Objective To investigate the mechanism of Shugan Zhixie Prescription in treating irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea(IBS-D)using network pharmacology;To validate the findings through in vivo experiments.Methods Active components and potential targets of Shugan Zhixie Prescription were identified via the TCMSP database.Disease targets for IBS-D were retrieved from GeneCards,DisGeNET and OMIM databases.The intersection of drugs and disease targets was taken,and the protein interaction network was constructed by using STRING database.GO and KEGG pathways were enriched to identify the key signaling pathways of Shugan Zhixie Prescription in the treatment of IBS-D.The rat model of liver depression and spleen deficiency type IBS-D was established by the method of abnormal hunger and satiety,restraint pinch stress and intestinal perfusion of acetic acid.The rats were intervened with low-,medium-and high-dosage of Shugan Zhixie Prescription respectively for 14 days.Serum contents of diamine oxidase(DAO),interleukin(IL)-8,and IL-18 were measured by ELISA.Protein expressions and mRNA expressions of relevant targets in colonic tissue were detected using Western blot and RT-qPCR.Results A total of 26 active components and 553 targets of Shugan Zhixie Prescription were obtained,and 1 930 targets of IBS-D disease were obtained,with 184 drug-disease intersection targets.The possible mechanism was related to NF-κB,AGE-RAGE,Th17 cell differentiation and other signaling pathways.Animal experiments demonstrated that Shugan Zhixie Prescription could significantly reduce defecation frequency,fecal water content,and inflammatory cytokine levels in model rats.It markedly decreased TLR4 and NF-κB protein expressions(P<0.01),while increased AQP3,AQP8 and Occludin protein expressions in colonic tissue(P<0.01,P<0.05).Conclusion Shugan Zhixie Prescription exerts therapeutic effects on IBS-D through multiple pathways and targets,and the mechanism may be related to inhibiting TLR4/NF-κB signaling pathway and promoting intestinal barrier repair.

Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis （NASH） is a chronic liver disease with the main pathological features of hepatic steatosis， inflammatory cell infiltration， and interstitial fibroplasia， and it is an important risk factor for liver fibrosis， liver cirrhosis， and hepatocellular carcinoma. NOD-like receptor protein 3 （NLRP3） inflammasome is the core of innate immunity， and the abnormal activation of NLRP3 inflammasome is closely associated with the development and progression of NASH， which involves multiple links such as inflammatory response and oxidative stress. A large number of studies have shown that the active ingredients of traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） and TCM compound prescriptions can improve oxidative stress， regulate lipid metabolism， and alleviate liver inflammation by regulating NLRP3 inflammasome. TCM treatment applied in clinical practice has achieved a good therapeutic effect， while inflammasome is one of the key pathways or targets for TCM in improving NASH. This article reviews the mechanism of action of NLRP3 inflammasome in NASH and the research advances in TCM intervention of NLRP3 inflammasome， in order to provide ideas for the clinical TCM treatment of NASH， as well as reference targets and research directions for the research and development of new TCM drugs.

Spleen-stomach damp-heat syndrome is currently the most prevalent TCM pattern in patients with chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG), with internal damp-heat accumulation regarded as a key factor contributing to its prolonged and refractory course. This syndrome represents a critical stage in the progressive pathogenesis of CAG, characterized by a deepening pathological evolution. Modern TCM practitioners generally agree that its core pathogenesis lies in "deficiency in root and excess in superficiality, with internal damp-heat retention", and emphasize a treatment strategy that combines eliminating pathogenic factors and reinforcing the body's healthy qi through dynamic syndrome differentiation. Chinese materia medica used in treating CAG with spleen-stomach damp-heat syndrome can effectively relieve clinical symptoms, improve the internal damp-heat environment, mitigate gastric mucosal atrophy and intestinal metaplasia, and delay the inflammation-to-cancer transformation. Its mechanisms may involve eradication of Helicobacter pylori, repair of gastric mucosal injury, regulation of immune inflammatory response and other aspects, which has the advantages of multi-channel and multi-target.

Objective To investigate the mechanism of Shugan Zhixie Prescription in treating irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea(IBS-D)using network pharmacology;To validate the findings through in vivo experiments.Methods Active components and potential targets of Shugan Zhixie Prescription were identified via the TCMSP database.Disease targets for IBS-D were retrieved from GeneCards,DisGeNET and OMIM databases.The intersection of drugs and disease targets was taken,and the protein interaction network was constructed by using STRING database.GO and KEGG pathways were enriched to identify the key signaling pathways of Shugan Zhixie Prescription in the treatment of IBS-D.The rat model of liver depression and spleen deficiency type IBS-D was established by the method of abnormal hunger and satiety,restraint pinch stress and intestinal perfusion of acetic acid.The rats were intervened with low-,medium-and high-dosage of Shugan Zhixie Prescription respectively for 14 days.Serum contents of diamine oxidase(DAO),interleukin(IL)-8,and IL-18 were measured by ELISA.Protein expressions and mRNA expressions of relevant targets in colonic tissue were detected using Western blot and RT-qPCR.Results A total of 26 active components and 553 targets of Shugan Zhixie Prescription were obtained,and 1 930 targets of IBS-D disease were obtained,with 184 drug-disease intersection targets.The possible mechanism was related to NF-κB,AGE-RAGE,Th17 cell differentiation and other signaling pathways.Animal experiments demonstrated that Shugan Zhixie Prescription could significantly reduce defecation frequency,fecal water content,and inflammatory cytokine levels in model rats.It markedly decreased TLR4 and NF-κB protein expressions(P<0.01),while increased AQP3,AQP8 and Occludin protein expressions in colonic tissue(P<0.01,P<0.05).Conclusion Shugan Zhixie Prescription exerts therapeutic effects on IBS-D through multiple pathways and targets,and the mechanism may be related to inhibiting TLR4/NF-κB signaling pathway and promoting intestinal barrier repair.

Objective To investigate the effects of nuclear respiratory factor 1(NRF1)on mitochondrial and cog-nitive dysfunction in Alzheimer's disease(AD)model mice.Methods The 5 × FAD mice were utilized as a mod-el for Alzheimer's disease,and the sparsely labeled AAV virus overexpressing NRF1(AAV-NRF1)was adminis-tered via stereotaxic injection into the brain.The expression of NRF1 in hippocampus was determined by Western blot,the morphology of mitochondria in hippocampus was observed by transmission electron microscope,the den-dritic spines of sparsely labeled neurons in the CA1 region were visualized and quantified using confocal laser mi-croscopy,cognitive and memory functions of mice were evaluated using the Morris water maze test,while electro-physiological methods were employed to detect long-term potentiation(LTP)of synaptic efficacy.Results The ex-pression of NRF1 in the hippocampus was significantly upregulated following stereotactic injection of AAV-NRF1(P＜0.001).This intervention led to notable improvements in mitochondrial morphology within hippocampal neurons,as well as enhanced cognitive and memory functions in mice(P＜0.01).Moreover,there was a significant in-crease in dendritic spine density among neurons located in the CA1 region of the hippocampus(P＜0.001),ac-companied by long-lasting and stable long-term potentiation(LTP)and a substantial elevation in fEPSP slope(P＜0.01).Conclusion The overexpression of NRF1 in a 5 × FAD mouse model of Alzheimer's disease(AD)initia-ted the restoration of mitochondrial dysfunction and enhanced synaptic plasticity,indicating that these alterations may contribute to the therapeutic efficacy of NRF1 overexpression in ameliorating cognitive dysfunction associated with AD.

Objective: To investigate the effects of abated microRNA-21 (miRNA-21) on phosphatase and tensin homologue on chromosome ten protein (PTEN) and PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway, as well as their further influence on the autophagy in high glucose (HG, 25.0 mmol/L) induced rat glomerular mesangial cells. Methods: MiRNA-21 inhibitor and negative control were transfected by liposome 2000 into rat glomerular mesangial cells (HBZY-1). The cells were divided into normal glucose (5.5 mmol/L) group, normal glucose+negative control group, normal glucose+miRNA-21 inhibitor group, HG group, HG+negative control group and HG+miRNA-21 inhibitor group. Cell proliferation and hypertrophy were assayed by MTT and the ratio of total protein to cell number respectively. The miRNA-21 expression was detected using real time PCR. The expressions of PTEN/Akt/mTOR signaling signatures, autophagy-associated protein (p62 and LC3 Ⅱ) and collagen Ⅰ was detected by Western blotting and real time PCR. Autophagosomes were observed using electron microscopy. Results: Compared with those in normal glucose group, in HG group cells had hypertrophy and proliferation, up-regulated miRNA-21 expression, and down-regulated PTEN protein and mRNA expressions (all P<0.01). Also there were and up-regulated p-Akt, p-mTOR, p62 and collagen Ⅰ expression, and lower LC3 Ⅱ expression and autophagosomes (all P<0.01). Further, compared with those in HG group, cells hypertrophy and proliferation in HG+miRNA-21 inhibitor group were reduced, expressions of p-Akt, p-mTOR, p62 and collagen Ⅰ were down-regulated, while expressions of PTEN and LC3 Ⅱ and autophagosomes were up-regulated (all P<0.01). Conclusions MiRNA-21 inhibitor up-regulates PTEN expression, which inhibits the activation of Akt/mTOR signaling pathway, ameliorates cell hypertrophy, proliferation and enhances autophagy to reduce extracellular matrix accumulation.