1.Acupuncture point selection for prevention and treatment of generalized anxiety disorder from the perspective of Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis
Xiaxia JIN ; Leyao QIN ; Mengdan ZHANG ; Tao GAO ; Zhengquan LEI ; Feng ZHOU ; Wendi DONG
International Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2023;45(1):8-12
Disorders of the gut flora (GF) affect the level of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) in the brain of patients with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and influence the development of the disease. Most of the acupuncture points selected for GAD are based on the principles of local acupuncture points and acupuncture points following the distant channels of the meridians, regarding Baihui (DU 20), Fengchi (GB 20), and Yintang (GV 29) as the main acupuncture points, and the acupuncture points selected for the regulation of GF are Zhongwan (CV 12), Tianshu (ST 25), and Guanyuan (RN 4) and Zusanli (ST 36). Recently, many studies have been conducted on the mechanism of action of acupuncture in the treatment of GAD from the perspective of GF, but few have investigated the theoretical of acupuncture points used to prevent and treat GAD. This paper discusses the theoretical basis of acupuncture to regulate the "microbiota-gut-brain axis" (MGBA) for the prevention and treatment of GAD, and proposes the method of "regulating the internal organs and calming the mind and relieving anxiety" through analyzing the researches on the regulation of GF and GAD.
2.Cytochrome P450s in algae: Bioactive natural product biosynthesis and light-driven bioproduction.
Shanmin ZHENG ; Jiawei GUO ; Fangyuan CHENG ; Zhengquan GAO ; Lei DU ; Chunxiao MENG ; Shengying LI ; Xingwang ZHANG
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2022;12(6):2832-2844
Algae are a large group of photosynthetic organisms responsible for approximately half of the earth's total photosynthesis. In addition to their fundamental ecological roles as oxygen producers and as the food base for almost all aquatic life, algae are also a rich source of bioactive natural products, including several clinical drugs. Cytochrome P450 enzymes (P450s) are a superfamily of biocatalysts that are extensively involved in natural product biosynthesis by mediating various types of reactions. In the post-genome era, a growing number of P450 genes have been discovered from algae, indicating their important roles in algal life-cycle. However, the functional studies of algal P450s remain limited. Benefitting from the recent technical advances in algae cultivation and genetic manipulation, the researches on P450s in algal natural product biosynthesis have been approaching to a new stage. Moreover, some photoautotrophic algae have been developed into "photo-bioreactors" for heterologous P450s to produce high-value added pharmaceuticals and chemicals in a carbon-neutral or carbon-negative manner. Here, we comprehensively review these advances of P450 studies in algae from 2000 to 2021.