1.Regulation of Signaling Pathways Related to Myocardial Infarction by Traditional Chinese Medicine: A Review
Wenjun WU ; Chidao ZHANG ; Jingjing WEI ; Xue LI ; Bin LI ; Xinlu WANG ; Mingjun ZHU
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2025;31(6):321-330
The pathological changes of myocardial infarction (MI) are mainly characterized by progressive myocardial ischemic necrosis, decline in cardiac diastolic function, thinning of the ventricular wall, and enlargement of the ventricles. The clinical manifestations include myocardial ischemia, heart failure, arrhythmia, shock, and even sudden cardiac death, rendering MI one of the most perilous cardiovascular diseases. Currently, the clinical treatment for MI primarily involves interventional procedures and drug therapy. However, due to their significant side effects and high complication rates associated with these treatments, they fail to ensure a satisfactory quality of life and long-term prognosis for patients. On the other hand, traditional Chinese medicine has demonstrated remarkable potential in improving patient prognosis while reducing side effects. Research has elucidated that various signaling pathways such as nuclear transcription factor-κB (NF-κB), adenosine 5̒-monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK), transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β)/Smads, mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), Wnt/β-catenin (β-catenin), and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B(Akt) play crucial roles in regulating the occurrence and development of MI. Effectively modulating these signaling pathways through its therapeutic interventions, traditional Chinese medicine can enhance MI management by inhibiting apoptosis, providing anti-inflammatory properties, alleviating oxidative stress levels, and resisting myocardial ischemia. Due to its notable efficacy and favorable safety, it has become an area of focus in clinical practice.
2.Practice and evaluation of pharmacists’participation in long-term MTM models for stroke patients based on family doctor system
Lu SHI ; Chun LIU ; Lian TANG ; Jingjing LI ; Sudong XUE ; Yanxia YU ; Wenwen LI ; Keren YU ; Jianhui XUE ; Wen MA ; Hongzhi XUE
China Pharmacy 2025;36(9):1129-1134
OBJECTIVE To investigate the clinical efficacy of integrating pharmacists into family health teams (FHTs) for long-term medication therapeutical management (MTM) in stroke patients, and empirically evaluate the service model. METHODS A pharmacist team, jointly established by clinical and community pharmacists from the Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University (hereinafter referred to as “our hospital”), developed a pharmacist-supported MTM model integrated into FHTs. Using a prospective randomized controlled design, 170 stroke patients discharged from our hospital (July 2022-December 2023) and enrolled in FHTs at Suzhou Runda Community Hospital were randomly divided into trial group (88 cases) and control group (82 cases) according to random number table. The control group received routine FHTs care (without pharmacist involvement in the team collaboration), while the trial group xhz8405@126.com received 12-month MTM services supported by pharmacists via an information platform. These services specifically included innovative interventions such as personalized medication regimen optimization based on the MTM framework, dynamic medication adherence management, medication safety monitoring, a home medication assessment system, and distinctive service offerings. Outcomes of the 2 grousp were compared before and after intervention, involving medication adherence (adherence rate, adherence score), compliance rates for stroke recurrence risk factors [blood pressure, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C)], and incidence of adverse drug reactions (ADR). RESULTS After 12 months, the trial group exhibited significantly higher medication adherence rates, improved adherence scores, higher compliance rates for blood pressure and LDL-C targets compared to the control group (P<0.05). The incidence of ADR in the trial group (4.55%) was significantly lower than that in the control group (8.11%), though the difference was not statistically significant (P> 0.05). CONCLUSIONS Pharmacist involvement in FHTs to deliver MTM services significantly enhances medication adherence and optimizes risk factor for stroke recurrence, offering practical evidence for advancing pharmaceutical care in chronic disease management under the family doctor system.
3.Gut microbiota-derived tryptophan metabolites regulated by Wuji Wan to attenuate colitis through AhR signaling activation.
Wanghui JING ; Sijing DONG ; Yinyue XU ; Jingjing LIU ; Jiawei REN ; Xue LIU ; Min ZHU ; Menggai ZHANG ; Hehe SHI ; Na LI ; Peng XIA ; Haitao LU ; Sicen WANG
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2025;15(1):205-223
Disruption of the intestinal mucosal barrier caused by gut dysbiosis and metabolic imbalance is the underlying pathology of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Traditional Chinese medicine Wuji Wan (WJW) is commonly used to treat digestive system disorders and showed therapeutic potential for IBD. In this interdisciplinary study, we aim to investigate the pharmacological effects of WJW against experimental colitis by combining functional metabolomics and gut-microbiota sequencing techniques. Treatment with WJW altered the profile of the intestinal microbiota and notably increased the abundance of Lactobacillus, thereby facilitating the conversion of tryptophan into indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and indoleacrylic acid (IA). These indole derivatives activated the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) pathway, which reduced colonic inflammation and restored the expression of intestinal barrier proteins. Interestingly, the beneficial effects of WJW on gut barrier function improvement and tryptophan metabolism were disappeared in the absence of gut microbiota. Finally, pre-treatment with the AhR antagonist CH-223191 confirmed the essential role of IAA-mediated AhR activation in the therapeutic effects of WJW. Overall, WJW enhanced intestinal barrier function and reduced colonic inflammation in a murine colitis model by modulating Lactobacillus-IAA-AhR signaling pathway. This study provides novel insights into colitis pathogenesis and presents an effective therapeutic and preventive approach against IBD.
4.Altered oral microbiome and metabolites are associated with improved lipid metabolism in HBV-infected patients with metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease.
Jingjing ZHANG ; Song FENG ; Dali ZHANG ; Jian XUE ; Chao ZHOU ; Pengcheng LIU ; Shuangnan FU ; Man GONG ; Hui FENG ; Ning ZHANG
Journal of Southern Medical University 2025;45(9):2034-2045
OBJECTIVES:
To investigate the impact of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection on oral microbiota and metabolites in patients with metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) and the underlying mechanisms.
METHODS:
This prospective study was conducted in 47 MAFLD patients complicated with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) and 48 MAFLD patients without CHB enrolled from November, 2023 to January, 2024. Fasting tongue coating samples were collected from the patients for analyzing microbial community structures and metabolites using high-throughput 16S rDNA sequencing and non-targeted metabolomics techniques, and their associations with clinical indicators and biological pathways were explored using correlation analysis and functional annotation.
RESULTS:
The levels of fasting blood glucose, total cholesterol (TC), gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT), and severity of fatty liver were all significantly lower in MAFLD+CHB group than in MAFLD group. Microbiota analysis showed that the abundances of Patescibacteria (at the phylum level), Hydrogenophaga, and Absconditabacteriales (at the genus level) were significantly increased, while the abundance of Megasphaera was decreased in MAFLD+CHB group. The differential microbiota were significantly correlated with TC, GGT and low-density lipoprotein (r=-0.68‒0.75). Metabolomics analysis revealed that 469 metabolites (including lipids and amino acids) were upregulated and 2306 (including organic oxygen-containing compounds and phenylpropanoids) were downregulated in MAFLD+CHB group, for which KEGG enrichment analysis suggested abnormal activation of the linoleic acid metabolism and glycerophospholipid metabolism pathways. Correlation analysis between microbiota and metabolites indicated that Patescibacteria and Megasphaera, which were positively correlated with lipid metabolites and negatively with fatty acid metabolites, respectively, jointly affected glycolipid metabolism and oxidative stress pathways.
CONCLUSIONS
Compared to patients with MAFLD alone, MAFLD patients with concurrent chronic HBV infection showed lower levels in some lipid metabolism indicators and the degree of hepatic steatosis, accompanied by alterations in oral microbiota structure and metabolic profiles. The precise mechanisms involved require further investigation to be fully elucidated.
Humans
;
Lipid Metabolism
;
Prospective Studies
;
Microbiota
;
Hepatitis B, Chronic/microbiology*
;
Male
;
Female
;
Adult
;
Fatty Liver/microbiology*
;
Middle Aged
;
Mouth/microbiology*
;
Metabolomics
5.Hypaphorine alleviates Crohn's disease-like colitis in mice by inhibiting intestinal epithelial inflammatory response and protecting intestinal barrier function.
Qingqing HUANG ; Jingjing YANG ; Xuening JIANG ; Wenjing ZHANG ; Yu WANG ; Lugen ZUO ; Lian WANG ; Yueyue WANG ; Xiaofeng ZHANG ; Xue SONG ; Jianguo HU
Journal of Southern Medical University 2025;45(11):2456-2465
OBJECTIVES:
To investigate the effect of hypaphorine (HYP) on Crohn's disease (CD)‑like colitis in mice and its molecular mechanism.
METHODS:
Thirty male C57BL/6J mice were equally randomized into WT, TNBS, and HYP groups, and in the latter two groups, mouse models of CD-like colitis were established using TNBS with daily gavage of 15 mg/kg HYP or an equivalent volume of saline. The treatment efficacy was evaluated by assessing the disease activity index (DAI), body weight changes, colon length and histopathology. The effect of HYP was also tested in a LPS-stimulated Caco-2 cell model mimicking intestinal inflammation by evaluating inflammatory responses and barrier function of the cells using qRT-PCR and immunofluorescence staining. GO and KEGG analyses were conducted to explore the therapeutic mechanism of HYP, which was validated in both the cell and mouse models using Western blotting.
RESULTS:
In the mouse models of CD-like colitis, HYP intervention obviously alleviated colitis as shown by significantly reduced body weight loss, colon shortening, DAI and inflammation scores, and expressions of pro-inflammatory factors in the colon tissues. HYP treatment also significantly increased the TEER values, reduced bacterial translocation to the mesenteric lymph nodes, liver, and spleen, lowered serum levels of I-FABP and FITC-dextran, increased the number of colonic tissue cup cells, and upregulated colonic expressions of MUC2 and tight junction proteins (claudin-1 and ZO-1) in the mouse models. In LPS-stimulated Caco-2 cells, HYP treatment significantly inhibited the expressions of pro-inflammatory factors and increased the expressions of tight junction proteins. Western blotting showed that HYP downregulated the expressions of the key proteins in the TLR4/MyD88 signaling pathway in both the in vitro and in vivo models.
CONCLUSIONS
HYP alleviates CD-like colitis in mice possibly by suppressing intestinal epithelial inflammation and improving gut barrier function.
Animals
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Male
;
Mice, Inbred C57BL
;
Crohn Disease/drug therapy*
;
Mice
;
Humans
;
Caco-2 Cells
;
Intestinal Mucosa/metabolism*
;
Colitis/drug therapy*
;
Disease Models, Animal
;
Inflammation
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Toll-Like Receptor 4/metabolism*
;
Myeloid Differentiation Factor 88/metabolism*
;
Intestinal Barrier Function
6.Research progress of matrix metalloproteinase-28 in pulmonary disease
Ling TAN ; Xue MA ; Jingjing WANG ; Fengfeng LEI
The Journal of Practical Medicine 2024;40(20):2949-2953
Matrix metalloproteinase-28(MMP-28)is widely expressed in vertebrates and plays diverse biological roles,participating in the regulation of various pathophysiological processes in the body.Increased expression of MMP-28 has been observed in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease,pulmonary fibrosis,and other lung diseases.Studies have demonstrated that MMP-28 promotes chronic inflammation and tissue remodeling by regulating macrophage recruitment and M2 polarization,and is involved in the pathogenesis of lung diseases by promoting cell proliferation and epithelial-mesenchymal transition.This article provides a review of the relationship between the basic characteristics of MMP-28 and pulmonary diseases.
7.Analysis of immune cells and their subsets in peripheral blood and spleen of CAST/EiJ mice
Qi LIU ; Yongzhi HOU ; Na LI ; Jingjing ZHANG ; Jiahan LU ; Zhe CONG ; Lin ZHU ; Jing XUE
Chinese Journal of Comparative Medicine 2024;34(4):1-10
Objective To explore the possible causes of CAST/EiJ mouse susceptibility to multiple pathogens,the immune cell phenotypes in the peripheral blood and spleen of CAST/EiJ mice were analyzed to clarify their composition.Methods Classical dendritic cells(cDCs),natural killer(NK)cells,B lymphocytes,T lymphocytes,and their subsets in the peripheral blood and spleen of CAST/EiJ mice and C57BL/6J mice were detected by flow cytometry using the cell surface markers CD3,CD4,CD8,CD11b,CD11c,CD19,CD27,CD49b,and TCRβ.Results There was no significant difference in the proportion of cDCs between CAST/EiJ and C57BL/6J mice,but the cDC1 cell subset population was smaller in CAST/EiJ.The proportions of NK cells(mainly mature NK cell subsets)and T lymphocytes(mainly CD8+T cells)were both lower in CAST/EiJ mice than C57BL/6J mice,while the proportion of B cells was higher in CAST/EiJ mice than C57BL/6J mice.Conclusions The proportions of NK and T lymphocytes in CAST/EiJ mice were lower than those in C57BL/6J mice.
8.Research progress in mitochondrial quality control in respiratory diseases
Jingjing XU ; Yange TIAN ; Xue MEI ; Peng ZHAO ; Yunfeng LIAN ; Xiao SUN
Chinese Journal of Comparative Medicine 2024;34(6):161-171
Respiratory diseases(e.g.,lung inflammation and pulmonary fibrosis)are a serious threat to human health.Mitochondria,organelles unique to eukaryotic cells,not only have important functions in energy production,biosynthesis,and the maintenance of intracellular homeostasis but also act as diverse signaling organelles involved in inflammation,proliferation,differentiation,cell repair,and other processes.The mitochondrial quality control system involves mitochondrial biogenesis,dynamics,and autophagy.Certain pathological mechanisms of respiratory diseases,such as oxidative stress and inflammation,are closely related to the dysregulation of mitochondrial quality control systems.This paper summarizes the progress of research into mitochondrial quality control dysregulation in respiratory diseases(chronic obstructive pulmonary disease,pulmonary fibrosis,acute lung injury,asthma,and bacterial pneumonia)to explore new ideas for the prevention and treatment of respiratory diseases.
9.Mechanism of treatment of Tibet yak-origin Salmonella infections by Tibetan medicine Terminalia Chebula via Bax/Bcl-2 and PTGS2/SLC3A2 pathway was analyzed based on network pharmacology and experimental validation
Dengyu LI ; Kaiqin ZHANG ; Xiaofeng XUE ; Zhanchun BAI ; La YANG ; Shaohui WANG ; Jingjing QI ; Sizhu SUOLANG
Chinese Journal of Veterinary Science 2024;44(9):2040-2049
In order to understand the potential target and related mechanism of action of Termina-lia Chebula treatment,network pharmacology and molecular docking methods were used in this experiment,and the challenge test of Salmonella from yak was performed.The active ingredients and potential targets of Terminalia Chebula were screened through HERB cluster identification database,TCMSP database and SwissTargetPrediction web page tool,and"gastroenteritis"was searched through OMIM and GeneCards database.Cytoscape and STRING databases were used to construct the Terminalia Chebula PPI network to screen out key targets,the intersection targets between Terminalia Chebula and enteritis were obtained through Venny platform,and gene ontol-ogy(GO)and Kyoto encyclopedia database of genes and genomics(KEGG)were enriched through DAVID database.The core target of screening was verified by molecular docking.After that,the gastrointestinal inflammation model of mice was established,the pathological changes of gastroin-testinal tract were observed,and the effect of Terminalia Chebula on the target protein was veri-fied by Western blot test.The results showed that:after analyzing and sorting out 8 main active in-gredients of Terminalia Chebula,118 targets of Terminalia Chebula were screened,11 161 targets of gastroenteritis and 100 targets of intersection were obtained;the core targets of PTGS2,CASP3,SLC3A2,Bax,Bcl-2 and TP53 of Terminalia Chebula and enteritis were obtained through PPI network.GO and KEGG enrichment analysis collected 337 items and 138 items,respectively,mainly related to chemokine pathway,PI3K-Akt signaling pathway,apoptosis related pathway,i-ron ion transport related pathway,NF-κB signaling pathway,etc.The results of molecular docking showed that chebulidic acid,the first active component of chebulidic acid,can bind to Bax,Bcl-2,PTGS2 and SLC3A2 through hydrogen bonding,hydrophobic action,π-π packing force and other intermolecular forces.The pathological tissue sections showed that Terminalia Chebula could sig-nificantly recover gastrointestinal tissue injury.Western blot test results showed that Terminalia Chebula can regulate the process of apoptosis and iron death through Bax/Bcl-2 and PTGS2/SLC3A2 pathways to achieve the effect of treating intestinal inflammatory damage.The results showed that Terminalia Chebula can regulate the occurrence and development of enteritis by regu-lating apoptosis and iron death through Bax/Bcl-2 and PTGS2/SLC3A2 pathways.Terminalia Chebula has the characteristics of multi-target and multi-pathway in the treatment of enteritis.
10.Non-coding RNAs as therapeutic targets in cancer and its clinical application
Leng XUEJIAO ; Zhang MENGYUAN ; Xu YUJING ; Wang JINGJING ; Ding NING ; Yu YANCHENG ; Sun SHANLIANG ; Dai WEICHEN ; Xue XIN ; Li NIANGUANG ; Yang YE ; Shi ZHIHAO
Journal of Pharmaceutical Analysis 2024;14(7):983-1010
Cancer genomics has led to the discovery of numerous oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes that play critical roles in cancer development and progression.Oncogenes promote cell growth and proliferation,whereas tumor suppressor genes inhibit cell growth and division.The dysregulation of these genes can lead to the development of cancer.Recent studies have focused on non-coding RNAs(ncRNAs),including circular RNA(circRNA),long non-coding RNA(lncRNA),and microRNA(miRNA),as therapeutic targets for cancer.In this article,we discuss the oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes of ncRNAs associated with different types of cancer and their potential as therapeutic targets.Here,we highlight the mechanisms of action of these genes and their clinical applications in cancer treatment.Understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying cancer development and identifying specific therapeutic targets are essential steps towards the development of effective cancer treatments.

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