1.Establishment and application of a determination method for plasma concentrations of venetoclax,busulfan and voriconazole in patients with acute myeloid leukemia
Zhenhua ZHANG ; Mengru ZHANG ; Aoxiang GUO ; Hui CHEN ; Shijian XIANG ; Benjie ZHOU ; Bingchen GE
China Pharmacy 2026;37(10):1323-1328
OBJECTIVE To establish a method for simultaneous determination of venetoclax, busulfan and voriconazole in plasma of patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), and apply it clinically. METHODS Plasma samples were subjected to protein precipitation using acetonitrile and subsequently analyzed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) using venetoclax-D 8 , busulfan-D 8 and posaconazole as internal standards. The separation was performed on a Phenomenex Kinetex ® C 18 column with a mobile phase composed of 0.1% formic acid solution (2 mmol/L ammonium acetate)-0.1% formic acid in acetonitrile (gradient elution) at a flow rate of 0.8 mL/min. The column temperature was set at 40 ℃, the sample size was 5 μL, and the total run time was 3.10 min. An electrospray ionization source was employed, and positive ion scanning was conducted using multiple reaction monitoring mode. The ion pairs used for quantitative analysis included m/z 868.4→636.3 (venetoclax), m/z 264.1→151.1 (busulfan), and m/z 350.1→224.0 (voriconazole). The above LC-MS/MS method was adopted to determine plasma concentrations of venetoclax and voriconazole in 10 AML patients, as well as plasma concentration of busulfan in 5 patients undergoing conditioning treatment for allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. RESULTS The linear ranges of venetoclax, busulfan and voriconazole were 50-10 000, 15-3 000 and 50-10 000 ng/mL, respectively ( R 2 ≥0.999 0), with lower limits of quantification of 50, 15 and 50 ng/mL, respectively. The RSDs of intra-day and inter-day precision tests for all three analytes were all less than 10%, with accuracy (relative errors) ranging from -10.00% to 12.96%. The average extraction recovery ranged from 92.54% to 100.95%, and the average matrix effect was 89.98%-101.49%. Dilution reliability covered all dilution factors used in the test samples, and the absolute values of relative errors in stability tests were all≤16.25%. The plasma concentrations of venetoclax, busulfan and voriconazole in enrolled patients were 496.20-4 250.45, 233.48-2 002.28 and 475.51-5 710.18 ng/mL, respectively. CONCLUSIONS The LC-MS/MS method established in this study is rapid, sensitive and easy to operate, and can be used for the therapeutic drug monitoring of venetoclax, busulfan and voriconazole.
2.Research on safety risk signals of five drugs for Gaucher disease
Cheng YI ; Qiwei HAN ; Jing XU ; Nianfeng GUO ; Mengru BAI
China Pharmacy 2026;37(12):1607-1613
OBJECTIVE To evaluate the characteristics of adverse drug event (ADE) associated with five therapeutic agents for Gaucher disease(imiglucerase, velaglucerase alfa, taliglucerase alfa, eliglustat,and miglustat). METHODS ADE reports related to the above five drugs were retrieved from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) database from January 2004 to September 2025. The reporting odds ratio (ROR) and proportional reporting ratio (PRR) methods were applied for data mining. system organ class (SOC) and preferred term (PT) from the Medical Dictionary for Regulatory Activities (MedDRA, version 26.0) drug ADE terminology were used for classification and statistical analysis of ADE. RESULTS A total of 4 329, 1 740, 500, 1 329 and 998 ADE reports were retrieved for the aforementioned five drugs, respectively, generating 4 612, 2 605, 776, 1 157 and 2 185 ADE signals. These signals involved 26 SOC, affecting 25, 26, 16, 19, and 19 SOC, respectively. The predominant SOCs were various injuries, poisoning and procedural complications, as well as infections and infestations. The top one PTs of each drug were as follows: bone infarction, zinc deficiency, failure to perform drug monitoring steps, ichthyosis, abnormal nerve conduction examination. New suspected PTs included weight gain and spontaneous abortion for imiglucerase and velaglucerase alfa, weight gain for taliglucerase alfa and eliglustat, and neuropsychiatric manifestations such as dementia and apathy for miglustat. In terms of severe ADEs, other serious medical events were predominant for imiglucerase and taliglucerase alfa; prolonged hospital stays were the main severe ADE for velaglucerase alfa and eliglustat; and death was the leading severe ADE for miglustat. CONCLUSIONS In clinical medication, apart from common ADE,for imiglucerase, clinicians should be alert to bone infarction, weight gain and spontaneous abortion, and strengthen monitoring related to bones, metabolism and pregnancy. For velaglucerase alfa, attention should be paid to zinc deficiency, bone infarction, weight gain and spontaneous abortion, with focused monitoring of nutritional status and pregnancy risks. For taliglucerase alfa, failure to perform drug monitoring steps and weight gain require vigilance, and medication procedures should be standardized along with regular weight monitoring. For eliglustat, clinicians need to watch out for ichthyosis and weight gain and pay close attention to skin conditions. For miglustat, bone infarction, abnormal nerve conduction examination and dementia should be closely monitored, with enhanced surveillance on nervous system function, infections and prognosis of critically ill patients,to ensure patient medication safety.
3.Mechanism of Eclipta prostrata L-Ligustrum lucidum Ait in the treatment of periodontitis.
Mengru GUO ; Tianyi ZHANG ; Jingwen HUANG ; Xinyue HUANG ; Yi ZHENG ; Li ZHANG
West China Journal of Stomatology 2025;43(5):696-710
OBJECTIVES:
This study aimed to explore the potential target and molecular mechanism of Eclipta prostrata L-Ligustrum Lucidum Ait (EPL-LLA) in the treatment of periodontitis by using network pharmacology and molecular docking technology, and to explore its biocompatibility, regulatory effects on inflammatory factors, and antioxidant acti-vity through in vitro experiments.
METHODS:
The active components and potential targets of EPL-LLA were screened and predicted through a variety of databases, and the intersection of EPL-LLA and periodontitis targets was selected. The protein interaction network (PPI) was analyzed by the string platform. The Metascape database was used for gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis. The active ingredients from the top 6 degrees were docked with the core targets, and the results of binding energy were visualized. An in vitro cell model was established to evaluate the biocompatibility, modulation of inflammatory factors, and antioxidative effects of EPL-LLA through cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8), quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and 2',7'-Dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate (DCFH-DA) fluorescent probe assays.
RESULTS:
Screening revealed 13 active components in EPL corresponding to 220 potential targets, 10 active components in LLA corresponding to 283 potential targets, and 1 643 periodontitis-related targets, with 91 shared targets among the three. GO analysis of the shared targets yielded 5 271 entries, while KEGG enrichment analysis indicated involvement in 253 signaling pathways. Molecular docking confirmed stable binding between the top 6 active components and core targets. CCK-8 assays demonstrated good biocompatibility of EPL-LLA at concentrations 0.02 mg/mL (P<0.05). qRT-PCR showed that EPL-LLA reduced the mRNA expression of pro-inflammatory factors in macrophages stimulated by Porphyromonas gingivalis lipopolysaccharide while upregulating anti-inflammatory factor mRNA expression (P<0.05). DCFH-DA fluorescence probe assays confirmed the reactive oxygen species (ROS)-scavenging capacity of EPL-LLA (P<0.05).
CONCLUSIONS
EPL-LLA may treat periodontitis through multi-component, multi-target, and multi-pathway mechanisms, providing a theoretical basis for further research on its therapeutic potential.
Periodontitis/drug therapy*
;
Molecular Docking Simulation
;
Eclipta/chemistry*
;
Humans
;
Protein Interaction Maps
;
Ligustrum/chemistry*
;
Antioxidants/pharmacology*
;
Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use*
;
Network Pharmacology
4.High-efficient discovering the potent anti-Notum agents from herbal medicines for combating glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis.
Yuqing SONG ; Feng ZHANG ; Jia GUO ; Yufan FAN ; Hairong ZENG ; Mengru SUN ; Jun QIAN ; Shenglan QI ; Zihan CHEN ; Xudong JIN ; Yunqing SONG ; Tian TIAN ; Zhi QIAN ; Yao SUN ; Zhenhao TIAN ; Baoqing YU ; Guangbo GE
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2025;15(8):4174-4192
Notum, a negative feedback regulator of the Wnt signaling, has emerged as a promising target for treating glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis (GIOP). This study showcases an efficient strategy for discovering the anti-Notum constituents from herbal medicines (HMs) as novel anti-GIOP agents. Firstly, a rapid-responding near-infrared fluorogenic substrate for Notum was rationally engineered for high-throughput identifying the anti-Notum HMs. The results showed that Bu-Gu-Zhi (BGZ), a known anti-osteoporosis herb, potently inhibited Notum in a competitive-inhibition manner. To uncover the key anti-Notum constituents in BGZ, an efficient strategy was adapted via integrating biochemical, phytochemical, computational, and pharmacological assays. Among all identified BGZ constituents, three furanocoumarins were validated as strong Notum inhibitors, while 5-methoxypsoralen (5-MP) showed the most potent anti-Notum activity and favorable safety profiles. Mechanistically, 5-MP acted as a competitive inhibitor of Notum via creating strong hydrophobic interactions with Trp128 and Phe268 in the catalytic cavity of Notum. Cellular assays showed that 5-MP remarkably promoted osteoblast differentiation and activated Wnt signaling in dexamethasone (DXMS)-challenged MC3T3-E1 osteoblasts. In dexamethasone-induced osteoporotic mice, 5-MP strongly elevated bone mineral density (BMD) and improved cancellous and cortical bone thickness. Collectively, this study constructs a high-efficient platform for discovering key anti-Notum constituents from HMs, while 5-MP emerges as a promising anti-GIOP agent.
5.A multicenter study of R-ISS staging combined with frailty biomarkers to predict the prognosis and early death in newly diagnosed elderly multiple myeloma patients
Yingjie ZHANG ; Hua XUE ; Mengyao LI ; Jianmei XU ; Xinyue LIANG ; Weiling XU ; Xiaoqi QIN ; Qiang GUO ; Shanshan YU ; Peiyu YANG ; Mengru TIAN ; Tingting YUE ; Mengxue ZHANG ; Yurong YAN ; Zhongli HU ; Nan ZHANG ; Jingxuan WANG ; Fengyan JIN
Chinese Journal of Geriatrics 2023;42(10):1207-1212
Objective:To improve the prognosis stratification, especially early mortality(EM), of elderly patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma(NDMM).Methods:In this retrospective study, univariate and multivariate Cox regression analysis were conducted to identify the independent prognostic factors associated with overall survival(OS)and the chi-square test and multivariate Logistic analysis were used to identify the prognostic factors associated with EM in 223 elderly patients(age≥65 years)with NDMM from three centers in the country.Results:Increased NT-pro-BNP(≥300 pg/ml), ECOG-PS≥2 and stage Ⅲ R-ISS were identified as three independent adverse prognostic factors of OS.The rates of EM3, EM6, EM12 and EM24 were 12.1%, 20.1%, 32.2% and 60%, respectively.The most common cause for EM6(particularly EM3)was disease-related complications resulting from ineligibility for treatment due to poor physical performance, severe organ dysfunction or treatment discontinuation due to treatment intolerance, while the most common cause for EM12(particularly EM24)was disease progression or relapse mainly as a result of inadequate treatment.R-ISS staging failed to predict EM, while decreased eGFR, ECOG-PS≥2, and increased NT-pro-BNP were able to estimate the risk of EM, with increased NT-pro-BNP as a common independent factor for EM12( P=0.03)and EM24( P=0.015). Conclusions:R-ISS staging, which primarily reflects MM biology, cannot predict EM.However, factors such as NT-pro-BNP, eGFR and ECOG-PS associated with frailty and impairment of organ functions can be used to estimate the risk of EM, among which NT-pro-BNP may be the most important independent factor for EM.Therefore, incorporation of these frailty-related biomarkers into R-ISS staging may be able to more precisely estimate the prognosis and particularly early death of elderly patients with NDMM.
6.Bavachin induces apoptosis in colorectal cancer cells through Gadd45a via the MAPK signaling pathway.
Mengru WANG ; Baopeng TIAN ; Jie SHEN ; Shilin XU ; Cong LIU ; Ling GUAN ; Min GUO ; Jie DOU
Chinese Journal of Natural Medicines (English Ed.) 2023;21(1):36-46
Bavachin is a dihydroflavonoid compound isolated from Psoralea corylifolia, and exhibits anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor and lipid-lowering activities. Recent attention has gradually drawn on bavachin-induced apoptosis in many human cancer cell lines. However, the anti-cancer effects and related mechanisms in colorectal cancer remain unknown. Here, we investigated the effects of bavachin on colorectal cancer in vivo and in vitro. The results showed that bavachin inhibited the proliferation of human colorectal cancer cells and induce apoptosis. These changes were mediated by activating the MAPK signaling pathway, which significantly up-regulated the expression of Gadd45a. Furthermore, Gadd45a silencing obviously attenuated bavachin-mediated cell apoptosis. Inhibition of the MAPK signaling pathway by JNK/ERK/p38 inhibitors also weakened the up-regulation of Gadd45a by bavachin. The anticancer effect of bavachin was also validated using a mouse xenograft model of human colorectal cancer. In conclusion, these findings suggest that bavachin induces the apoptosis of colorectal cancer cells through activating the MAPK signaling pathway.
Humans
;
Signal Transduction
;
Flavonoids/pharmacology*
;
Proteins/pharmacology*
;
MAP Kinase Signaling System
;
Colorectal Neoplasms/metabolism*
;
Apoptosis
;
Cell Line, Tumor
;
Cell Proliferation
;
Cell Cycle Proteins/pharmacology*
7.Functional annotation map of natural compounds in traditional Chinese medicines library: TCMs with myocardial protection as a case.
Xudong XING ; Mengru SUN ; Zifan GUO ; Yongjuan ZHAO ; Yuru CAI ; Ping ZHOU ; Huiying WANG ; Wen GAO ; Ping LI ; Hua YANG
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2023;13(9):3802-3816
The chemical complexity of traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) makes the active and functional annotation of natural compounds challenging. Herein, we developed the TCMs-Compounds Functional Annotation platform (TCMs-CFA) for large-scale predicting active compounds with potential mechanisms from TCM complex system, without isolating and activity testing every single compound one by one. The platform was established based on the integration of TCMs knowledge base, chemome profiling, and high-content imaging. It mainly included: (1) selection of herbal drugs of target based on TCMs knowledge base; (2) chemome profiling of TCMs extract library by LC‒MS; (3) cytological profiling of TCMs extract library by high-content cell-based imaging; (4) active compounds discovery by combining each mass signal and multi-parametric cell phenotypes; (5) construction of functional annotation map for predicting the potential mechanisms of lead compounds. In this stud TCMs with myocardial protection were applied as a case study, and validated for the feasibility and utility of the platform. Seven frequently used herbal drugs (Ginseng, etc.) were screened from 100,000 TCMs formulas for myocardial protection and subsequently prepared as a library of 700 extracts. By using TCMs-CFA platform, 81 lead compounds, including 10 novel bioactive ones, were quickly identified by correlating 8089 mass signals with 170,100 cytological parameters from an extract library. The TCMs-CFA platform described a new evidence-led tool for the rapid discovery process by data mining strategies, which is valuable for novel lead compounds from TCMs. All computations are done through Python and are publicly available on GitHub.
8.Comparing the clinical characteristics and prognosis of seropositive and seronegative rheumatoid arthritis patients in China: a real-world study
Yehua JIN ; Ting JIANG ; Xiaolei FAN ; Rongsheng WANG ; Yuanyuan ZHANG ; Peng CHENG ; Yingying QIN ; Mengjie HONG ; Mengru GUO ; Qingqing CHENG ; Zhaoyi LIU ; Runrun ZHANG ; Cen CHANG ; Lingxia XU ; Linshuai XU ; Ying GU ; Chunrong HU ; Xiao SU ; Luan XUE ; Yongfei FANG ; Li SU ; Mingli GAO ; Jiangyun PENG ; Qianghua WEI ; Jie SHEN ; Qi ZHU ; Hongxia LIU ; Dongyi HE
Chinese Journal of Rheumatology 2021;25(5):307-315
Objective:In general, patients with seropositive rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are considered to show an aggressive disease course. However, the relationship between the two subgroups in disease severity is controversial. Our study is aimed to compare the clinical characteristics and prognosis of double-seropositive and seronegative RA in China through a real-world large scale study.Methods:RA patients who met the 1987 American College of Rheumatology (ACR) classification criteria or the 2010 ACR/European Anti-Rheumatism Alliance RA classification criteria, and who attended the 10 hospitals across the country from September 2015 to January 2020, were enrolled. According to the serological status, patients were divided into 4 subgroups [rheumatoid factor (RF)(-) anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide (CCP) antibody (-), RF(+), RF(+) anti-CCP antibody(+), anti-CCP antibody(+)] and compared the disease characteristics and treatment response. One-way analysis of variance was used for measurement data that conformed to normal distribution, Kruskal-Wallis H test was used for measurement data that did not conform to normal distribution; paired t test was used for comparison before and after treatment within the group if the data was normally distributed else paired rank sum test was used; χ2 test was used for count data. Results:① A total of 2 461 patients were included, including 1 813 RF(+) anti-CCP antibody(+) patients (73.67%), 129 RF(+) patients (5.24%), 245 RF(-) anti-CCP antibody(-) patients (9.96%), 74 anti-CCP antibody(+) patients (11.13%). ② Regardless of the CCP status, RF(+) patients had an early age of onset [RF(-) anti-CCP antibody(-) (51±14) years old, anti-CCP antibody(+) (50±15) years old, RF(+) anti-CCP antibody(+) (48±14) years old, RF(+)(48±13) years old, F=3.003, P=0.029], longer disease duration [RF(-) anti-CCP antibody(-) 50 (20, 126) months, anti-CCP antibody(+) 60(24, 150) months, RF(+) anti-CCP antibody(+) 89(35, 179) months, RF(+) 83(25, 160) months, H=22.001, P<0.01], more joint swelling counts (SJC) [RF(-) anti-CCP antibody(-) 2(0, 6), Anti-CCP antibody(+) 2(0, 5), RF(+) anti-CCP antibody(+) 2(0, 7), RF(+) 2(0, 6), H=8.939, P=0.03] and tender joint counts (TJC) [RF(-) anti-CCP antibody(-) 3(0, 8), anti-CCP antibody(+) 2(0, 6), RF(+) anti-CCP antibody(+) 3(1, 9), RF(+) 2(0, 8), H=11.341, P=0.01] and the morning stiff time was longer [RF(-) anti-CCP antibody(-) 30(0, 60) min, anti-CCP antibody(+) 20(0, 60) min, RF(+) anti-CCP antibody(+) 30(10, 60) min, RF(+) 30(10, 60) min, H=13.32, P<0.01]; ESR [RF(-) anti-CCP antibody(-) 17(9, 38) mm/1 h, anti-CCP antibody(+) 20(10, 35) mm/1 h, RF(+) anti-CCP antibody(+) 26(14, 45) mm/1 h, RF(+) 28(14, 50) mm/1 h, H=37.084, P<0.01] and CRP [RF(-) anti-CCP antibody(-) 2.3 (0.8, 15.9) mm/L, Anti-CCP antibody(+) 2.7(0.7, 12.1) mm/L, RF(+) anti-CCP antibody(+) 5.2(1.3, 17.2) mm/L, RF (+) 5.2(0.9, 16.2) mm/L, H=22.141, P<0.01] of the RF(+)patients were significantly higher than RF(-) patients, and RF(+) patients had higher disease severity(DAS28-ESR) [RF(-) anti-CCP antibody(-) (4.0±1.8), anti-CCP antibody(+) (3.8±1.6), RF(+) anti-CCP antibody(+) (4.3±1.8), RF(+) (4.1±1.7), F=7.269, P<0.01]. ③ The RF(+) anti-CCP antibody(+) patients were divided into 4 subgroups, and it was found that RF-H anti-CCP antibody-L patients had higher disease severity [RF-H anti-CCP antibody-H 4.3(2.9, 5.6), RF-L anti-CCP antibody-L 4.5(3.0, 5.7), RF-H anti-CCP antibody-L 4.9(3.1, 6.2), RF-L anti-CCP antibody-H 2.8(1.8, 3.9), H=20.374, P<0.01]. ④ After 3-month follow up, the clinical characteristics of the four groups were improved, but there was no significant difference in the improvement of the four groups, indicating that the RF and anti-CCP antibody status did not affect the remission within 3 months. Conclusion:Among RA patients, the disease activity of RA patients is closely related to RF and the RF(+) patients have more severe disease than RF(-) patients. Patients with higher RF titer also have more severe disease than that of patients with low RF titer. After 3 months of medication treatment, the antibody status does not affect the disease remission rate.
9.Surgical treatment of composite orbital fractures
Qiang SUN ; You ZHOU ; Shu GUO ; Xu SUN ; Jingyi FEN ; Mengru ZHU ; Shuang TONG
Chinese Journal of Plastic Surgery 2020;36(3):294-297
Objective:To summarize retrospectively the postoperative therapeutic effect of composite orbital fracture.Methods:587 patients with orbital fracture were assessed and diagnosed according to their clinical symptoms and 3D-CT reports before surgeries where incarcerated soft tissue is released and replaced thoroughly, with orbit reset as well as implants used to fix it, and then we evaluated the surgical outcomes by comparing the postoperative outlines of patients’ orbits, the functions of eyeballs along with their 3D-CT evidences.Results:After 10-month to 2-year postoperative follow-up, 12 cases of 587 who had apparent enophthalmos preoperatively still have slightly postoperative symptoms. Although the diplopia of 9 cases is partially recovered, their eye movement remain slightly restricted. In addition, the eye function of other patients didn’t dramatically decline in comparison with that of pre-trauma, except for those undergoing enucleation of eyeballs due to ophthalmorrhexis.Conclusions:Orbital fracture should be diagnosed and evaluated rigorously based on patients’ symptoms and 3D-CT reports, improving treatment effects by accurate reset, fixation and repair at early stage.
10.Surgical treatment of composite orbital fractures
Qiang SUN ; You ZHOU ; Shu GUO ; Xu SUN ; Jingyi FEN ; Mengru ZHU ; Shuang TONG
Chinese Journal of Plastic Surgery 2020;36(3):294-297
Objective:To summarize retrospectively the postoperative therapeutic effect of composite orbital fracture.Methods:587 patients with orbital fracture were assessed and diagnosed according to their clinical symptoms and 3D-CT reports before surgeries where incarcerated soft tissue is released and replaced thoroughly, with orbit reset as well as implants used to fix it, and then we evaluated the surgical outcomes by comparing the postoperative outlines of patients’ orbits, the functions of eyeballs along with their 3D-CT evidences.Results:After 10-month to 2-year postoperative follow-up, 12 cases of 587 who had apparent enophthalmos preoperatively still have slightly postoperative symptoms. Although the diplopia of 9 cases is partially recovered, their eye movement remain slightly restricted. In addition, the eye function of other patients didn’t dramatically decline in comparison with that of pre-trauma, except for those undergoing enucleation of eyeballs due to ophthalmorrhexis.Conclusions:Orbital fracture should be diagnosed and evaluated rigorously based on patients’ symptoms and 3D-CT reports, improving treatment effects by accurate reset, fixation and repair at early stage.

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