OBJECTIVETo observe the preventive effects of multi-glycoside of Tripterygium wilfordii (GTW) on glomerular lesions in experimental diabetic nephropathy (DN).

METHODThe DN model of rats was established with streptozotocin (STZ) and intervened with GTW. In the same time, normal, benazepril, and vehicle control groups were set up. After 8 weeks of oral treatment with GTW (50 mg x kg(-1) BW), benazepril (6 mg x kg(-1) BW), and vehicle (physiological saline), the changes of body weight, urine albumin (UA1b), blood glucose (BG), serum creatinine (Scr), blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and glomerular morphology were examined. In addition, the level of protein expression of alpha-smooth muscle actin (alpha-SMA) and collagen type I in glomeruli was determined by immunofluorescence.

RESULTBoth GTW and benazepril reduced UA1b. GTW ameliorated glomerular injury, such as mesangial cell proliferation, alpha-SMA and collagen type I over-expression, in DN model. Compared with benazepril, beneficial effects of GTW on glomerulusclerosis were more significant (total cell number: GTW group 54.44 +/- 2.41, benazepril group microg/67.83 +/- 4.41, P < 0.05; alpha-SMA score: GTW group 1.98 +/- 0.52, benazepril group 2.27 +/- 0.46, P < 0.05; collagen type I score: GTW group 2.11 +/- 0.37, benazepril group 2.88 +/- 0.58, P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONPreventive effects of GTW on glomerular lesion in DN model are related to decreasing UA1b and ameliorating glomerulusclerosis.

Animals ; Diabetic Nephropathies ; drug therapy ; metabolism ; prevention & control ; Disease Models, Animal ; Glycosides ; administration & dosage ; Humans ; Kidney Glomerulus ; drug effects ; injuries ; metabolism ; Male ; Plant Extracts ; administration & dosage ; Random Allocation ; Rats ; Tripterygium ; chemistry

Biomarkers ; Hepatitis B virus ; Humans ; Luminescence

ObjectiveTo investigate the regulatory effects of Xuanfu Daizhetang on a mouse model of allergic asthma induced by ovalbumin （OVA）. MethodSixty female BALB/c mice （6-8 weeks old， SPF） were randomly divided into groups. Ten mice were assigned to the normal group and given 0.2 mL of saline， while the remaining groups received intraperitoneal injections of Al（OH）₃ at 5 g·L^-1 and OVA at 1 g·L^-1. The mice were divided into normal group （10 mL·kg^-1 saline）， OVA model group （10 mL·kg^-1 saline）， dexamethasone group （OVA+DEX， 1 mg·kg^-1）， OVA+ low-dose Xuanfu Daizhetang group （OVA+XL， 7.065 g·kg^-1）， OVA+ medium-dose Xuanfu Daizhetang group （OVA+XM， 14.13 g·kg^-1）， and OVA+ high-dose Xuanfu Daizhetang group （OVA+XH， 28.26 g·kg^-1）. An OVA-induced asthma model was established in mice. Hematoxylin-eosin （HE） and periodic acid-Schiff （PAS） staining methods were used to observe bronchial tissue pathological changes. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA） was performed to measure the levels of immunoglobulin E （IgE）， interleukin-4 （IL-4）， IL-5， IL-13， IL-17A， and γ interferon （IFN-γ） in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. Western blot was used to detect the phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase （ERK）， p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase （MAPK）， and c-Jun N-terminal kinase （JNK） proteins in lung tissue. ResultCompared with the normal group， the OVA model group showed increased inflammatory cell infiltration in mouse alveoli， elevated levels of IL-4， IL-5， IL-13， IL-17A， IFN-γ in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid， and IgE in serum （P<0.05， P<0.01）， and promoted phosphorylation of MAPK signaling pathway-related proteins. Compared with the model group， the OVA+XL， OVA+XM， and OVA+XH groups showed reduced inflammatory cell infiltration in mouse alveoli， decreased levels of IL-4， IL-5， IL-13， IL-17A， IFN-γ in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid， and IgE in serum （P<0.05， P<0.01）， and inhibited phosphorylation of MAPK signaling pathway-related proteins. ConclusionThe results of this study suggest that Xuanfu Daizhetang has potential anti-allergic asthma activity， providing a theoretical basis for its future clinical application.

This paper studied the influence ofsurface preponderantfungi on main effective substances of CitriReticulatae Pericarpium (CRP).Spreading plate method was used to isolatepredominant strains from the surface of CRP.Besides,the method combining microscopic and molecular identification was also adopted.HPLC and UVspectrophotometric methods were used to determine the main effective substances in CRP.From thesurface of CRP,the advantage strain fungi were Aspergillusniger and A.Flavus.After the inoculation of A.Niger and A.flavus against CRP,the effective compositionwas changed.And different A.niger strains had differenceeffectiveness oneffective chemical components,especially one strain of A.niger.Compared withthe control group,contents of total flavonoids and hesperidin were significantly increased (P＜0.01);and five types of obvious new chemical compositions were produced.It was concluded that the metabolic transformation of fungi was related tochanges ofeffective substances of CRP,which played a significant role in the aging process of CRP.The growth and metabolism of fungi consumeeffeetive substances and producechanges of composition.From the perspective of microorganisms,"the older,the better" of CRP hasa better explanation.