ObjectiveTo observe the effect of Xiaoke drink on insulin resistance in ob/ob mice and explore the mechanism. MethodEighteen ob/ob mice were randomly assigned into model， Xiaoke drink （17.68 g·kg^-1）， and atorvastatin （0.01 g·kg^-1） groups （n=6）， and six C57BL/6 mice were selected as the normal group. Mice in the normal and model groups were administrated with the same amount of distilled water. Fasting body weight， weekly food intake， and weekly water intake were measured at a fixed time. Fasting plasma glucose （FPG） and 2-hour post-load plasma glucose （2 hPG） were measured before and after 8-week intervention. After intervention， total cholesterol （TC）， triglyceride （TG）， fasting insulin （FINS）， Homeostasis Model Assessment-Insulin Resistance （HOMA-IR）， blood routine， and alkaline phosphatase （ALP） were measured. Western blot was employed to determine the expression levels of ubiquitin-specific protease 20 （USP20） and 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase （HMGCR） in the liver. The pancreas was stained with hematoxylin-eosin for observation. ResultCompared with the model group， the Xiaoke drink group showed decreased body weight of ob/ob mice （P<0.05， P<0.01）， declined growth trend of body weight （P<0.05， P<0.01）， reduced weekly average water intake， lowered levels of FPG， 2 hPG， TC， and HOMA-IR （P<0.05， P<0.01）， and down-regulated expression level of USP20 in the liver （P<0.05）. HMGCR content was positively correlated with USP20 expression. In addition， Xiaoke drink promoted the recovery of islet tissue morphology and function in ob/ob mice. ConclusionXiaoke drink can ameliorate insulin resistance in ob/ob mice by inhibiting USP20/HMGCR expression， reversing cholesterol biosynthesis process， and reducing cholesterol level.

ObjectiveTo explore the effect of Babaodan （BBD） on the NOD-like receptor pyrin domain containing 3/cysteine aspartate-specific protease-3 （NLRP3/Caspase-1） pathway proteins in mice with acetaminophen （APAP）-induced acute liver injury. MethodC57BL/6 mice were randomly grouped， and BBD （75， 150， 300 mg·kg^-1， ig） was administered twice a day for three days. After 2 hours of the last administration， the mice were treated with APAP （400 mg·kg^-1， ip）， and the eyeballs were removed to collect blood after 14 hours. Then they were sacrificed by cervical dislocation for sample collection. Hematoxylin-eosin （HE） staining was used to observe the morphological changes of liver tissue cells， and biochemical methods were used to detect the activities of alanine aminotransferase （ALT）， aspartate aminotransferase （AST）， superoxide dismutase （SOD）， malondialdehyde （MDA） and myeloperoxidase （MPO） in serum of mice in each group. Real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction （Real-time PCR） was performed to determine the mRNA expression of tumor necrosis factor-α （TNF-α）， interleukin-1β （IL-1β） and IL-6， and Western blot was performed to determine the protein expression of cyclooxygenase-2 （COX-2）， inducible nitric oxide synthase （iNOS）， NLRP3， Caspase-1 and IL-18 in the liver of mice. ResultCompared with the conditions in normal group， the hepatic lobule structure of mice in the model group was partially destroyed， and the hepatic sinusoids were dilated. And the expression levels of ALT and AST in serum， the protein levels of NLRP3， Caspase-1， iNOS， IL-18 and COX-2 and the mRNA levels of IL-1β， IL-6 and TNF-α were increased （P<0.05， P<0.01）. Compared with the model group， the administration groups had improvement in liver cell rupture and hepatic sinusoidal compression， and a dose-dependent decrease in the levels of ALT and AST in serum as well as the protein levels of NLRP3， Caspase-1， iNOS， IL-18 and COX-2 and the the mRNA levels of IL-1β， IL-6 and TNF-α in liver tissue （P<0.05， P<0.01）. ConclusionBBD can reduce APAP-induced acute liver injury in mice. The mechanism may be related to anti-oxidative stress， inhibition of NLRP3/Caspase-1 pathway， and decreased expression levels of IL-1β， IL-18， TNF-α and IL-6.

ARNTL Transcription Factors ; deficiency ; metabolism ; Animals ; Cyclic AMP ; metabolism ; Gluconeogenesis ; Glucose ; biosynthesis ; HEK293 Cells ; Histone Deacetylases ; metabolism ; Humans ; Liver ; metabolism ; Mice ; Mice, Knockout