Atherosclerosis is a complex disease characterized by lipid accumulation in the vascular wall and influenced by multiple genetic and environmental factors. To understand the mechanisms of molecular regulation related to atherosclerosis better, a protein interaction network was constructed in the present study. Genes were collected in nucleotide database and interactions were downloaded from Biomolecular Object Network Database (BOND). The interactional data were imported into the software Cytoscape to construct the interaction network, and then the degree characteristics of the network were analyzed for Hub proteins. Statistical significance pathways and diseases were figured out by inputting Hub proteins to KOBAS2. 0. The complete pathway network related to atherosclerosis was constructed. The results identified a series of key genes related to atherosclerosis, which would be the potential promising drug targets for effective prevention.
Atherosclerosis ; genetics ; Databases, Factual ; Humans ; Protein Interaction Mapping ; methods ; Protein Interaction Maps ; Software

Objective To study the chemical constituents of flavonoids in pine needles of Cedrus deodara.Methods Flavonoids were isolated and purified from ethyl acetate extract of pine needles by chromatography on silica gel and Sephadex LH-20.Their structures were identified on the basis of spectroscopic analysis and chemical evidence.Results Five flavonoids were isolated and purified.Their structures were identified as cedrusone A(1),myricetin(2),2R,3R-dihydromyricetin(3),quercctin(4),and 2R,3R-dihydroquercetin(5).Conclusion Compound 1 is a new compound.Compounds 2-5 are isolated from pine needles of this genus for the first time.

Objective To optimize preparation process of Zushima Gel Cream. Methods The comprehensive evaluation set sensory evaluation, initial adhesive force, viscous force, and peeling strength score as indexes. The mixing time, refining temperature, mixing speed, and powder adding sequence were investigation factors. Orthogonal experiment was used to optimize forming process. Results Conditions of optimized preparation process were as following: add Zushima powder in Viscomate NP-700 and glycerol; mixing time was 5 min; refining temperature was 40 ℃; mixing speed was 100 r/min. Conclusion The preparation process is good and optimized Zushima Gel Cream has a good adhesive force, good glossiness and excipients. The preparation process is good.

OBJECTIVE： To optimize the extraction technology of osthole from the pine needles of Cedrus deodara. METHODS： HPLC method was adopted to determine the content of osthole. Based on single factor test， ethanol volume fraction， extraction time and material-solvent ratio were selected as influential factors， and the content of osthole was selected as response value. Box-Behnken design-response surface methodology was used to optimize the extraction technology of osthole in pine needles of C. deodara. Validation test was conducted. RESULTS： The optimal extraction technology was as follows as ethanol volume fraction of 88％， material-solvent ratio of 1 ∶ 20 （g/mL）， extracting for 2 times， lasting for 57 min each time. Under this technology， average content of osthole was 0.675 7 mg/g （RSD＝1.78％， n＝3）， and the relative error of which to predicted value 0.680 9 mg/g was 0.59％. CONCLUSIONS： The optimal extraction technology is simple and feasible，and it can be used for the extraction of osthole from the pine needles of C. deodara.  

Ulcerative colitis （UC） is a chronic recurrent inflammatory bowel disease which primarily affects the colonic mucosa. The UC patients mainly present diarrhea， abdominal pain， tenesmus， and mucous bloody stools， and even malnutrition and systemic symptoms in severe cases， with rising incidence， which has a significant impact on the health and quality of life of patients. The pathogenesis of UC is not clear， and the Western medical therapies include sulfasalazine， glucocorticoids， and immunosuppressants， which， however， have side effects and unsatisfactory effects. Chinese medicine with high safety， mild adverse reactions， and a multi-component， multi-target， and multi-pathway treatment manner has garnering increasing attention. Therefore， finding the Chinese medicine to treat UC has become a hot spot. Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma is one of the commonly used Chinese herbal medicines， with the effects of tonifying spleen and reinforcing qi， clearing heat and detoxifying， dispelling phlegm and relieving cough， relieving pain， and harmonizing medicines. Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma mainly contains glycyrrhizic acid， glycyrrhetinic acid， diammonium glycyrrhizinate and other active ingredients. Modern pharmacological studies have shown that Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma has anti-inflammatory， antioxidant， antimicrobial， and immunomodulatory activities. According to statistics， Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma is among the top three Chinese herbal medicines for the treatment of UC. The recent years have witnessed progress in the treatment of UC with Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma and the related prescriptions. The present study summarized the mechanisms underlying the anti-inflammatory， immunomodulatory， intestinal flora-regulating， cell apoptosis-inducing， and oxidative stress-reducing effects of the key chemical constituents （glycyrrhetinic acid， diammonium glycyrrhizinate， polysaccharide， glycyrrhetinic acid， and isoglycyrrhizin） and compound prescriptions of Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma. The findings provide a solid foundation for further development and clinical application of Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma.