Discussion and prediction of application prospects of Citri Grandis Exocarpium on COVID-19 based on literature analysis and molecular docking / 中草药

Objective: The present study aims to explore the application prospects of Citri Grandis Exocarpium for protecting against novel coronavirus pneumonia (COVID-19). Methods: The pharmacological effects, including expectorant, anti-acute lung injury, anti-inflammatory, anti-pulmonary fibrosis, relieving cough, anti-oxidation, anti-liver injury, anti-kidney injury effects and etc, of both Citri Grandis Exocarpium and its main chemical constituents were analyzed through literature review. The constituents of Citri Grandis Exocarpium were collected by using traditional Chinese medicine systems pharmacology (TCMSP) database and literature searching. The molecular docking study was performed to evaluate the binding ability between the chemical constituents and angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), 3C-like main protease (Mpro), papain-like protease (PLP), and dendritic cell-specific ICAM-3-grabbing nonintegrin (DC-SIGN) to predict its potential activity in inhibiting the infection and replication of SARS-CoV-2 virus. Results: The literature review indicated that Citri Grandis Exocarpium possesses expectorant, anti-acute lung injury, anti-inflammatory, anti-pulmonary fibrosis, relieving cough, anti-oxidation, anti-liver injury, anti-kidney injury effects, and so on. Molecular docking results indicated that naringin, neohesperdin, rhoifolin, poncirin, and sitogluside were the main active flavonoids due to showing strong interactions with ACE2, MPro, PLP and DC-SIGN with potential activity in inhibiting the infection and replication of SARS-CoV-2 virus. Conclusion: Citri Grandis Exocarpium may probably delay the progression of COVID-19 through a variety of pharmacological activities and the inhibition of the infection and replication of SARS-CoV-2 due to targeting ACE2, MPro, PLP, and DC-SIGN, reminding that Citri Grandis Exocarpium may possess a potential capacity to protect against COVID-19.

Evaluation of neuroactive effects of ethanol extract of Schisandra chinensis, Schisandrin, and Schisandrin B and determination of underlying mechanisms by zebrafish behavioral profiling / 中国天然药物

Schisandra chinensis, a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), has been used to treat sleep disorders. Zebrafish sleep/wake behavioral profiling provides a high-throughput platform to screen chemicals, but has never been used to study extracts and components from TCM. In the present study, the ethanol extract of Schisandra chinensis and its two main lignin components, schisandrin and schisandrin B, were studied in zebrafish. We found that the ethanol extract had bidirectional improvement in rest and activity in zebrafish. Schisandrin and schisandrin B were both sedative and active components. We predicted that schisandrin was related to serotonin pathway and the enthanol extract of Schisandra chinensis was related to seoronin and domapine pathways using a database of zebrafish behaviors. These predictions were confirmed in experiments using Caenorhabditis elegans. In conclusion, zebrafish behavior profiling could be used as a high-throughput platform to screen neuroactive effects and predict molecular pathways of extracts and components from TCM.

Evaluation of neuroactive effects of ethanol extract of Schisandra chinensis, Schisandrin, and Schisandrin B and determination of underlying mechanisms by zebrafish behavioral profiling / 中国天然药物

Schisandra chinensis, a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), has been used to treat sleep disorders. Zebrafish sleep/wake behavioral profiling provides a high-throughput platform to screen chemicals, but has never been used to study extracts and components from TCM. In the present study, the ethanol extract of Schisandra chinensis and its two main lignin components, schisandrin and schisandrin B, were studied in zebrafish. We found that the ethanol extract had bidirectional improvement in rest and activity in zebrafish. Schisandrin and schisandrin B were both sedative and active components. We predicted that schisandrin was related to serotonin pathway and the enthanol extract of Schisandra chinensis was related to seoronin and domapine pathways using a database of zebrafish behaviors. These predictions were confirmed in experiments using Caenorhabditis elegans. In conclusion, zebrafish behavior profiling could be used as a high-throughput platform to screen neuroactive effects and predict molecular pathways of extracts and components from TCM.

Anti-methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus assay of azalomycin F5a and its derivatives / 中国天然药物

AIM@#To discover anti-methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (anti-MRSA) microbial natural products or their derivatives.@*METHOD@#Azalomycin F5a (1) was prepared through fermentation of Streptomyces hygroscopicus var. azalomyceticus, and its derivatives were synthesized through hydrocarbylation in hydrocarbyl alcoholic-AcOH (4 : 1) and subsequent demalonylation with 2 mol·L(-1) KOH in MeOH-H2O (7 : 3). Their activities against MRSA ATCC 33592 and three clinical MRSA isolates were evaluated by the agar diffusion and broth microdilution methods.@*RESULTS@#Four demalonylazalomycin F5a derivatives 2 to 5 were synthesized. The anti-MRSA activity assay indicated that compounds 1 to 5 showed remarkable activity against MRSA, and their minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) were respectively 3.0-4.0, 0.5-1.0, 0.67-1.0, 0.67-0.83, and 0.5-0.83 μg·mL(-1).@*CONCLUSION@#Azalomycin F5a and the demalonylazalomycin F5a derivatives 2-5 showed remarkable anti-MRSA activity, and the anti-MRSA activities of 2 to 5 were higher than that of 1, while the anti-MRSA activities of 2 to 5 showed no obvious differences. It was also shown that the malonyl monoester group of azalomycin F5a was less important for its anti-MRSA activity.

Experimental studies on antitussive, expectorant and antiasthmatic effects of extract from Citrus grandis var. tomentosa / 中国中药杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the antitussive, expectorant and antiashmatic effects of the extract from Citrus grandist var. tomentosa.</p><p><b>METHOD</b>The cough models induced by ammonia liquor in mice and citric acid in guines pigs were used to observe the antitussive effects. The methods of phenel red execretion in mice and phlegm displacement of rats were used to investigate the expectorant effects. Bronchial asthma model induced by histamine-acetylcholine in guinea pigs was used to observe the antiasthmatic effects.</p><p><b>RESULT</b>The extract from the title plant could inhibit the cough induced by ammonia in mice, decrease the frequency of cough induced by citric acid in guineas pig and prolong the latent period of cough. The extract also could obviously increase phenol red output of trachea in mice, promote expectoration in rats and prolong the latent period of asthma induced by histamine-acetylcholine in guinea pigs.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The extract from C. grandis var. tomenfosa has significant antitussive, expectorant and antiasthmatic effects.</p>