1.Analysis of Blood-absorbed Components and Their Metabolic Differences of Xiebaisan in Normal and Chronic Bronchitis Mice Based on UPLC-Q-Exactive Orbitrap MS
Peng PENG ; Jiaxin LI ; Xinyue YANG ; Fangle LIU ; Chenchen ZHU ; Chaozhan LIN ; Yufeng YAO
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2026;32(1):219-227
ObjectiveThis study aims to systematically analyze the blood-absorbed components and metabolic profiles of Xiebaisan(XBS) in normal and chronic bronchitis (CB) mice using ultra performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-electrostatic field orbitrap high resolution mass spectrometry(UPLC-Q-Exactive Orbitrap MS), while comparing differences between the two states. MethodsThirty female BABL/c mice were randomly divided into the normal group, the normal drug administration group, the CB group, the CB drug administration group and the dexamethasone group, with 6 mice in each group. The CB mouse model was established by inducing with ovalbumin (OVA). The mice in the normal drug administration group and the CB drug administration group started to be gavaged with XBS(13.2 g·kg-1) from the 21st day, and the dexamethasone group mice were simultaneously gavaged with dexamethasone (0.5 mg·kg-1) until the end of the 35th day of the experiment. Subsequently, serum samples were collected and evaluated for their efficacy, based on the pharmacological evaluation indicators, to determine the efficacy of XBS in treating CB. Then the UPLC-Q-Exactive Orbitrap MS was employed to identify and analyze the chemical constituents, blood-absorbed components, and metabolites of XBS. Chemometric analysis was conducted to reveal metabolic profile differences under "dual states". Concurrently, Real-time PCR technology was utilized to detect the expression levels of key liver metabolic enzymes CYP2E1, CYP3A1, UGT1A1, and UGT1A6. ResultsA total of 28 prototype components and 158 metabolites (including 48 phase Ⅰ metabolites and 110 phase Ⅱ metabolites) of XBS were unambiguously identified in the serum of normal mice. Additionally, a comprehensive characterization was performed on a total of 32 prototype components and 178 metabolites (including 50 phase Ⅰ metabolites and 128 phase Ⅱ metabolites) of XBS in the serum of CB mice. Among them, 27 prototype components were detected in both states, including 12 flavonoids, 2 alkaloids, 3 triterpenes, 4 organic acids, 3 amides, 1 stilbene and 2 other compounds. The chemometrics analysis revealed no significant difference in the prototype components and metabolites of XBS between normal and CB mice; however, there was a significant increase in the in-vivo exposure of XBS in CB mice. Compared to normal mice, the levels of phase Ⅰ metabolites such as oxidation, reduction and methylation of blood components of XBS as well as phase Ⅱ metabolites of glucuronidation showed significant changes in CB mice. Real-time PCR further confirmed that these alterations were attributed to the upregulation of CYP2E1 (P<0.05), CYP3A1 (P>0.05), UGT1A1 (P<0.01) and UGT1A6 (P<0.01) enzymes expression in the liver of CB mice. ConclusionThis study elucidated the disparities in the levels of the blood-absorbed components and metabolic profiles of XBS in normal and CB mice, especially in oxidation, reduction, methylation in phase Ⅰ metabolism and glucoaldehyde acidification in phase Ⅱ metabolism. And there are related to the differences in the expression levels of phase Ⅰ and phase Ⅱ metabolic enzymes CYP2E1, CYP3A1, UGT1A1 and UGT1A6 in the liver.
2.Evaluation of the quality of Alpinia katsumadai from different habitats based on HPLC fingerprint and determina-tion of active ingredient content
Yanwu LIAO ; Yingjun WANG ; Shun LIU ; Mingming QIU ; Yufeng ZHU
China Pharmacy 2025;36(18):2262-2266
OBJECTIVE To evaluate the quality differences of Alpinia katsumadai from different habitats. METHODS High- performance liquid chromatography(HPLC) was used to establish the fingerprints of A. katsumadai from 18 batches of different habitats, and the quality of A. katsumadai from different habitats was comprehensively evaluated by similarity evaluation, cluster analysis (CA), principal component analysis (PCA), orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) and the content determination results of alpinetin, pinocembrin, cardamonin and alnustone in A. katsumadai. RESULTS The similarity of HPLC fingerprints for 18 batches of A. katsumadai was >0.9. Eleven common peaks were identified from the chromatogram, and four of them were specifically characterized. Both CA and PCA grouped 18 batches of A. katsumadai into 3 categories, extracting 2 principal components (the cumulative variance contribution rate reached 89.798%). OPLS-DA identified 9 quality difference markers, namely the components corresponding to peaks 4, 9, 3, 2, 7 (pinocembrin), 8 (cardamonin), 6 (alpinetin), 10 and 11 (alnustone). The content of alpinetin, pinocembrin, cardamonin, and alnustone ranged from 4.507 1-11.579 7, 5.154 4-14.183 3, 5.109 5-13.588 3 and 4.494 6-11.277 2 mg/g, respectively. CONCLUSIONS The quality of A. katsumadai from different habitats is quite different, and the quality of A. katsumadai from Hainan is the best.
3.Construction of a prognostic model for breast cancer based on lipid metabolism-related genes and functional verification of ALDH2.
Zirong LU ; Yufeng LU ; Ji ZHOU ; Yichao ZHU
Journal of Zhejiang University. Medical sciences 2025;():1-10
OBJECTIVES:
To investigate the expression patterns and prognostic value of lipid metabolism-related genes in breast cancer.
METHODS:
RNA sequencing data and clinical information were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas breast cancer (TCGA-BRCA) dataset, including 1100 breast cancer tissue samples (18 paired with adjacent tissues) and 112 normal breast tissue samples. Differentially expressed lipid metabolism-related genes were screened from a predefined set of 2043 genes using Bioconductor in R, with a false discovery rate <0.05 and |log2(fold change)|>2. Eligible samples were randomly divided into a training cohort (n=651) and a validation cohort (n=431) at a 6∶4 ratio. Prognostic lipid metabolism-related genes were identified using univariate Cox regression (P<0.005) and further refined via LASSO regression. A risk score model was constructed using multivariate Cox regression, and patients were stratified into high- and low-risk groups based on the median risk score. The model's performance was evaluated using Kaplan-Meier survival analysis with the log-rank test and time-dependent receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. A nomogram integrating age, TNM stage, clinical grade, and risk score was developed and validated using calibration curves and the concordance index. Immune cell infiltration was quantified using an immune scoring algorithm, and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) was applied to identify key modules associated with immune cell infiltration. Finally, to validate the function of the key gene ALDH2, small interfering RNA targeting ALDH2 was transfected into breast cancer cells, and its effects on invasion and migration were assessed using Transwell invasion and wound healing assays.
RESULTS:
A total of 185 differentially expressed lipid metabolism-related genes were identified. Univariate Cox and LASSO regression analyses identified three genes-ALDH2, CYP21A2, and IL24-which were incorporated into the multivariate Cox model. The prognostic model based on these genes demonstrated good predictive performance in both cohorts: patients in the high-risk group had significantly shorter overall survival (P<0.01), and the area under the ROC curve for predicting 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates was above 0.64. Analysis of the tumor microenvironment revealed an immunosuppressive phenotype in the high-risk group, characterized by reduced infiltration of several anti-tumor immune cells and downregulation of key immune checkpoint molecules such as PDCD1 and CTLA4. WGCNA suggested an association between ALDH2 and immune cell infiltration. Functional experi-ments confirmed that ALDH2 knockdown significantly enhanced the migration and invasion abilities of breast cancer cells.
CONCLUSIONS
This study established and validated a pro-gnostic model for breast cancer based on lipid metabolism-related genes. It revealed that low ALDH2 expression is closely associated with poor prognosis and immunosuppression, suggesting its potential as a prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target in breast cancer.
4.Facilitation of mucosal healing by estrogen receptor β in ulcerative colitis through suppression of branched-chain amino acid transport and subsequent triggering of autophagy in colonic epithelial cells.
Yilei GUO ; Yanrong ZHU ; Jing ZHANG ; Yue HE ; Mianjiang ZHAO ; Haochang LIN ; Zhifeng WEI ; Yufeng XIA ; Yue DAI
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2025;15(1):168-187
Colonic mucosal healing is the ultimate goal of ulcerative colitis (UC) treatment, but it remains difficult to realize. Given the higher incidence of UC in males and the beneficial effect of estrogen on UC, we conducted this study to examine the therapeutic potential of estrogen receptor β (ERβ), the primary ER subtype in colon, on mucosal healing in UC. Our study is the first to report that ERβ activation degree was positively correlated with mucosal healing in patients with UC. Furthermore, ERβ activation enhanced mucosal healing in mice with dextran sulfate sodium-induced and biopsy-induced colonic injuries. Mechanistically, ERβ activation promoted autophagy of colonic epithelial cells by inhibiting branched-chain amino acid transport, leading to focal adhesion kinase (FAK) activation. Activated FAK promoted focal adhesion turnover and colonic epithelial cell migration, ultimately facilitating mucosal healing. ERβ -/- colitis mice exhibited impaired mucosal healing compared to wild-type littermates, highlighting the crucial effect of ERβ. Importantly, combination with ERβ-agonist diarylpropionitrile enhanced the amelioration of 5-aminosalicylic acid, a standard UC treatment agent, against mouse colitis. These findings attest to the crucial role of ERβ activation in colonic mucosal healing and may further inform the development of novel strategies for UC treatment.
5.Safety and efficacy of levosimendan in perioperative period for patients with pulmonary hypertension associated with valvular heart disease undergoing heart valve replacement surgery
Kaihang WANG ; Pengcheng ZHU ; Zhanlei WANG ; Daliang YAN ; Yufeng XIE ; Jidan FAN
Journal of Clinical Medicine in Practice 2025;29(5):16-19,25
Objective To observe the safety and efficacy of levosimendan in the perioperative pe-riod for patients with pulmonary hypertension associated with valvular heart disease undergoing heart valve replacement surgery.Methods A total of 90 patients with pulmonary hypertension associated with valvular heart disease who underwent valve replacement surgery from April 2023 to May 2024 were enrolled.Based on the use of levosimendan,patients were divided into low-dose group,high-dose group,and control group,with 30 patients in each group.The control group received conventional drug therapy;the low-dose group received one dose of levosimendan from 3 days before surgery to 3 days after surgery combined with conventional drug therapy;the high-dose group received two doses of levosimendan from 3 days before surgery to 3 days after surgery combined with conventional drug therapy.Data on brain natriuretic peptide(BNP),left ventricular ejection fraction(LVEF),left ventricular end-diastolic diameter(LVEDD),creatinine(Cr),mean pulmonary artery pressure(mPAP),PH related to left heart disease(PH-LHD)status,postoperative ICU stay,postoperative hospital stay,and cardiac function classification were collected and recorded at admission and before discharge.Results There were no statistically significant differences in gender,age,and body mass among the control group,low-dose group,and high-dose group(P>0.05).There was no sta-tistically significant difference in the increase in Cr among the three groups(P>0.05).There were statistically significant differences in postoperative ICU stay between the control group and the high-dose group,and between the control group and the low-dose group(P=0.017,0.028).However,there was no statistically significant difference in postoperative ICU stay between the low-dose group and the high-dose group(P=0.839).There were statistically significant differences in postopera-tive hospital stay between the control group and the high-dose group,and between the control group and the low-dose group(P=0.001,0.009),but no statistically significant difference was found between the low-dose group and the high-dose group(P=0.463).No serious complications oc-curred in any of three groups,and no patients withdrew from the study.Only one patient in the high-dose group experienced hypotension during the postoperative use of levosimendan,which nor-malized after fluid replacement.There was no statistically significant difference in the decrease in mPAP among the three groups(P>0.05).There was a statistically significant difference in the de-crease in BNP between the control group and the high-dose group(P=0.025);however,there were no statistically significant differences in the decrease in BNP between the control group and the low-dose group,or between the low-dose group and the high-dose group(P=0.068,0.970).There was a statistically significant difference in the increase in LVEF between the control group and the high-dose group(P=0.019);however,there were no statistically significant differences in the increase in LVEF between the control group and the low-dose group,or between the low-dose group and the high-dose group(P=0.055,0.652).There were statistically significant differences in the decrease in LVEDD between the control group and the low-dose group,and between the control group and the high-dose group(P=0.019,0.033);however,there was no statistically significant difference between the low-dose group and the high-dose group(P=0.829).In the control group,18 patients(60.0%)had clinically effective treatment,22 patients(73.3%)in the low-dose group,and 24 patients(80.0%)in the high-dose group.There was no statistically significant differ-ence in clinical efficacy among the three groups(P=0.220).Conclusion Levosimendan is safe and effective in the perioperative period for patients with pulmonary hypertension associated with valvular heart disease,and high-dose use can more significantly improve LVEF and reduce BNP levels.
6.Study on the single nucleotide polymorphism and copy number variation of cardiac myxoma
Jidan FAN ; Yufeng XIE ; Daliang YAN ; Kaihang WANG ; Pengcheng ZHU
Chinese Journal of Clinical Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery 2025;32(11):1629-1641
Objective To analyze the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and copy number variation (CNV) of cardiac myxoma to find the SNP sites and CNV events that may play important roles in the occurrence of tumors. Methods The patients with myxoma admitted to our hospital from 2015 to 2019 were randomly selected. The SNP analysis and the CNV test in gene level were performed through whole exome sequencing (WES). The samples were divided into two groups according to the mean size of the tumor: a diameter≤5.7 cm group and a diameter>5.7 cm group. The analysis results were compared between the two groups. Results A total of 14 patients were enrolled, including 8 females and 6 males with a mean age of 61.4 (41-79) years. Thirty-seven cancer-genes with SNP were detected, among which 18 mutated sites had a mutation rate of>10%; and TP53, EP300 and CREBBP played a core binding role in protein-protein interaction-network. The GO enrichment results showed significant differences in the regulation of cell secretion of the mutated genes, and the KEGG enrichment results showed significant differences in the PI3K-AKT and JAK-STAT signaling pathways in the occurrence of myxoma. In addition, 17 new mutation sites of tumor genes with high mutation effect were found in SNP detection. The WES results of 14 samples showed that the CNV events were detected in 120 tumor genes of the samples, 10 of which were included in two tumor databases. The GO enrichment results showed significant differences in the tube development and regulation of cell proliferation, and the KEGG enrichment results showed significant differences in the comprehensive tumor signaling pathway. Statistical differences of ERCC6L and INTS6L in CNV test were found (P=0.030). Conclusion There may be multiple tumor gene site mutations in the process of tumor generation, among which there are multiple core tumor genes such as TP53, EP300 and CREBBP, regulating tumor cells through PI3K-AKT and JAK-STAT signaling pathways and playing an important role in tumor generation. The CNV of ERCC6L and INTS6L genes may be related to tumor growth.
7.Advances in research on mechanisms related to myocardial regeneration in neonatal murine
Mengqi CHEN ; Tingting LIU ; Fangling SUN ; Xin TIAN ; Wenrong ZHENG ; Zixin ZHU ; Yufeng WANG ; Liansu MA ; Wen WANG
Chinese Journal of Comparative Medicine 2024;34(2):144-153
Cardiovascular disease is a health hazard to humans and systolic heart failure due to myocardial infarction is a major cause of death.It was previously thought that myocardial cells of the adult mammalian heart possess a limited ability to proliferate and self-renew.However,it has been widely reported that mammals have the ability to regenerate the myocardium,which is restricted to early postnatal life,and that it is strong enough to repair damaged heart tissue.The discovery of myocardial regeneration in neonatal hearts has provided an ideal animal model to investigate the mechanisms that affect myocardial regeneration,and many mechanisms that reverse myocardial cell cycle arrest and promote myocardial regeneration have been revealed.In this article,we review the factors affecting gene expression for myocardial regeneration(e.g.,ncRNAs and transcription factors),myocardial regeneration-related signaling pathways,and the regulation of myocardial regeneration by non-myocardial cells(e.g.,extracellular matrix,immune response,and epicardium)to provide directions for achieving myocardial regeneration after myocardial injury in adult mammals.
8.Analysis of clinical and pathological characteristics of drug-induced live injury based on hepatotoxicity injury patterns
Honghai XU ; Shiwei ZHU ; Hui ZHANG ; Yufeng GAO ; Hua WANG
Chinese Journal of Clinical and Experimental Pathology 2024;40(2):172-178
Purpose To explore the clinical and pathologi-cal features and the relationships between pathological features and drugs of patients with drug-induced liver injury(DILI)based on the hepatotoxicity injury patterns.Methods The clin-ical data,laboratory indicators,drugs,and liver biopsy of 50 cases of DILI were collected,the expression of CK19 was detec-ted by immunohistochemistry EnVision two-step method,and the reticular scaffold of liver tissue was displayed by Reticular fiber staining.Results Among the 50 patients with DILI,there were 29 cases of hepatocellular DILI,11 cases of cholestatic DILI,and 10 cases of mixed DILI,respectively,with the hepatocellu-lar DILI accounting for the highest proportion(58%).7 catego-ries of drugs induced DILI,with herbal ranking first(52%).Different types of drugs could cause different types of DILI,with herbal induced 17 cases hepatocellular DILI(58.62%)and an-ti-infectious and anticancer drugs induced all 3 cases cholestatic DILI(27.27%).Different types of DILI displayed various pathological characteristics.Hepatocellular congestion,feathery degeneration,and small bile duct thrombosis primarily occur in cholestasis and mixed DILI,while bridging necrosis,sub-large and large necrosis were mainly seen in hepatocellular DILI.Conclusion Based on hepatotoxicity injury patterns,DILI ex-hibits a variety of clinical and pathological characteristics,and there is some relationship between pathological characteristics and drugs.Liver puncture pathological biopsy plays an important role in improving the diagnosis and treatment of DILI.
9.Effect of Shenfu Yixin Granules on Mitochondrial Dynamics in Rats with Heart Failure After Myocardial Infarction
Yuying SONG ; Lin CUI ; Yufeng HE ; Huiying ZHU ; Weihong LIU ; Si SHEN
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2024;30(11):87-94
ObjectiveTo prepare a rat model of heart failure after myocardial infarction by ligation of the anterior descending branch of the left coronary artery, and to observe the effect of Shenfu Yixin granules on the mitochondrial dynamics of rats with heart failure. MethodFifty SD male rats were randomly taken ten as the sham operation group and the rest as modeling group. The rat model of heart failure after myocardial infarction was prepared by ligation of anterior descending branch of left coronary artery. According to the left ventricular ejection fraction(LVEF) on the 28th day after operation, the model rats were randomly divided into the model group, Shenfu Yixin granule low-dose and high-dose groups(3.011, 15.055 g·kg-1) and sacubitril valsartan sodium group(20.83 mg·kg-1). Each administration group was gavaged daily with the corresponding dose of drug solution, while the sham operation group and model group were given the same amount of normal saline once a day for 28 days, with 6 rats in each group. Ultrasound was used to detect the cardiac function parameters, rat heart mass and body mass were weighed to calculate the cardiac mass index, enzyme linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA) was used to detect serum brain natriuretic peptide(BNP) and soluble growth stimulation expressed gene 2 protein(sST2) levels. Hematoxylin-eosin(HE) staining was used to observe the pathological morphology of the myocardium. Real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction(Real-time PCR) and Western blot were used to detect the mRNA and protein expression of mitochondrial fusion protein 1/2(Mfn1/2), optic atrophy protein 1(Opa1), dynamin-related protein 1(Drp1) and fission protein 1(Fis1). ResultCompared with the sham operation group, the mRNA and protein expression of LVEF, Mfn1, Mfn2, Opal in the model group decreased(P<0.05), while BNP, sST2, cardiac mass index, Drp1, Fis1 mRNA and protein levels increased(P<0.05). Compared with the model group, the expression of LVEF, Mfn1, Mfn2, Opal mRNA and protein increased in Shenfu Yixin granule high-dose and sacubitril valsartan sodium groups(P<0.05), while BNP, sST2, cardiac mass index, Drp1, Fis1 mRNA and protein levels decreased(P<0.05). Pathological observation showed that compared with the sham operation group, the model group had disordered arrangement of myocardial cells, inflammatory cell infiltration and myocardial fibrosis. Compared with the model group, the degree of inflammatory cell infiltration, myocardial or interstitial fibrosis was improved and alleviated in all administered groups. ConclusionShenfu Yixin granules can resist heart failure, reduce cardiac mass index, decrease BNP and sST2 contents, and improve cardiac function. Its mechanism may be related to the adjustment of mitochondrial dynamics.
10.Analysis of the Material Basis and Efficacy of the Differences in the Preparation of Pinellia Ternate before and after Concoc-tion Based on UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS and Network Pharmacology
Kunqun SHI ; Yue XIONG ; Xiang QIAN ; Yufeng ZHU ; Yi YAO ; Qian ZHANG ; Shijia LIU
Journal of Nanjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2024;40(2):153-166
OBJECTIVE To screen and identify the differential substance bases of Pinellia ternate and its different concoctions,conduct network pharmacological analysis on the common and differential substance bases,and explore the relationship between the substance bases and the changes in the efficacy of Pinellia ternate before and after concoction based on the UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS and multivariate statistical analysis.METHODS The main substance bases of 42 batches of samples were examined by UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS,and the differential components were screened by orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis(OPLS-DA)with VIP>1.5,P<0.01 and FC>2 or<0.5 as the screening criteria.The targets were further retrieved from the TCMIP database,and their protein interactions were analysed by GO enrichment and KEGG enrichment to visualise the"herbal-component-target-pathway"map.RESULTS Compared with Pinellia ternate,Pinelliae Rhizoma Praeparatum has 14 different components,mainly glycyrrhetinic acid,glycyrrhizic acid and glycyrrhizin,etc.The components with reduced content were mainly amides.There were 18 differential constituents between raw and ginger,mainly nucleosides,flavonoids and amino acids.The content of guanosine,xanthine and tyrosine was reduced,while the content of adenosine monophosphate was increased.There were 18 differential components between raw and Pinelliae Rhizoma Praeparatum Cum Alumine,and the relative content of many components in Pinelliae Rhizoma Praeparatum Cum Alu-mine was reduced,such as sphingomyelin.Further,the TCMIP database was used to retrieve targets from the differential substance base,and protein interaction analysis was performed on the targets,resulting in 67 core targets for Pinellia ternate,45 core targets for Pinelliae Rhizoma Praeparatum,and 38 core targets for Pinelliae Rhizoma Praeparatum cum Zingibere Et Alumine.Finally,the meta-bolic pathways were analyzed by GO enrichment and KEGG enrichment.CONCLUSION The UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS method estab-lished in this experiment can better isolate and identify the chemical components in Pinellia ternate.Combined with multivariate statisti-cal analysis and network pharmacology,the material basis and potential mechanism of action of Pinellia ternate and its concoction prod-ucts can provide ideas for the study of the action targets and provide data support for the rational clinical application of Pinellia ternate and its concoction products.

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