 by inhibiting the expression of β-catenin. PLUNC inhibits the entry of β-catenin into the nucleus. Co-IP experiments demonstrated that PLUNC inhibited the interaction of DEAD-box helicase 17 (DDX17) and β-catenin. Conclusions PLUNC downregulates the expression of PD-L1 by inhibiting the interaction of DDX17/β-catenin in NPC.

With the acceleration of aging and the changes of people's lifestyle and environment， the incidence of chronic non-communicable diseases （chronic diseases） in China is increasing， which has become a major public health problem. The number of sub-health people is even more and rising. The thought of treating disease before its onset emphasizes taking precautions against disease and preventing change after disease onset， which is one of the core contents of traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） theory. According to the theory of TCM， health as a dynamic balance of yin and yang and diseases can be prevented and treated by maintaining this balance. The "state adjustment" strategy suggests to treat diseases by adjusting the state of exuberance or decline based on recognizing and distinguishing "state"， which has important guiding significance for developing and evaluating the healthcare food produced with Chinese medicinal materials. Healthcare food plays a vital role in health promotion， chronic disease prevention， and quality of life improvement. At present， the healthcare food produced with Chinese medicinal materials in China generally lacks TCM guidance and fails to fully reflect the advantages of TCM. In this study， the development strategy， functional claims， evaluation methods， and existing problems of healthcare food were discussed. Furthermore， with diabetes as an example， the "state adjustment" strategy was introduced into product development and evaluation to provide ideas for promoting the rapid growth of healthcare food with TCM characteristics.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of Chinese medicine Wubi Shanyao pills on sexual function of kidney-yang-deficiency mice induced by hydrocortisone. METHODS: Male Kunming mice were injected with hydrocortisone for 10 days to prepare the kidney-yang-deficiency model, and administrated with Wubi Shanyao pills (0.91, 1.82, 2.73 g/kg) for 9 weeks. The general behaviors of mice (autonomous activity, grasping power) were observed; sexual behaviors (capture, straddle, ejaculation frequency and incubation period) of mice were detected by mating experiment. The serum levels of cortisol, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), estradiol (E RESULTS: Wubi Shanyao pills increased the number of independent activities, grasping power, capture frequency of model mice and shortened the capture latency (all CONCLUSIONS Wubi Shanyao pills can improve the sexual function of mice with kidney-yang-deficiency induced by hydrocortisone, which may be related to regulating the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA axis), promoting the proliferation of testicular cells, and inhibiting cell apoptosis.
Animals ; Follicle Stimulating Hormone/blood* ; Hydrocortisone ; Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System ; Kidney/drug effects* ; Kidney Diseases/drug therapy* ; Male ; Mice ; Pituitary-Adrenal System/drug effects* ; Random Allocation ; Sexual Behavior, Animal/drug effects* ; Yang Deficiency/drug therapy*

BACKGROUNDmiR-338-3p is a recently discovered miRNA and is involved in cell differentiation. However, few data are yet available on the aberrant expression of miR-338-3p in human colorectal carcinoma (CRC). This work aimed to investigate the relationship between miR-338-3p expression pattern and clinicopathological features of human CRC and the possible regulative mechanisms.

METHODSThe 40 CRC, adjacent nontumorous tissues and 2 human CRC-derived cell lines (SW-480 and SW-620) were collected, respectively, and the total RNA and protein were isolated routinely. The miR-338-3p expression pattern was detected by real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Northern blotting. Smoothened (SMO, possible target of miR-338-3p) mRNA and corresponding protein expression pattern were detected by semiquantitative RT-PCR and Western blotting. miR-338-3p expression patterns were compared between nontumor mucosa and CRC samples, graded by progression-related factors. Disease outcome was calculated by Kaplan-Meier survival analysis to determine whether miR-338-3p was related to disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) of patients. Moreover, SMO 3'-UTR fragment was PCR amplified from genome DNA of human colon and inserted into a luciferase reporter plasmid. The luciferase reporter plasmid construct was then transfected into CRC cells together with pre-miR-338-3p or anti-miR-338-3p and the luciferase activity in the transfected cells was detected.

RESULTSThe expression of miR-338-3p was significantly downregulated in CRCs than those in the adjacent nontumorous tissues, and the value was negatively related to advanced TNM stage and local invasion (P < 0.01). Furthermore, miR-338-3p value was decreased markedly in SW-620 cell line relative to SW-480 (P < 0.01). Low expression of miR-338-3p was associated with unfavorable outcome in DFS but not in OS independent of clinical covariates. Moreover, RT-PCR and Western blotting analysis demonstrated that there was no significant difference in SMO mRNA expression between the corresponding CRCs and nontumorous tissues, whereas SMO protein markedly increased in CRCs (P < 0.01). A significant increase in luciferase activity was detected in CRC cells, which were cotransfected with the luciferase reporter plasmid construct and anti-miR-338-3p (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONSmiR-338-3p is expressed differentially in CRC and associated with progression and prognosis of CRC. SMO might be a possible target of miR-338-3p, which made it a potential antitumor candidate for treatment and prevention of CRC.

Adult ; Aged ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; genetics ; pathology ; Disease Progression ; Female ; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic ; genetics ; physiology ; Humans ; Male ; MicroRNAs ; genetics ; Middle Aged ; Prognosis

ObjectiveTo investigate the effect of Yunkang oral liquid on postpartum kidney deficiency in mice. MethodPostpartum mice were randomized into model and low-dose （6 mL·kg^-1）， medium-dose （9 mL·kg^-1）， and high-dose （12 mL·kg^-1） Yunkang oral liquid groups. The mouse model of postpartum kidney deficiency was established by sleep deprivation combined with forced swimming. Another 9 female ICR mice were selected as the normal control group. The mice were administrated with Yunkang oral liquid during the period of modeling. The levels of estradiol （E₂）， progesterone （P）， follicle-stimulating hormone （FSH）， and luteinizing hormone （LH） in the serum were measured by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The morphological changes of ovaries and uterus were observed by hematoxylin-eosin （HE） staining， and the expression of transforming growth factor （TGF）-β and Smad2/3 was determined by immunohistochemistry and Western blotting. ResultThe mice in the model group showed prolonged estrous cycle， reduced voluntary activity， dorsal temperature， grip strength， and bone strength， and whitening tongue coating. Compared with the model group， Yunkang oral liquid shortened the estrous cycle， increased the voluntary activity， dorsal temperature， grip strength， and bone strength， and alleviated the whitening of tongue coating. Moreover， it elevated the E₂ and P levels and lowered the FSH and LH levels in the serum， decreased ovarian follicular atresia rate， promoted uterine repair， and down-regulated the expression of TGF-β and Smad2/3 in the ovarian and uterine tissues. ConclusionYunkang oral liquid can ameliorate postpartum kidney deficiency in mice by regulating the TGF-β/Smads signaling pathway.