Objective To investigate the effect of Hedyotis diffusa extract(HDE)on the proliferation of liver cancer cells and its relationship with sugar metabolism reprogramming and oxidative phosphorylation and analyze its possible mechanisms.Methods CCK-8 and EDU experiments were used to determine the effect of different concentrations(20,40,80 mg/mL)of HDE on the growth of liver cancer cell line SNU-368.Lactate dehydrogenase activity,glucose uptake,lactate production,extracellular pH,mitochondrial respiratory chain complex activity,and cellular oxygen consumption were measured to analyze the effect of HDE on aerobic glycolysis and oxidative phosphorylation in liver cancer cells.qRT-PCR experiments were used to detect the mRNA expressions of GLUT1,GLUT4,HK2,GPI,PFKL,ALDOA and HIF-1α in SNU-368 cells of different groups.Western blotting experiments were used to detect the protein expression of HIF-1α.A stable cell line overexpressing HIF-1αwas constructed by lentivirus transfection of liver cancer cells SNU-368 and then intervened with HDE;the expression of HIF-1α mRNA and protein was detected with qRT-PCR and Western blotting.Results CCK-8 results showed that the HDE exhibited a concentration-dependent inhibitory effect on the proliferation of liver cancer cells(all P＜0.05).Results from glucose metabolism-related tests indicated that the HDE could inhibit glucose uptake and lactate production,decrease lactate dehydrogenase activity,increase extracellular pH value,enhance cellular oxygen consumption,and elevate activities of mitochondrial respiratory chain complexes Ⅰ,Ⅱ,Ⅲ and Ⅳ(all P＜0.05).qRT-PCR results revealed that the HDE suppressed the mRNA expressions of GLUT1,HK2,GPI,and ALDOA(all P＜0.05).qRT-PCR and Western blotting experiments showed that compared to the control group,the expression of HIF-1α mRNA and protein in the HDE group was significantly reduced.However,when HIF-1α was overexpressed and HDE was added in the HIF-1α-LV group,the expression of HIF-1α mRNA and protein increased again compared to the HDE group.Conclusion HDE inhibits glycolysis and promotes oxidative phosphorylation to inhibit the proliferation of liver cancer cells,and its mechanism of action may be related to the inhibition of HIF-1α expression.

Objective To investigate the effect and mechanism of Twist-related protein 1(TWIST1)on pulmonary vascular remodeling induced by monocrotaline(MCT)in pulmonary arterial hypertension(PAH)rats.Methods A total of 50 healthy male Sprague Dawley(SD)rats were randomly divided into five groups including control group,MCT-treated group,MCT and dimethyl sulfoxide(DMSO)-treated group,MCT and harmine-treated group MCT and hydroxychloroquine(HCQ)-treated group.The right ventricle systolic pressure(RVSP)was measured,right ventricular hypertrophy index(RVHI)and percentage of medial wall thickness(MT％)to assess the development of PAH.The protein levels of TW1ST1,autophagy markers LC3B and RND3 were determined using western blot.Results Compared with control group,expressions of TWIST1 and LC3B were increased by 2.32±0.22 folds and 0.87±0.19 folds in MCT-induced PAH group,with significant differences(t=15.812,11.227,all P＜0.00 1),while the protein level of RND3 in MCT-induced PAH rats was decreased by 0.32±0.07 folds compared with control group,with significant difference(t=-13.003,P＜0.001).Administration of TWIST1 inhibitor Harmine or autophagy inhibitor hydroxychloroquine significantly suppressed MCT-induced increase in LC3B and down-regulation of RND3 expression,and reduced RVSP,RVHI and MT％expressions in MCT-induced PAH rats,with significant differences(t=-24.277～16.636,all P＜0.001).Conclusion TWIST1 promotes pulmonary vascular remodeling by inducing autophagy activation,thus promoting the occurrence and development of PAH.