Germplasm resources and secondary metabolism regulation in Reishi mushroom (Ganoderma lucidum) / 中草药·英文版

Ganoderma lucidum is a valuable medical macrofungus with a myriad of diverse secondary metabolites, in which triterpenoids are the major constituents. This paper introduced the germplasm resources of genus Ganoderma from textual research, its distribution and identification at the molecular level. Also we overviewed G. lucidum in the components, the biological activities and biosynthetic pathways of ganoderic acid, aiming to provide scientific evidence for the development and utilization of G. lucidum germplasm resources and the biosynthesis of ganoderic acid.

Research progress of iron metabolism and iron homeostasis imbalance / 公共卫生与预防医学

Iron is an important trace element in human body. It is involved in heme synthesis, myelin sheath formation, mitochondrial respiratory chain electron transfer, DNA replication, repair，epigenetic control and so on. In order to maintain iron homeostasis, the body maintains iron balance by regulating the absorption of dietary iron by intestinal cells, recovery of iron by macrophages and storage of iron in liver cells. These iron metabolism regulation processes involve sophisticated cellular and molecular regulatory systems. When iron homeostasis is broken, both iron deficiency and iron overload will result in damage to the body. In this review, we review the research progress on the absorption, distribution and recovery of iron, the cellular and molecular regulatory mechanisms of iron metabolism and the consequences of iron homeostasis imbalance.

Biosynthesis and metabolism regulation of terpenoids in Pogostemon cablin: a review / 中国中药杂志

The terpenoids in Pogostemon cablin have complex structures and abundant pharmacological effects. Patchouli alcohol(PA) and pogostone(PO) have a high medicinal value by virtue of anti-tumor, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antioxidant, and other biological activities. Due to the low content of terpenoid metabolites in P. cablin, the study of biosynthesis and metabolism regulation can provide a biosynthetic basis for obtaining high-content terpenoids. In this study, key enzyme genes in biosynthesis, transcription factors in metabolism regulation, spatio-temporal expression of terpene synthase were reviewed, aiming to provide a reference for the development, protection, and utilization of P. cablin resources.

Advance in biosynthesis and metabolic regulation of ginkgolides / 中国中药杂志

Ginkgolides,the unique terpenoids in Ginkgo biloba,have a significant effect on the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Metabolic regulation and synthetic biology strategies are efficient methods to obtain high-quality ginkgolides. The present study reviewed the cloning and functions of genes related to the biosynthetic pathway of ginkgolides,as well as relevant studies of omics,genetic transformation,and metabolic regulation in recent years,and predicted the research trends and prospects,aiming to provide a reference for discovering the key genes related to the biosynthetic pathway and the biosynthesis of ginkgolides.

CRISPR/Cas9-mediated MSTN gene editing induced mitochondrial alterations in C2C12 myoblast cells

Background: Myostatin (MSTN) negatively regulates muscle mass and is a potent regulator of energy metabolism. However, MSTN knockout have affect mitochondrial function. This research assessed the mitochondrial energy metabolism of Mstn−/+ KO cells, and wondered whether the mitochondria biogenesis are affected. Results: In this study, we successfully achieved Mstn knockout in skeletal muscle C2C12 cells using a CRISPR/Cas9 system and measured proliferation and differentiation using the Cell-Counting Kit-8 assay and qPCR, respectively. We found that MSTN dysfunction could promote proliferation and differentiation compared with the behaviour of wild-type cells. Moreover, Mstn KO induced an increase in KIF5B expression. The mitochondrial content was significantly increased in Mstn KO C2C12 cells, apparently associated with the increases in PGC-1α, Cox1, Cox2, ND1 and ND2 expression. However, no differences were observed in glucose consumption and lactate production. Interestingly, Mstn KO C2C12 cells showed an increase in IL6 and a decrease in TNF-1α levels. Conclusion: These findings indicate that MSTN regulates mitochondrial biogenesis and metabolism. This gene-editing cells provided favourable evidence for animal breeding and metabolic diseases.

Study on Preparation and Pharmacokinetics of Puerarin Microemulsion Based on Phase Ⅰ Metabolic Regulation / 中国药房

OBJECTIVE： To prepare puerarin microemulsion with phase Ⅰ metabolic regulation （R-PR-ME） and to study pharmacokinetic characteristics of rats in vivo. METHODS： R-PR-ME and Puerarin microemulsion without metabolic regulation （NR-PR-ME） were prepared by Shah method. Pseudo-ternary phase diagram was used to optimize microemulsion formula using drug loading amount as index. The particle size and PDI of microemulsion were characterized by using a laser particle size analyzer. Rats were used as animal models， and HPLC method was used to determine the blood concentration of puerarin before and 5， 10， 15， 20， 30， 45， 60， 90， 120， 180， 240， 360， 480， 600 min after intragastric administration of R-PR-ME， NR-PR-ME and puerarin suspension （PR-SP） at puerarin dosage of 120 mg/kg. The pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated by using DAS 2.0 software. SPSS 19.0 software was used for statistical analysis. The relative bioavailability of R-PR-ME was calculated with NR-PR-ME as reference preparation. RESULTS： The formula of R-PR-ME included that oleoyl polyoxyl-6 glyserides （oil phase）-polysorbate 20 （emulsifier）-glycerides （co-emulsifier） mass ratio of 2 ∶ 4 ∶ 4； drug-loading amount of 67.50 mg/g， particle size was （22.59±0.53） nm （n＝3） and PDI was 0.182±0.017 （n＝3）. The formula of NR-PR-ME included that soybean oil （oil phase）-polysorbate 80 （emulsifier）- glycerol （co-emulsifier） mass ratio of 1 ∶ 4.5 ∶ 4.5， drug-loading amount of 61.32 mg/g， particle size of （15.45±1.06） nm（n＝3） and PDI of 0.156±0.012 （n＝3）. Pharmacokinetic parameters of R-PR-ME， NR-PR-ME and PR-SP included that AUC0-600 min were （134.187±37.152）， （65.145±18.762） and （49.623±12.143） μg·min/mL； cmax were （1.316±0.306）， （1.082±0.294） and （0.425±0.106） μg/mL； MRT were （155.068±33.204）， （100.264±27.683）， （60.524±14.086） min； t1/2β were （365.880±101.250）， （283.280±80.940）， （80.063±21.189） min （n＝6）， respectively. Compared with PR-SP， AUC0-600 min， cmax， MRT and t1/2β of R-PR-ME and NR-PR-ME were increased significantly （P＜0.05 or P＜0.01）. Compared with NR-PR-ME， AUC0-600 min， MRT and  t1/2β of R-PR-ME were more higher （P＜0.05）. The relative bioavailability of of R-PR-ME was 205.98％. CONCLUSIONS： R-PR-ME is prepared successfully with high drug-loading amount， and can significantly increase the bioavailability of puerarin in rats， compared with PR-SP and NR-PR-ME.

Metabonomics study on interventions of Huangqi Jianzhong Decoction against chronic atrophic gastritis in rats / 中草药

Objective To address the protective role Huangqi Jianzhong Decoction (HQJZ) against chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG) in rats with metabolites in serum, and illuminate its regulative approaches to the targets. Methods CAG rat model was constructed by alternant administrations of ammonia solution and sodium deoxycholate, combined with the hunger disorder method. Rats were randomly separated into five groups: control group, model group, positive group (teprenone), low-dose group, medium-dose group, and high-dose group of HQJZ for continuous ig administration for four weeks. Body weight, biochemical indexes, and histopathological exam were used to evaluate the efficacy of HQJZ after the model replicated successfully. 1H NMR-based metabonomics was employed to analyze the plasma metabolic features of HQJZ deviated from CAG rats. Partial least square regression analysis (PLS-RA) and MetPA analysis were utilized to explore the relevant pathways and the underlying mechanism involved in HQJZ against CAG. Results The pharmacodynamic results demonstrated that HQJZ possessed beneficial activities in treating CAG, which partially ascribed to the improvement of gastric PA and antioxidant system in vivo. A total of 18 plasma metabolites were selected as the potential biomarkers related to the development of CAG, 10 out of them including 3-hydroxybutyrate, lactate, acetate, succinate, etc. were significantly regulated by HQJZ. Three regulation pathways: arginine and proline metabolism, glycerolipid metabolism, and glycine, serine and threonine metabolism, were recognized to be the most relevant efficacy of HQJZ against CAG based on PLS-RA and MetPA analysis. Conclusion The efficacy of HQJZ against CAG were ascribed to the improvement of the pathological changes due to its regulation to the energy imbalance, excessive oxidative stress, immune disorders, as well as inflammation.