The American journal of Chinese medicine
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Lung cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer and the leading cause of cancer death worldwide. Amygdalin, a natural compound commonly distributed in plants of the Rosaceae species, owns anticancer activity, less side effects, wide source, and relatively low price. Although the apoptosis is a central process activated by amygdalin in cancer cells, the underlying molecular mechanisms through which amygdalin induces the apoptosis of lung cancer cells remain poorly understood. ⋯ The results of immunofluorescence staining, Western blotting and siRNA knockdown indicated that amygdalin induced mitochondria-mediated apoptosis of lung cancer cells via enhancing the expression of NF[Formula: see text]B-1 and inactivating NF[Formula: see text]B signaling cascade and further changing the expressions of proteins (Bax, Bcl-2, cytochrome C, caspase 9, caspase 3 and PARP) related to apoptosis, which were further checked by in vivo study of the lung cancer cell xenograft mice model accompanying with immunohistochemical staining and TUNEL staining. Our results indicated that amygdalin might be a potential activator of NF[Formula: see text]B-1, which sheds more light on the molecular mechanism of anticancer effects of amygdalin. These results highlighted amygdalin as a potential therapeutic anticancer agent, which warrants its development as a therapy for lung cancer.
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Acupuncture has been used to treat numerous diseases such as obesity in China for thousands of years. Several mechanisms of acupuncture on obesity have been surveyed based on metabolomics, but the effects of acupuncture on the alterations in the gut flora are still unclear. In this study, an integrated approach based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing combined with high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS) metabolic profiling was conducted to investigate the effects of acupuncture on high-fat-diet-induced obesity through the regulation of the relative abundances of gut microbiota and their relationships with biomarker candidates. ⋯ This finding suggested that the effects of electroacupuncture might change the proportions of Bilophila and Bifidobacterium by regulating the constituents of the functional metabolite of 3[Formula: see text],6[Formula: see text],7[Formula: see text]-Trihydroxy-5[Formula: see text]-cholanoic acid and Cholanoic acid and [Formula: see text]-Arginine. These results indicated that the effects of electroacupuncture focused on custom metabolic pathways as well as depend on the changes in the gut microbiota in obesity. These findings suggest that the 16S rRNA gene sequencing and HPLC-MS-based metabolomics approach can be applied to comprehensively assess the effects of traditional Chinese medicines.
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Stroke has become a major cause of death and disability worldwide. The cellular recycling pathway autophagy has been implicated in ischemia-induced neuronal changes, but whether autophagy plays a beneficial or detrimental role is controversial. Hydroxysafflor Yellow A (HSYA), a popular herbal medicine, is an extract of Carthamus tinctorius and is used to treat ischemic stroke (IS) in China. ⋯ Molecular modeling suggested that HSYA may bind strongly to HIF-1[Formula: see text], BNIP3, and Notch1 but weakly to LC3. In conclusion, HSYA inhibits post-IS autophagy induction in the brain, possibly by suppressing HIF-1[Formula: see text], BNIP3 and Notch1. HSYA may have utility as a post-IS neuroprotective agent.
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Electroacupuncture (EA) is commonly used to treat cerebrovascular diseases. This study aimed to clarify the mechanisms of action of treatments of cerebral ischemic stroke from the perspective of gut microecology. We used a mouse model and cell cultures to investigate the effects of EA on the intestinal microflora in mice models of middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) and the mechanisms underlying the antioxidant activities of metabolites. ⋯ We confirmed that IPA binds to specific melatonin receptors (MTRs) in target cells and exerts antioxidant effects by adding MTR inhibitors or knocking out the MTR1 gene in vivo and in the oxygen and glucose deprivation/reperfusion models of N2a cell experiments. EA can prevent ischemic stroke by improving the composition of intestinal microbiota in MCAO mice. Moreover, this study reveals a new mechanism of intestinal flora regulation of stroke that differs from inflammation/immunity, namely gut microbiota regulates stroke by affecting IPA levels.
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Dandelion (Taraxacum species) is a wild plant with over 2500 species. Flavonoids, phenolic compounds, saponins, sesquiterpenes, and sugars have been detected in the organs of Taraxacum, and for centuries it has been used in traditional medicine for the relief and treatment of various diseases. However, details of its working mechanism remain unclear. ⋯ What's more, we also found that the effects of fresh T. formosanum were much stronger than that of T. mongolicumin HeLa cells. Based on these results, we suggest that T. formosanum may contain specific compound(s) that are potentially useful for cancer therapy. However, much work remains to identify these effective compounds for the future application of Taraxacumto cancer therapy.