1.Strategy for cysteine-targeting covalent inhibitors screening using in-house database based LC-MS/MS and drug repurposing.
Xiaolan HU ; Jian-Lin WU ; Quan HE ; Zhi-Qi XIONG ; Na LI
Journal of Pharmaceutical Analysis 2025;15(3):101045-101045
Targeted covalent inhibitors, primarily targeting cysteine residues, have attracted great attention as potential drug candidates due to good potency and prolonged duration of action. However, their discovery is challenging. In this research, a database-assisted liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) strategy was developed to quickly discover potential cysteine-targeting compounds. First, compounds with potential reactive groups were selected and incubated with N-acetyl-cysteine in microsomes. And the precursor ions of possible cysteine-adducts were predicted based on covalent binding mechanisms to establish in-house database. Second, substrate-independent product ions produced from N-acetyl-cysteine moiety were selected. Third, multiple reaction monitoring scan was conducted to achieve sensitive screening for cysteine-targeting compounds. This strategy showed broad applicability, and covalent compounds with diverse structures were screened out, offering structural resources for covalent inhibitors development. Moreover, the screened compounds, norketamine and hydroxynorketamine, could modify synaptic transmission-related proteins in vivo, indicating their potential as covalent inhibitors. This experimental-based screening strategy provides a quick and reliable guidance for the design and discovery of covalent inhibitors.
2.Co-Circulation of Respiratory Pathogens that Cause Severe Acute Respiratory Infections during the Autumn and Winter of 2023 in Beijing, China.
Jing Zhi LI ; Da HUO ; Dai Tao ZHANG ; Jia Chen ZHAO ; Chun Na MA ; Dan WU ; Peng YANG ; Quan Yi WANG ; Zhao Min FENG
Biomedical and Environmental Sciences 2025;38(5):644-648
3.Integrated Detection Techniques for Forensic DNA and DNA Methylation Markers
Na YI ; Guang-Bin ZHAO ; Ke-Lai KANG ; Yi-Ren YAO ; Ke-Li GUO ; Jie ZHAO ; Chi ZHANG ; Lei MIAO ; Le WANG ; An-Quan JI
Progress in Biochemistry and Biophysics 2024;51(9):2156-2167
DNA genetic markers have always played important roles in individual identification, kinship analysis, ancestry inference and phenotype characterization in the field of forensic medicine. DNA methylation has unique advantages in biological age inference, body fluid identification and prediction of phenotypes. The majority of current studies independently examine DNA and DNA methylation markers using various workflows, and they use various analytical procedures to interpret the biological information these two markers present. Integrated methods detect DNA and DNA methylation markers simultaneously through a single experimental workflow using the same preparation of sample. Therefore, they can effectively reduce consumption of time and cost, streamline experimental procedures, and preserve valuable DNA samples taken from crime scenes. In this paper, the integrated detection approaches of DNA and DNA methylation markers on different detection platforms were reviewed. In order to convert methylation modifications to detectable forms, several options were available for pretreatment of genomic DNA, including digestion with methylation-sensitive restriction enzyme, affinity enrichment of methylated fragments, conversion of methylated or unmethylated cytosine. Multiplexed primers can be designed for DNA markers and converted DNA methylation markers for co-amplification. The schemes of using capillary electrophoresis platform for integrated detection add the pretreatment of genomic DNA on the basis of detecting DNA genetic markers. DNA and DNA methylation markers are then integrated by co-amplification. But the limited number of fluorescent options available and the length of amplicons restrict the type and quantity of markers that can be integrated into a panel. Pyrophosphate sequencing also supports integrated detection of DNA and DNA methylation markers. On this platform, due to the conversion of unmethylated cytosine to thymine after treatment with bisulfite, the methylation level of CpG site can be directly calculated using the peak height ratio of cytosine bases and thymine bases. Therefore, the methylation levels and SNP typing can be simultaneously obtained. However, due to the limited read length of sequencing, the detection of markers with longer amplicons is restricted. It is not conducive to fully interpret the complete information of the target sequence. Next-generation sequencing also supports integrated detection of DNA and DNA methylation markers. A preliminary experimental process including DNA extraction, pretreatment of genomic DNA, co-preparation of DNA and DNA methylation library and co-sequencing, has been formed based on the next-generation sequencing platform. It confirmed the feasibility of next-generation sequencing technology for integrated detection of DNA and DNA methylation markers. In field of biomedicine, various integrated detection schemes and corresponding data analysis approaches of DNA and DNA genetic markers developed based on the above detection process.Co-analysis can simultaneously obtain the genomic genetic and epigenetic information through a single analytic process. These schemes suggest that next-generation sequencing may be an effective method for achieving more accurate and highly integrated detection, helping to explore the potential for application in forensic biological samples. We finally explore the impact of interactions between sites and different pretreatment methods on the integrated detection of DNA and DNA methylation markers, and also propose the challenge of applying third-generation sequencing for integrated detection in forensic samples.
4.GPR40 novel agonist SZZ15-11 regulates glucolipid metabolic disorders in spontaneous type 2 diabetic KKAy mice
Lei LEI ; Jia-yu ZHAI ; Tian ZHOU ; Quan LIU ; Shuai-nan LIU ; Cai-na LI ; Hui CAO ; Cun-yu FENG ; Min WU ; Lei-lei CHEN ; Li-ran LEI ; Xuan PAN ; Zhan-zhu LIU ; Yi HUAN ; Zhu-fang SHEN
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica 2024;59(10):2782-2790
G protein-coupled receptor (GPR) 40, as one of GPRs family, plays a potential role in regulating glucose and lipid metabolism. To study the effect of GPR40 novel agonist SZZ15-11 on hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemia and its potential mechanism, spontaneous type 2 diabetic KKAy mice, human hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 cells and murine mature adipocyte 3T3-L1 cells were used. KKAy mice were divided into four groups, vehicle group, TAK group, SZZ (50 mg·kg-1) group and SZZ (100 mg·kg-1) group, with oral gavage of 0.5% sodium carboxymethylcellulose (CMC), 50 mg·kg-1 TAK875, 50 and 100 mg·kg-1 SZZ15-11 respectively for 45 days. Fasting blood glucose, blood triglyceride (TG) and total cholesterol (TC), non-fasting blood glucose were tested. Oral glucose tolerance test and insulin tolerance test were executed. Blood insulin and glucagon were measured
5.Effect of distal ischemic preconditioning on cardiovascular events in adult patients with hip fracture one year after operation
Li-Na ZHANG ; Yan-Ge ZHANG ; Yong-Quan WU
China Journal of Orthopaedics and Traumatology 2024;37(5):487-491
Objective To investigate the effect of remote ischemic preconditioning(RIPC)on major adverse cardiovascu-lar events(MACE)in elderly patients with hip fracture 1 year after operation.Methods Total of 314 elderly patients with hip fracture of grade Ⅱ and Ⅲ for American Society of Anesthesiologists(ASA)were treated by surgical operation from April 2015 to May 2020 including 116 males and 198 females,the age ranged from 60 to 76 years old.The subjects were divided into in-tervention group and control group according to whether received RIPC.Among them,157 cases in intervention group included 56 males and 101 females with an average age of(68.12±7.13)years old and 157 cases in control group included 60 males and 97 females with an average age of(68.24±7.05)years old.Both groups were given routine anesthesia.The intervention group was treated with RIPC on the basis of routine anesthesia.The MACE events 1 year after operation in two groups were com-pared and analyzed.Results The OR values of RIPC for myocardial infarction,heart failure,stroke,nonfatal cardiac arrest,coronary revascularization,severe arrhythmia,peripheral artery thrombosis,readmission of cardiovascular disease,and all-cause death in patients with hip fracture one year after operation were 1.269,1.304,0.977,1.089,1.315,1.335,0.896,0.774,1.191,respectively,but there was no significant difference(P>0.05).Conclusion RIPC did not significantly affect and change the occurrence of major cardiovascular adverse events within 1 year after hip fracture surgery.The long term impact of RIPC on clinical cardiovascular outcomes in non cardiac surgery needs to be confirmed in appropriate randomized clinical trials.
6.The effects of hypothalamic microglial activation on ventricular arrhythmias in stress cardiomyopathy.
Peng-Qi LIN ; Quan-Wei PEI ; Bin LI ; Jie-Mei YANG ; Li-Na ZOU ; De-Zhan SU ; Jun-Pei ZHANG ; Hong-Peng YIN ; Mbabazi NADINE ; Jun-Jie YANG ; Nevzorova Vera A ; Khan MUSAWIR ABBAS ; Zhao-Lei JIANG ; Jing-Jie LI ; De-Chun YIN
Journal of Geriatric Cardiology 2024;21(12):1119-1132
BACKGROUND:
Stress cardiomyopathy (SCM) currently has a high incidence in older adults, and the theories regarding its causes include "catecholamine myocardial toxicity" and "sympathetic hyperactivation". However, the role of the central nervous system in the pathogenesis of SCM remains unknown. We investigated the role of microglia activation in the paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus (PVN) in the development of SCM.
METHODS:
An SCM model was created using male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats, immobilized for 6 h every day for a week. Electrocardiogram, cardiac electrophysiology, and echocardiography examinations were performed to verify the changes in cardiac structure and function in rats with SCM. RNA sequencing was used to explore the changes in the hypothalamus during SCM. In addition, brain and heart tissues were collected to detect microglial activation and sympathetic activity.
RESULTS:
The main findings were as follows: (1) immobilization stress successfully induced SCM in SD rats; (2) microglia were significantly activated in the hypothalamus, as evidenced by cytosol thickening, increases in the number of microglial branches, and microglia enriched in the PVN; (3) in SCM, the microglia in the PVN exhibited increased central and peripheral cardiac sympathetic activity and increased the expression of neuroinflammatory factors; and (4) it is possible that inhibiting microglial activation could suppress the sympathetic activity of the central nervous system and heart and increase cardiac electrical stability in SCM rats.
CONCLUSIONS
SCM was induced in SD rats by immobilization stress, acting through the activation of the hypothalamic microglia. The activated microglia were specifically enriched in the PVN, increasing the activity of the central and peripheral sympathetic nervous systems by regulating the expression of neuro-inflammatory factors, mediating dysfunction of the left ventricle, and increasing the susceptibility to ventricular arrhythmias.
7.Clinical Efficacy and Mechanism of Osteoking in Treatment of Knee Osteoarthritis Based on Real-world Data
Ruihan LI ; Jun ZHOU ; Zhi LIANG ; Shuai GAO ; Rui QUAN ; Xisheng WENG ; Yanqiong ZHANG ; Na LIN ; Weiheng CHEN
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2023;29(24):63-71
ObjectiveTo investigate the clinical efficacy and mechanisms of Osteoking in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis (KOA) in real-world practice, so as to provide a basis for the rational clinical use of Osteoking. MethodFrom the Osteoking for knee osteoarthritis case registration system, 638 KOA cases treated with Osteoking were selected and analyzed in SPSS 26.0. The clinical data were collected from 20 hospitals in China from May 2020 to December 2021. Descriptive analyses of patient age, gender, body mass index, course of treatment and other parameters were performed. The Mann-Whitney U test was performed to compare the visual analogue scale (VAS) and Western Ontario and McMaster universities arthritis index (WOMAC) scores before and after treatment. The integrative pharmacology-based research platform of traditional Chinese medicine (TCMIP) v2.0 was used for network analysis of the core targets of Osteoking in treating knee osteoarthritis. Furthermore, 20 KOA patients treated with Osteoking in the Third Affiliated Hospital of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine from October to December in 2022 were enrolled in the treatment group, and 20 healthy volunteers in the control group. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was employed to measure the serum levels of related indicators to verify the prediction results. ResultA total of 638 KOA patients were treated with Osteoking, including 429 (67.24%) receiving Osteoking alone and 209 (32.76%) receiving Osteoking combined with other therapies. The female patients (415, 65.05%) were more than the male patients (223, 34.95%). The patients showed the mean age of (63.48±13.51) years, mean body mass index of (24.09±2.98) kg·m-2, and mean course of treatment of (15.78±9.66) days. Most of the patients were rated as grades Ⅱ (46.24%) and Ⅲ (34.64%) in Kellgren-Lawrence (K-L) grading and in the relief stage (82.45%) in clinical staging. There was no significant correlation between clinical staging and K-L grading results. The cluster analysis identified three TCM syndromes: Qi stagnation and blood stasis, cold-dampness obstruction, and liver-kidney deficiency. The overall clinical efficacy evaluation showed that VAS score decreased from (6.01±0.85) scores before treatment to (2.54±1.73) scores after treatment (P<0.05), and the WOMAC score decreased from (93.25±25.91) scores before treatment to (50.73±25.14) scores after treatment (P<0.05). The network analysis predicted that Osteoking might regulate the transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), and nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) signaling pathways to exert the therapeutic effect. The clinical trial showed elevated TGF-β1 level (P<0.01) and lowered NF-κB subunit RELA and tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily, member 1A (TNFRSF1A) levels (P<0.05) after treatment. The synergistic effects of these changes provide a multidimensional and comprehensive therapeutic efficacy for KOA, alleviating the joint pain and limited mobility in patients. ConclusionOsteoking showed significant therapeutic efficacy in treating KOA. Osteoking may act on multiple pathways involved in cartilage metabolism and inflammation. The findings provide experimental evidence and theoretical support for elucidating the multi-target mechanism of Osteoking in treating KOA.
8.A Real-World Clinical Study of Osteoking Combined with Intra-Articular Injection of Sodium Hyaluronate in Treatment of Knee Osteoarthritis
Rui QUAN ; Jun ZHOU ; Yan JIA ; Yan YAN ; Shuai GAO ; Zhi LIANG ; Ruihan LI ; Shuwen LI ; Yanqiong ZHANG ; Xisheng WENG ; Na LIN ; Baohong MI ; Weiheng CHEN
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2023;29(24):72-79
ObjectiveTo investigate the improvement of the efficacy of Osteoking in patients with knee osteoarthritis in the onset and remission stage and to systematically explore its potential intervention mechanism, so as to provide a certain reference for improving the clinical application value of Osteoking and guiding its clinical rational drug use. MethodThrough the real-world study of the treatment of knee osteoarthritis with Osteoking, the data was obtained and entered into the "Osteoking for the treatment of knee osteoarthritis case registration system", and 105 patients with episodic and remission knee osteoarthritis from the outpatient or inpatient orthopedic department of 20 medical institutions, including the Third Affiliated Hospital of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Wangjing Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences and Hunan Aerospace Hospital, from May 1, 2020 to December 31, 2021, were selected in the system. It included 60 patients treated with Osteoking and joint injection, and 45 patients treated with joint injection alone. The WOMAC osteoarthritis index score, visual analogue (VAS) pain score, individual types of pain symptoms (cold pain, hot pain, tingling, dull pain, soreness) and other TCM symptoms were observed and compared between the two groups, and statistically analyzed. In order to further elucidate the potential molecular mechanism of Osteoking combined with joint injection in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis in the treatment of onset and remission, this study used the "Bone Injury Cross Database (
9.Clinical Study of Osteoking Combined with Non-Steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs in Treatment of Knee Osteoarthritis
Zhi LIANG ; Jun ZHOU ; Rui QUAN ; Shuai GAO ; Ruihan LI ; Shuwen LI ; Baohong MI ; Yanqiong ZHANG ; Na LIN ; Weiheng CHEN
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2023;29(24):80-86
ObjectiveTo explore the clinical efficacy of Osteoking combined with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis based on real-world data and provide a basis for clinical medication. MethodFrom May 2020 to December 2021, the data of a total of 1 002 patients with knee osteoarthritis who did not undergo knee joint replacement surgery was collected through the registration method. 952 patients were ultimately included, including 133 cases orally taking Osteoking combined with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs as the observation group and 73 cases orally taking non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs alone as the control group. Statistical analysis was conducted on the baseline data, VAS scores, WOMAC scores, and other items. The visit point is the 4th and 8th weeks after registration. In order to further elucidate the clinical efficacy of Osteoking combined with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis, the effective components of Osteoking and the relevant gene sets of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and knee osteoarthritis were obtained through network pharmacology methods and retrieval in bone injury cross database, TCMSP, and other databases. Venn analysis was performed on the relevant gene sets, and a PPI network diagram was constructed. Then key core targets were screened out, and enrichment GO and KEGG enrichment analyses were conducted. ResultThe VAS score of the observation group decreases by an average of (-2.79±1.206) scores in the 4th week, which is better than the control group [(-2.73±1.575) scores, P<0.05]. The VAS score of the observation group decreases by an average of (-3.97±1.308) scores in the 8th week, which is better than the control group [(-3.89±1.822) scores, P<0.05]. The total WOMAC score of the observation group decreases by an average of (-52.07±21.677) scores points in the 8th week, which is significantly better than the control group [(-46.75±25.368) scores, P<0.05]. The observation group has an average decrease of (-10.99±4.229) scores in WOMAC (pain) score in the 8th week, which is better than the control group [(-10.03±5.535) scores, P<0.05]. The observation group has an average decrease of (-1.49±2.901) in WOMAC (stiffness) score in the 4th week, which is better than the control group [(-0.92±1.998) scores, P<0.05], and the observation group has an average decrease of (-1.90±3.200) scores in WOMAC (stiffness) score in the 8th week, which is better than the control group [(-1.26±2.230) scores, P<0.05]. The observation group shows an average decrease of (-39.17±16.562) scores in WOMAC (joint function) score in the 8th week, which is significantly better than the control group [(-35.47±20.098) scores, P<0.05]. According to network pharmacology analysis, the core network target of Osteoking in treating knee osteoarthritis is manifested as regulating signal pathways such as signal transduction transcription activator 3(STAT3), vascular endothelial growth factor A(VEGFA), tumor necrosis factor (TNF) to regulate cell signaling, angiogenesis, chondrocyte proliferation and migration, and inflammatory cells, thereby inhibiting inflammatory reactions, reducing damage, and delaying the development of the disease. ConclusionAfter a 4-week and 8-week course of treatment for knee osteoarthritis with Osteoking combined with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, there is a significant therapeutic effect on relieving pain and joint stiffness and improving joint function. In network pharmacology, Osteoking is involved in regulating inflammatory factors, metabolic response-related biological processes, the proliferation and apoptosis of chondrocytes, etc. in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis, resulting in anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects and improving joint mobility and joint stiffness. Therefore, it is worthy of clinical promotion and application.
10.Exploring biological connotation of blood stasis syndrome of rheumatoid arthritis and establishment of improved animal models based on syndrome-symptom mapping
Wen-jia CHEN ; Tao LI ; Ming-zhu XU ; Xun GONG ; Wei-xiang LIU ; Pei-hao LI ; Quan JIANG ; Wei LIU ; Xia MAO ; Xin LI ; Hai-yu XU ; Na LIN ; Yan-qiong ZHANG
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica 2023;58(8):2434-2441
Blood stasis syndrome is one of the core clinical syndrome of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), but the biological connotation of this syndrome is not clear, and there is a lack of disease improved animal models that match the characteristics of this disease and syndrome. The aim of this study was to screen the candidate biomarker gene set of blood stasis syndrome of RA, reveal the biological connotation of this syndrome, and explore and evaluate the preparation method of the improved animal model based on the characteristics of "disease-syndrome-symptom". The study was approved by the ethics committee of Guang'anmen Hospital, Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine (No. 2019-073-KY-01) and the First Affiliated Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine (No. TYLL2021[K]018), and the study subjects gave their informed consent. Animal welfare and experimental procedures followed the regulations of the Experimental Animal Ethics Committee of the Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine (No. IBTCMCACMS21-2207-01). The whole blood samples were collected clinically from RA patients with blood stasis syndrome (3 cases) or other syndromes (7 types, 3 cases/type), and healthy volunteers (4 cases), and then transcriptome sequencing, KEGG, gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) and weighted correlation network analysis (WGCNA) analysis were performed. 126 pivotal genes were screened, and their functional annotation results were significantly enriched in "immune-inflammation" related pathways and lipid metabolism regulation (sphingolipids, ether lipid metabolism and steroid biosynthesis). Syndrome-symptom mapping of hub gene set to the TCM primary and secondary symptoms, Western phenotypic symptoms and pathological links showed that joint tingling, abnormal joint morphology, petechiae and abnormal blood circulation are representative of blood stasis syndrome of RA. The results of the improved animal model showed that the rats in the collagen-induced arthritis + adrenaline hydrochloride (CIA+Adr) 3 model group had increased blood rheology, coagulation, platelet function and endothelial function abnormalities compared with the CIA-alone model group, suggesting that the rats with blood stasis syndrome of RA may be in a state of "blood stasis". The results of the study can help to advance the objective study of the evidence of blood stasis syndrome in RA, and provide new ideas for the establishment of an animal model that reflects the clinical characteristics of the disease and syndrome.

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