Effect of different parts of Pinelliae Rhizoma Decoction against airway inflammation and analysis of effective components / 中国中药杂志

This study investigated the material basis and mechanism of Pinelliae Rhizoma Decoction in the treatment of airway inflammation. The cigarette smoke combined with lipopolysaccharide(LPS) was used to induce an airway inflammation model in mice. The expression levels of IL-6 and IL-8 in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid(BALF) and the phosphorylation levels of p38 and IκB in the lungs of mice were taken as indexes to screen the effective extracts by system solvent extraction from Pinelliae Rhizoma Decoction(dichloromethane extract, ethyl acetate extract, n-butanol extract, etc.). Meanwhile, the human bronchial epithelial(16-HBE) cell model of cigarette smoke extract(CSE)-induced injury was established, and the mRNA expression levels of IL-6 and IL-8 and the phosphorylation levels of p38 and IκB proteins were also taken as indexes to evaluate the anti-inflammatory effect of different extracts of Pinelliae Rhizoma Decoction. The results showed that Pinelliae Rhizoma Decoction significantly antagonized airway inflammation in mice by down-regulating the expression levels of IL-6 and IL-8 in mice with airway inflammation and 16-HBE cells with CSE-induced injury and inhibiting the phosphorylation levels of p38 and IκB. The dichloromethane and ethyl acetate extracts of Pinelliae Rhizoma Decoction showed significant anti-inflammatory effects, while such effects of other extracts were not prominent. Furthermore, the database of Pinelliae Rhizoma composition was constructed, and the components in effective extracts were analyzed by HPLC-TOF-MS and Nano-LC-MS/MS. As revealed by the results, the compositions of the two effective extracts were similar with 36 common components. They were combined and then divided into Pinelliae Rhizoma alkaloids(PTAs) and Pinelliae Rhizoma non-alkaloids(PTNAs) by 732 cation-exchange resin. Further in vitro investigation confirmed the significant anti-inflammatory effect of PTNAs, while such effect of PTAs was not manifest. The MS analysis showed 172 peptides and 7 organic acids in PTNAs. The peptide content in PTNAs was 63.5% measured by quantitative analysis of BCA assay, and the organic acid content was 9.92% by potentiometric titration method. The findings of this study suggested that Pinelliae Rhizoma Decoction could antagonize airway inflammation in mice by inhibiting phosphorylation of p38 and IκB and blocking the activation of MAPK and NF-κB signaling pathways, and the effective components were related to the peptides and organic acids in PTNAs. The above results lay a foundation for the research on the mechanism and material basis of Pinelliae Rhizoma in antagonizing airway inflammation.

Non-alkaloid constituents of Hymenocallis littoralis / 中国中药杂志

Perennial herb Hymenocallis littoralis(Amaryllidaceae) boasts anti-tumor, anti-virus, and anti-inflammatory activities. As the representative constituents, alkaloids have attracted much attention, whereas the non-alkaloid constituents have been rarely reported. Therefore, this study investigated the non-alkaloid constituents of H. littoralis and their contribution to the various pharmacological activities of the herb. Thirteen non-alkaloid compounds were isolated from the 95% ethanol extract of dried whole plant of H. littoralis after a series of chromatographic separation steps and spectral analysis, and they were identified as 5,7-dihydroxy-6,8-dimethoxy-2-hydroxymethyl-4H-chromoen-4-one(1), undulatoside A(2),(2S)-7,4'-dihydroxyflavane(3), naringenin(4), 4',7-hydroxy-8-methylflavanone(5), 8-methylnaringenin(6), 8-demethylfarrerol(7), 6-methyl-aromadendrin(8), 4',5,7-trihydroxy-8-methylflavanone(9), syzalterin(10), 6-methylapigenin(11), isoliquiritigenin(12), and undatuside C(13) based on the spectroscopic data analysis. Among them, compound 1 was a new chromone derivative, and compounds 2 and 4-13 were isolated form this plant for the first time.

Comparative Study on the Antineoplastic Effect of Non-alkaloid Components from Gelsemium Elegans Benth in Vitro and in Vivo / 中国药房

OBJECTIVE:To evaluate the antineoplastic effects of non-alkaloid components from Gelsemium elegans Benth in vitro and in vivo and to study the correlation between antineoplastic effects and toxicity.METHODS:The cell proliferation inhibition effect of every component on tumor cells in vitro was studied by MTT method,the antineoplastic activity of non-alkaloid components were comprehensively evaluated through acute toxicity testing on mice,the inhibition effect test on H 22 of liver tumor-bearing mice and the test on the effect on immunizing index.RESULTS:The antineoplastic activity of non-alkaloid in Gelsemium elegans in vitro surpassed alkaloid,and in which the component 2 could significantly inhibit H 22 tumor growth in mice,the thymus gland indexes were significantly higher in treatment group than non-treatment tumor-bearing mice.However,the other components showed no significant effect on tumor growth and those with stronger toxicity showed no antineoplastic activity.CONCLUSIONS:The non-alkaloid components from Gelsemium elegans Benth show anti-neoplastic effects and enhancement property on immune function,however,its antineoplastic effects in vitro and in vivo have no obvious correlation with toxicity.

Different Hypotentive Effects of Various Active Constituents Isolated from Uncaria rhynchophylla / 中草药

Hypotensive effects of rhynchophylline, isorhynchophylline, total alkaloid and non-alka-loid fraction isolated from Uncaria rhynchophylla (Miq.) Jacks. were compared. Change in peripheralblood pressure was recorded by inserting a catheter into the right common carotid artery of anaethetizedrat, while each of the four hypotensive constituents was injected individually into the femoral vein by a mi-croinfusion pump. Results of the findings showed that the four constituents in U. rhynchophylla displayeddifferent hypotensive potency in the order of isorhynchophylline [lowering of mean arterial pressure(MAP) by 42.0%] > rhynchophylline (lowering of MAP by 32.1%) > total alkaloid (lowering of MAPby 21.3%) > non-alkaloid fraction (lowering of MAP by 12.4%). It was concluded that isorhyn-chophylline and rhynchophylline were the main hypotensive constituents in U. rhynchophylla.