ABSTRACT
ObjectiveTo investigate the mechanism of Baihuan Xiaoyao Decoction （Xiaoyaosan added with Lilii Bulbus and Albiziae Cortex） in alleviating depression-like behaviors of juvenile rats by regulating the polarization of microglia. MethodSixty juvenile SD rats were randomized into normal control， model， fluoxetine， and low-， medium-， and high-dose （5.36， 10.71， 21.42 g·kg-1， respectively） Baihuan Xiaoyao decoction groups. The rat model of juvenile depression was established by chronic unpredictable mild stress （CUMS）. The sucrose preference test （SPT） was carried out to examine the sucrose preference of rats. Forced swimming test （FST） was carried out to measure the immobility time of rats. The open field test （OFT） was conducted to measure the total distance， the central distance， the number of horizontal crossings， and the frequency of rearing. Morris water maze （MWM） was used to measure the escape latency and the number of crossing the platform. The immunofluorescence assay was employed to detect the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase （iNOS， the polarization marker of M1 microglia） and CD206 （the polarization marker of M2 microglia）. Real-time polymerase chain reaction was employed to determine the mRNA levels of iNOS， CD206， pro-inflammatory cytokines ［tumor necrosis factor （TNF）-α， interleukin （IL）-1β， and IL-6］ and anti-inflammatory cytokines （IL-4 and IL-10） in the hippocampus. Western blotting was employed to determine the protein levels of iNOS and CD206 in the hippocampus. The levels of IL-4 and IL-6 in the hippocampus were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. ResultCompared with the normal control group， the model rats showed a reduction in sucrose preference （P<0.05）， an increase in immobility time （P<0.05）， decreased motor and exploratory behaviors （P<0.05）， and weakened learning and spatial memory （P<0.05）. In addition， the model rats showed up-regulated mRNA and protein levels of iNOS and mRNA levels of IL-1β， IL-6， and TNF-α （P<0.05）. Compared with the model group， Baihuan Xiaoyao decoction increased the sucrose preference value （P<0.05）， shortened the immobility time （P<0.01）， increased the motor and exploratory behaviors （P<0.05）， and improved the learning and spatial memory （P<0.01）. Furthermore， the decoction down-regulated the positive expression and protein level of iNOS， lowered the levels of TNF-α， IL-1β， and IL-6 （P<0.01）， promoted the positive expression of CD206， and elevated the levels of IL-4 and IL-10 （P<0.01） in the hippocampus of the high dose group. Moreover， the high-dose Baihuan Xiaoyao decoction group had higher sucrose preference value （P<0.01）， shorter immobility time （P<0.01）， longer central distance （P<0.01）， stronger learning and spatial memory （P<0.01）， higher positive expression and protein level of iNOS （P<0.01）， lower levels of TNF-α， IL-1β， and IL-6 （P<0.05， P<0.01）， lower positive expression and mRNA level of iNOS （P<0.05）， and higher levels of IL-4 and IL-10 （P<0.05， P<0.01） than the fluoxetine group. ConclusionBaihuan Xiaoyao decoction can improve the depression-like behavior of juvenile rats by inhibiting the M1 polarization and promoting the M2 polarization of microglia in the hippocampus.
ABSTRACT
ObjectiveTaking the rat model of spleen-stomach damp-heat syndrome（SSDHS） as the research object， this study aimed to investigate the potential biomarkers of SSDHS and the related metabolic pathways based on urine metabolomics， and tried to reveal the essence of SSDHS at the level of endogenous small molecular metabolites. MethodSixteen SD rats were randomly divided into normal and model groups. The normal group was fed normal chow and the model group was fed with 200 g·L-1 honey water daily， and lard and Chinese Baijiu alternately on alternate days for 17 days. The SSDHS model rats were exposed to external dampness-heat environment with temperature at 30-34 ℃， relative humidity of 95% for 2 h at the same time every day from the 10th day for 7 d. Then， the model was evaluated by observing the general conditions of the rats， measuring the contents of motilin（MTL） and gastrin（GT） in plasma by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay（ELISA）， and examining the histopathology of gastronitestinal tissues. In additon， the urine metabolomics analysis was performed by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry（UPLC-Q-TOF-MS）， and the detection conditions was as follows：ACQUITY™ UPLC BEH C18 column（2.1 mm×100 mm， 1.7 μm）， mobile phase of 0.1% formic acid aqueous solution（A）-0.1% formic acid acetonitrile solution（B） for gradient elution （0-3 min， 1%-18%B； 3-8 min， 18%-40%B； 8-10 min， 40%-100%B）， the flow rate of 0.4 mL·min-1， electrospray ionization（ESI） in positive and negative ion modes， scanning range of m/z 50-1 000. The univariate and multivariate statistical analysis were constructed for screening inter-group differential ions， the element composition was calculated according to the precise relative molecular weight， and ion information was matched with databases such as Human Metabolome Database（HMDB） to identify biomarkers. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes（KEGG） database was used to obtain the biological information of metabolites， and their associated metabolic pathways were analyzed by MetaboAnalyst 5.0. ResultCompared with the normal group， the rectal temperature of the model group increased significantly（P<0.01）， the levels of plasma MTL and GT decreased significantly（P<0.05， P<0.01）， and pathological changes such as bleeding， congestion and inflammatory infiltration in the gastric and colonic tissues. A total of 25 differential metabolites such as L-histidine， citric acid and isocitric acid were found to be the potential biomarker of SSDHS by urine metabolomics， 13 of which were phase Ⅱ metabolites of endogenous substances（glucuronic acid conjugates， sulfuric acid conjugates and acetyl conjugates）， involving the metabolic pathways of histidine metabolism， tricarboxylic acid cycle， glyoxylate and dicarboxylate metabolism. ConclusionSSDHS primarily causes disorders of histidine metabolism， tricarboxylic acid cycle， glyoxylate and dicarboxylate metabolism， as well as the imbalance of the activation/inactivation of endogenous metabolites， which may involve the immune response， material and energy metabolism， inflammatory response and intestinal flora， and may provide a basis for the establishment and application of SSDHS model.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE To systematically review the efficacy and safety of kidney -tonifying Chinese patent medicine combined with phosphodiesterase type 5（PDE5）inhibitors in the treatment of erectile dysfunction （ED），and to provide evidence - based reference for clinical medication . METHODS Retrieved from PubMed ，Embase，Cochrane Library ，Web of Science ，VIP， China Biomedical Literature Database ，CNKI and Wanfang database ，randomized controlled trials （RCTs）of kidney -tonifying Chinese patent medicine combined with PDE 5 inhibitors（trial group ）versus PDE 5 inhibitors or kidney -tonifying Chinese patent medicine alone （control group ）were collected . The search period was from the establishment of the database to February 15，2022. After literature screening and data extraction ，the risk of bias assessment tool recommended in Cochrane System Reviewer ’s Handbook 6.1.0 was used to evaluate the quality of the included literature ；Stata 16.0 software was used for network meta -analysis； and the funnel plot was used for publication bias analysis . RESULTS A total of 23 RCTs were included ，with a total of 2 417 patients， involving 8 kinds of Chinese patent medicines ， including Congrong yishen granule ，Canrong zhutian capsule ， Compound xuanju capsule ， Huanshao capsule ， Shanhaidan granule， Shengjing capsule ， Shisanwei ziyin zhuangyang capsule，Shugan yiyang capsule . The results of network meta analysis showed that in terms of total effective rate ，Compound xuanju capsule combined with PDE 5 inhibitor，Shengjing capsule combined with PDE 5 inhibitor，Shugan yiyang capsule combined with PDE 5 inhibitor had higher total effective rate ；in terms of international index of erectile function 5，the scores of Compound xuanju capsule combined with PDE 5 inhibitor，Congrong yishen granule combined with PDE 5 inhibitor，and Canrong zhutian capsule combined with PDE 5 inhibitor were higher ；in terms of safety ，the incidence of adverse drug reactions caused by Huanshao capsule ，Shanhaidan granule and Shugan yiyang capsule were lower . CONCLUSIONS Kidney-tonifying Chinese patent medicine combined with PDE 5 inhibitor can improve the erectile function of ED patients and reduce the occurrence of adverse drug reactions . In terms of efficacy and safety ，Compound xuanju capsule combined with PDE 5 inhibitor is the best .