Effect of Traditional Chinese Medicine on Hepatic Disease by Inhibiting TLR4 Signaling Pathway / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Liver disease is the general term for all diseases that occur in the liver. In recent years, traditional Chinese medicine has certain advantages in the treatment of liver diseases. With a high experimental study value, good clinical efficacy and less adverse reactions, it has broad prospects. Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) signaling pathway is closely related to liver diseases. Its mechanism is to activate nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) through tlr4-mediated signaling pathway, inhibit the secretion of such inflammatory factors as interleukin-1(IL-1), interleukin-6(IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), and the inflammatory damage of liver cells, so as to further inhibit the effect of IL-1,IL-6, TNF-α in activating Hepatic Stellate Cell(HSC). The ways of blocking TRL4 pathway are as follows:Inhibiting the expression of TLR4,Inhibiting the dimerization of TLR4. Blocking intracellular signal transduction:①acting on the binding protein; ②acting on the kinase IRAKs; ③acting on TLRAFst. In these ways, the TRL4 pathway is blocked, the inflammation is inhibited, and the anti-liver disease effect is achieved. Therefore, inhibiting or enhancing TLR4 signaling pathway or intervening in some links of TLR4 signaling pathway has become a new strategy for the treatment of liver diseases. Toll-like receptor 4 signaling pathway has become one of the targets of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) against liver diseases. In this paper, the recent literatures on the effect of TCM in resisting activation of TLR4 signaling pathway and the effect of anti-liver diseases through monomers and effective parts of TCM, extracts of TCM and compound prescriptions of TCM were collected and summarized to provide important guiding significance and direction for the treatment of liver diseases by TCM and WM in the next step.

Effect of safflower yellow on atherosclerosis in rabbits with hyperlipidemia / 国际药学研究杂志

Objective To investigate the effect of safflower yellow injection on atherosclerosis in rabbits with hyperlipidemia.Methods Ninety-six New Zealand rabbits were randomly divided into four groups:the control group, model group, safflower yellowtest group (10.9, 5.45 and 2.725 mg/kg) and the positive control (atorvastatin) group. The control group was fed with normal feed, while the other three groups were fed with high fat diet for 8 weeks, combined with intraperitoneal injection of vitamin D3, to establish hyperlipidemia model. Then, the three-dosage safflower yellow-test groups were given intraperitoneal injection of safflower yellow (10.9, 5.45 and 2.725 mg/kg), respectively, the positive control group was given atorvastatin calcium[2 mg/ (kg·d) ]by intragastric administration, and the control and model groups were orally given an equal volume of normal saline, all once a day every day for 8weeks. After 16 h fasting following the last administration, the body weight, total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), oxidized low density lipoprotein (OX-LDL), matrix metalloproteinases 9 (MMP-9), tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinase 1 (TIMP-1), apolipoprotein E (ApoE), low density lipoprotein receptor (LDL-R), and scavenger receptor class B type1 (SR-B1) levels were measured. The morphological changes of thoracic aortas were examined by HE staining. Results At the 16 th week, compared with the control group, the body weight as well as the TC, TG, LDL-C, OX-LDL, MMP-9, HIF-1α, VEGF, VCAM-1 and PF4 level were all increased significantly (P＜0.05), while the level of HDL-C, ApoE, LDL-R, and SR-B1 decreased significantly (P＜0.05), accompanied with the atherosclerotic changes in the thoracic aortas indicated by the HE staining in the model group. Compared with the model group, the body weight as well as the TC, LDL-C, OX-LDL, MMP-9, HIF-1α, VEGF, VCAM-1 and PF4 level were decreased significantly (P＜0.05), and the TIMP-1 level increased (P＜0.05) in all of the three-dosage safflower yellow-test groups. Meanwhile, compared with the model group, in the 10.9 and 5.45 mg/kg safflower yellow groups, the TG level were decreased and the ApoE and SR-B1 levels were increased significantly (P＜0.05). On the other hand, the LDL-R level significantly increased only in the safflower yellow 10.9 mg/kg group (P＜0.05). HE staining showed a significant reduction in atherosclerorotic changes of the thoracic aorta in the safflower yellow-test groups. Conclusion Safflower yellow may inhibit the progression of atherosclerosis by regulating the lipid metabolism and MMP-9/TIMP-1 balance and also by inhibiting the HIF-1α, VEGF, VCAM-1 and PF4 expression.

Effect of low density lipoprotein oxidizing in hyperlipidemia rats after treating with tetrahydrobiopterin / 中国应用生理学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the oxidative modification effect and its mechanism of low density lipoprotein (LDL) in hyperlipidemia (HL) rats after treating with tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Fifty four 8-week-old male Wistar rats were used, these 54 rats were randomly divided into control group, high fat diet group (HL group), high fat diet and injected BH4 group (HL + BH4 group), and 18 in each group. The BH4 levels of blood fats and blood serum and its metabolites, the aortic reactive oxygen species, the end product malondialdehyde (MDA) and the LDL oxidation level were all determined by killing 6 experimental rats in each group at the first 8, 16, and 24 weeks of age respectively.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Treating with BH4 after 8 and 16 weeks, there was no significant difference in serum lipids among three groups (P > 0. 05); but ROS and MDA decreased significantly (P < 0.01); compared with control and HL groups, the BH4 level of HL + BH4 group increased a lot (P < 0.01); compared with control group, the BH4 content reduced obviously in aortic homogenate of HL group (P < 0.01), but the total petrin levels (TB = BH4 + BH2 + B) had no significant difference (P > 0.05); the serum TBARS formation increased gradually with the increase of week-ages, but compared with HL group, the serum TBARS formation of HL + BH4 group reduced significantly (P < 0. 01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Treating with BH4 can reduced the LDL oxidation, the mechanism may be related to the correct of NOS uncoupling, the reduce of ROS generation and the decrease of LDL lipid peroxidation.</p>

Biomechanical properties of artery in spontaneously hypertensive rats after treating with tetrahydrobiopterin / 中国应用生理学杂志

<p><b>AIM</b>To explore the effect of remodeling and biomechanical properties after chronic treating with tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4) in spontaneously hypertensive rats.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The spontaneously hypertensive rat(SHR) were given with BH4 chronically. The opening angle in the zero-stress state , wall-to-lumen area ratios (W/L) of thoracic aorta and the relationship between pressure and diameter (P-D) of mesenteric artery were measured by computer image analysis in 4, 16, and 26 week-old respectively.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Treating with BH4 chronically from 4 weeks-old in SHR, there was a significant decrease in morphometric parameters of the thoracic aorta and an increase in the zero-stress state of opening angle of elastic artery. The P-D curve of mesenteric artery moved upward.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Treating with BH4 prevented the structure and function of artery from abnormal changing, including to attenuate the resistant vascular hypertrophy and recover the vascular elasticity and expansibility.</p>

Intraoperative facial motor evoked potentials monitoring with transcranial electrical stimulation for preservation of facial nerve function in patients with large acoustic neuroma / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Although various monitoring techniques have been used routinely in the treatment of the lesions in the skull base, iatrogenic facial paresis or paralysis remains a significant clinical problem. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of intraoperative facial motor evoked potentials monitoring with transcranial electrical stimulation on preservation of facial nerve function.</p><p><b>METHOD</b>From January to November 2005, 19 patients with large acoustic neuroma were treated using intraoperative facial motor evoked potentials monitoring with transcranial electrical stimulation (TCEMEP) for preservation of facial nerve function. The relationship between the decrease of MEP amplitude after tumor removal and the postoperative function of the facial nerve was analyzed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>MEP amplitude decreased more than 75% in 11 patients, of which 6 presented significant facial paralysis (H-B grade 3), and 5 had mild facial paralysis (H-B grade 2). In the other 8 patients, whose MEP amplitude decreased less than 75%, 1 experienced significant facial paralysis, 5 had mild facial paralysis, and 2 were normal.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Intraoperative TCEMEP can be used to predict postoperative function of the facial nerve. The decreased MEP amplitude above 75 % is an alarm point for possible severe facial paralysis.</p>