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Squalene is a key metabolic intermediate for sterols and various other triterpenoids. Its biosynthesis is catalyzed by squalene synthase (SQS), which converts two molecules of farnesyl pyrophosphate to squalene. The biosynthetic pathway of Fritillaria thunbergii Miq isosteroid alkaloids is similar to that of triterpenoids. In this study, a full-length cDNA of squalene synthase from Fritillaria thunbergii Mig (FtSQS) was cloned using rapid amplification from cDNA ends (RACE) technology. GenBank accession number was KF551097. 2. Bioinformatics methods were used to characterize the FtSQS in detail, including the detection of conserved regions, sequence homology analysis, secondary and tertiary structure prediction, and phylogenetic tree analysis. The results showed that its open reading frame (ORF) was 1 230 bp and encoded 409 amino acids. Protein-Blast alignment found that amino acid homology with SQS of Indian pine, Truncate alfalfa, Purple shirt, Potato, Bupleurum, Golden iron lock and Arabidopsis reached 73. 84%, 73. 23%, 72. 24%, 70. 66%, 70. 66%, 69. 44%, 68. 14%. Promoter analysis indicated that the 5' upstream region of FtSQS possessed various potential elements associated with physiological and environmental factors. To obtain a soluble recombinant protein, 24 hydrophobic amino acids were deleted from the carboxyl terminus, and the C-terminal truncated mutant FtSQS (FtSQSATM) was expressed in E. coli BL21 (DE3). SDS-PAGE analysis suggested that approximately 66 kD recombinant protein was checked. The in vitro enzymatic reaction proved that FtSQS could catalyze farnesyl pyrophosphate to generate squalene. Expression level of FtSQS mRNA in leaves was the highest, followed by stem and root, but in bulb was much lower than that in other tissues. It suggests that leaves are active organ for biosynthesis of peimine. The identification and function of FtSQS provides an important basis for the study of secondary metabolites of Fritillaria thunbergii Miq.
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Objective To analyze the material basis and molecular mechanisms of Danggui Beimu Kushen (DBK) Pills in treating prostatic diseases based on the method of integrated pharmacology. Method The platform of Integrative Pharmacology of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM-IP, www.tcmip.cn) was utilized to predict the main active ingredients and functional targets of DBK Pills in treating prostatic disease, key targets were screened for enrichment analysis of pathways, and the network of “herb-core component-key target-main pathway” was constructed, and the possible mechanisms of DBK Pills in treating prostatic diseases were explored. Results A total of 532 candidate key targets for the treatment of prostatic diseases by DBK Pills were predicted, and 1 840 terms of gene function and 194 signal pathways were analyzed by gene ontology (GO) and KEGG, respectively. The network analysis of “herb-core component-key target-main pathway” showed that 65 core components were predicted, including 29 ingredients from Angelica sinensis, 11 from Fritillaria thunbergii and 26 from Sophora flavescens. Those predicted components acted on the key targets of prostatic diseases, such as transcription factor binding, negative regulation of apoptosis, et al, through the estrogen, apoptosis, chemokines and other signal pathways, and thus played a role in the regulation of cell cycle, apoptosis and proliferation imbalance, which might be the molecular mechanisms of DBK Pills for the treatment of prostatic disease. Conclusion DBK Pills regulate the development of BPH, prostate cancer and other diseases through multiple pathways with multi-component interacting with multiple targets.
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Objective: To study the influence of sulfur-fumigation on pharmacokinetic of peimine and peiminine of Fritillaria thunbergii in rat plasma by LC-MS/MS. Methods: After random grouping, 18 SD rats were given the solution of fresh-cut and sulfur-fumigated F. thunbergii by ig administration. The blood drug concentration of peimine and peiminine in rat plasma was determined by HPLC-MS/MS, and the pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated with 3P97 software. Results: The pharmacokinetic parameters of peimine and peiminine of sulfur-fumigated F. thunbergii in rat plasma were (66.40 ± 4.65), (146.72 ± 10.88) ng/mL for Cmax, and (181.79 ± 7.85), (457.38 ± 58.81) ng∙h/mL for AUC, respectively. Those of fresh-cut sample in rat plasma were (186.37 ± 18.8), (227.65 ± 7.01) ng/mL for Cmax, and (197.70 ± 18.69), (566.16 ± 41.55) ng∙h/mL for AUC, respectively. The pharmacokinetic parameters of perimine and peiminine of sulfur-fumigated sample in rat plasma were less than those of fresh-cut sample. Conclusion: The results showed that sulfur-fumigation decreased the bioavailability of peimine and peiminine. This study could provide a basis for further clarifying the influence of sulfur-fumigation on efficacy material base of F.thunbergii.
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Objective: To identify Fritillaria thunbergii using special primer by specific PCR. Methods: Gene footprint of F. thunbergii named ZB1 was screened from RAPD amplification. Reclaimed ZB1 gene was inserted into T-vector to be cloned and sequenced. One pair of specific primers P2/P3 were designed according to the ZB1 sequence, and applied in specific PCR reaction using genome DNA of F. thunbergii as template. Results: A specific band around 750 bp was detected in F. thunbergii, while nothing appeared in other varieties. Conclusion: The method is convenient, reproducible, and precise, with broad application prospects.
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Objective To translate the findings from fundamental research into clinical application and to evaluate the clinical efficiency and safety of Fritillaria thunbergii Miq. granule as adjunctive means of chemotherapy during peri chemotherapy of refractory acute leukemia. Methods Patients in multiple hospitals were randomly divided into two groups with Fritillaria thunbergii Miq. granule treatment or synchronous control at three days before chemotherapy respectively, according to random approaches for medical treatment. The clinical therapeutic effects were then determined after one course of treatment. Results According to the research project, 138 patients were analyzed statistically, 72 in Fritillaria thunbergii Miq. granule group and 66 in control group. The complete remission rate (CR) of Fritillaria thunbergii Miq. granule group and control group were 36.8% and 25.8% respectively, while the total effects were 77.8% and 53.0%, which was significantly different (P
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Object To identify Fritillaria cirrhosa D. Don., Fritillaria thunbergii Miq. and Fritillaria thunbergii Miq. var. chekiangensis Hsiao et K. C. Hsia. with FTIR.Methods Their IR spectra were obtained by direct FTIR.Results The infrared spectra of F. cirrhosa, F. thunbergii, F. thunbergii var. chekiangensis were different.Conclusion F. cirrhosa, F. thunbergii, and F. thunbergii var. chekiangensis were identified by FTIR directly, fastly and accurately.
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Objective To study the genetic diversity of Fritillaria thunbergii,a traditional Chinese herb in Zhejiang Province in China.Methods The genetic diversity of six representational populations of F.thunbergii including 32 individuals was investigated by amplified fragment length polymorphism(AFLP) maker technique.Results The genetic diversity was revealed as follow: the Nei′s genetic diversity index(He) 0.169 0?0.175 7,Shannon′s information index(I) 0.269 8?0.245 3,percentage of polymorphic loci(PPB) was 76.85% at the species level;Ht 0.169 0?0.030 9,and Hs 0.150 8?0.024 0,I 0.233 3?0.261 9, PPB was 50.38% at population level.The genetic differentiation index(Gst) was 0.107 6,Nm 4.147 0.The result of dendrogram of six populations indicated that Dongyang and Yongkang populations shared the minimum genetic distance(0.015 0),they were classified into a group,and Xiangshan and Jinyun populations shared the maximum genetic distance(0.032 4).Conclusion The genetic diversity of F.thunbergii cultivated in Zhejiang Province is very rich,which could ensure the long-term survival of F.thunbergii.But the genetic diversity of F.thunbergii is relatively higher in population levels while lower at the species levels and the degree of genetic differentiation occured among the populations is not significant.The germplasm resources are relatively stable among these six populations.These populations could be used to breed the fine strains of F.thunbergii as the bases.