The American journal of Chinese medicine
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As a traditional Chinese alternative health care approach, acupuncture is gaining increasing attention and reputation in China and overseas. While becoming increasingly popular globally, some consumers and professionals still know little about the therapy and underlying mechanisms of acupuncture. Due to local superiority, there are large numbers of both clinical applications and mechanistic studies performed in China compared to countries overseas. ⋯ The evolution of acupuncture tools and the rationality of acupoints are also discussed. This review not only summarizes the mechanisms of acupuncture but also provides useful information, such as specific acupoints and acupuncture procedures, for treating common diseases. Therefore, the current study provides useful information for both investigators and acupuncturists.
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Metastasis is the most prevalent cause of cancer-associated deaths amongst patients with cervical cancer. Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is essential for carcinogenesis, and it confers metastatic properties to cancer cells. Gossypol is a natural polyphenolic compound with anti-inflammation, anti-oxidant, and anticancer activities. ⋯ Gossypol also decreased tumour growth in vivo in the nude mouse xenograft model. All these findings suggest that gossypol suppressed the invasion and migration of human cervical cancer cells by targeting the FAK signaling pathway and reversing TGF-[Formula: see text]1-induced EMT. Hence, gossypol warrants further attention for basic mechanistic studies and drug development.
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Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a serious pulmonary vascular disease. Excessive proliferation of pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (PASMCs) plays an important role in the course of this disease. Ligustrazine is an alkaloid monomer extracted from the rhizome of the herb Ligusticum chuanxiong. ⋯ Moreover, ligustrazine can inhibit the proliferation and inflammation of PASMCs and arrest the progression of G0/G1 to S phase through the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Therefore, we conclude that ligustrazine may inhibit the proliferation and inflammation of PASMCs by regulating the activation of the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway, thereby attenuating MCT-induced PAH in rats. Collectively, these findings suggest that ligustrazine may be a promising therapeutic for PAH.
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The molecular mechanism underlying the anticancer effects of Anemarrhena asphodeloides (A. asphodeloides) on colon cancer is unknown. This is the first study evaluating the anticancer effect of A. asphodeloides extract (AA-Ex) in serum-starved colorectal cancer cells. Changes in cell proliferation and morphology in serum-starved MC38 and HCT116 colorectal cancer cells were investigated using MTS assay. ⋯ Furthermore, AA-Ex treatment with serum starvation increased the levels of the transcription factors of the p38 and JNK pathway. Serum starvation sensitizes colorectal cancer cells to the anticancer effect of A. asphodeloidesvia p38/JNK-induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. Hence, AA-Ex possesses therapeutic potential for colon cancer treatment.
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Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a new infectious disease associated with high mortality, and traditional Chinese medicine decoctions (TCMDs) have been widely used for the treatment of patients with COVID-19 in China; however, the impact of these decoctions on severe and critical COVID-19-related mortality has not been evaluated. Therefore, we aimed to address this gap. In this retrospective cohort study, we included inpatients diagnosed with severe/critical COVID-19 at the Tongren Hospital of Wuhan University and grouped them depending on the recipience of TCMDs (TCMD and non-TCMD groups). ⋯ The all-cause mortality was significantly lower in the TCMD group than in the non-TCMD group, and this trend remained valid even after matching (21.3% [20/94] vs. 39.4% [37/94]). Multivariable logistic regression model showed that disease severity (odds ratio: 0.010; 95% CI: 0.003, 0.037; [Formula: see text]¡ 0.001) was associated with increased odds of death and that TCMD treatment significantly decreased the odds of in-hospital death (odds ratio: 0.115; 95% CI: 0.035, 0.383; [Formula: see text]¡ 0.001), which was related to the duration of TCMD treatment. Our findings show that TCMD treatment may reduce the mortality in patients with severe/critical COVID-19.