Sinomenine inhibits oxidative stress and pulmonary fibrosis by activating the Keap1/Nrf2 signaling pathway / 中国临床药理学与治疗学

AIM: To explore the protective effects of sinomenine (SIN) on oxidative stress and pulmonary fibrosis and its relationship with the Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1 (Keap1)/nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) signaling pathway. METHODS: MRC-5 cells were treated with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) to establish the oxidative stress injury model, followed by administration with SIN. Cell viability was detected using the CCK-8 method. The biochemical kits were employed to measure malondialdehyde (MDA) content and superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and catalase (CAT) activities. The protein expression of Keap1 and Nrf2 was examined by western blot. Thirty SD rats were randomly divided into control group, bleomycin A5 (BLM) group and BLM + SIN group, with 10 animals in each group. Bleomycin A5 were intratracheally administered to the rats in BLM group and BLM+SIN group to establish the pulmonary fibrosis model. The rats in control group received the same volume of 9 g/L sodium chloride solution. The second day after model construction, the rats in BLM+SIN group were gavaged with SIN, while the rats in the other two groups were treated with 9 g/L sodium chloride solution. On day 28, all rats were sacrificed. Pulmonary tissue was isolated, and HE and Masson staining was performed to observe the pathological changes. The MDA content and SOD, GSH-Px and CAT activities in pulmonary tissue were evaluated. Western blot was used to assay pulmonary tissues Keap1 and Nrf2 protein expression. RESULTS: When compared with H2O2 group, SIN treatment increased cell viability, decreased MDA content, elevated SOD, GSH-Px and CAT activities, down-regulated Keap1 expression, and promoted nuclear translocation of Nrf2 in MRC-5 cells. In comparison with BLM group, administration of SIN decreased alveolitis and pulmonary fibrosis pathological changes and scores as well as pulmonary tissue MDA content, enhanced pulmonary tissues SOD, GSH-Px and CAT activities, down-regulated pulmonary tissues Keap1 expression, and raised Nrf2 levels in the nucleus. CONCLUSION: SIN alleviates oxidative stress and pulmonary fibrosis possibly by activating the Keap1/Nrf2 signaling pathway.

Kiwi fruit essence reduces radiation-induced lung injury by down-regulating TNF-α and PDGF-B in rats / 细胞与分子免疫学杂志

Objective To observe the role of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and platelet-derived growth factor-B (PDGF-B) in kiwi fruit essence-mediated protection of radiation-induced lung injury (RILI) in rats. Methods 96 male healthy Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into normal control group, model group, and kiwi fruit essence treatment group(60 and 240 mg/kg) by the random number table method, with 24 animals in each group. The whole lungs underwent 6 MV X-ray irradiation (18 Gy) to induce RILI animal models in rats of the latter three groups. On the next day after irradiation, rats in the latter two groups were intragastrically administrated with 60 or 240 mg/kg kiwi fruit essence, once a day. The rats in the normal control and model groups were treated with 9 g/L sodium chloride solution. Eight rats in the latter three groups were randomly sacrificed on days 14, 28, and 56, while normal control rats were sacrificed on day 56 as the overall control. Blood samples were collected and separated. Serum concentrations of TNF-α and PDGF-B were detected using ELISA. The lung tissues were isolated for HE and Masson staining to evaluate alveolitis and pulmonary fibrosis (PF). The hydroxyproline (HYP) content in lung tissues was detected. The mRNA and protein expression of pulmonary TNF-α and PDGF-B were determined by quantitative real-time PCR and immunohistochemistry. Results Compared with the model group, treatment with 60 and 240 mg/kg kiwi fruit essence group significantly reduced alveolitis on days 14 and 28 as well as PF lesions on days 28 and 56. Compared with the normal control group, HYP content in the lung tissue of the model group increased on day 28 and day 56, while TNF-α and PDGF-B levels in the serum and lung tissues increased at each time point. Compared with the model group during the same period, 60 and 240 mg/kg kiwi fruit essence element treatment group reported the diminished levels of serum and pulmonary TNF-α on day 14 and day 28. Consistently, the lung tissue HYP content and serum and pulmonary PDGF-B levels on day 28 and day 56 were reduced. In addition, the above indicators in the 240 mg/kg kiwi fruit essence treatment group were lower than those for the 60 mg/kg kiwi fruit essence treatment group. Conclusion Kiwi fruit essence can alleviate RILI in rats, which is related to the down-regulation of TNF-α expression at the early stage and decreased PDGF-B level at the middle and late stages.

Sinomenine ameliorates bleomycin A5-induced pulmonary fibrosis by blocking the miR-21/ADAMTS-1 signaling pathway in rats / 细胞与分子免疫学杂志

Objective To explore the impact of sinomenine on bleomycin A5-induced pulmonary fibrosis (PF) in rats and the underlying mechanism. Methods MRC-5 cells were cultured and treated with sinomenine to determine its optimal concentration and time through the MTT assay. Subsequently, MRC-5 cells were incubated with 80 μmol/L sinomenine for 48 hours or transfected with miR-21 mimic/a disintegrin-like and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin type 1 motif (ADAMTS-1) siRNA prior to sinomenine treatment. The expression of miR-21, ADAMTS-1, collagen type 1 (Col1) and collagen type 3 (Col3) was detected by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) and/or Western blot analysis. Thirty SD rats were randomly divided into control group, sinomenine group and sinomenine combined with miR-21 agomir group, with 10 animals in each group. Bleomycin A5 were intratracheally administered to establish the PF model. Then, rats in control group, sinomenine group and sinomenine +miR-21 agomir group were treated with 9 g/L sodium chloride solution, sinomenine and sinomenine+miR-21 agomir, respectively. On day 28, all rats were sacrificed. HE and Masson staining was performed in pulmonary tissue. The expression of ADAMTS-1, Col1 and Col3 in pulmonary tissue were detected by qRT-PCR and/or Western blot analysis. ELISA was used to measure serum procollagen type 1 carboxyterminal propeptide (P1CP) and procollagen type 3 aminoterminal propeptide (P3NP) levels. Results Administration of sinomenine decreased miR-21 levels, up-regulated ADAMTS-1 expression, and promoted Col1 and Col3 degradation in MRC-5 cells. Importantly, interfering with the miR-21/ADAMTS-1 signaling pathway partially reversed the promotive effect of sinomenine on Col1 and Col3 degradation. Treatment of SD rats with sinomenine reduced alveolitis and PF scores, decreased serum P1CP and P3NP levels, up-regulated pulmonary ADAMTS-1 expression, and down-regulated Col1 and Col3 expression. However, these effects were reversed by miR-21 agomir. Conclusion Sinomenine promotes Col1 and Col3 degradation and inhibits PF in rats by miR-21/ADAMTS-1 pathway.

Preventive and therapeutic effects of the Kiwi fruit essence (unsaturated fatty acid of actinidia chinesis planch seed oil) on radiation-induced lung injury rats / 中国临床药理学与治疗学

AIM: To observe the effects of superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), myeloperoxidase (MPO) and transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) of radiation-induced lung injury rats by Kiwi fruit essence (unsaturated fatty acid of actinidia chinesis planch seed oil). METHODS: According to random number table, 90 Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into the control group, model group, 60 mg/kg unsaturated fatty acid of actinidia chinesis planch seed oil intervention group, 120 mg/kg unsaturated fatty acid of actinidia chinesis planch seed oil intervention group, 240 mg/kg unsaturated fatty acid of actinidia chinesis planch seed oil intervention group, 18 animals were included in each group. Except for the control group, rats in the remaining groups were constructed by 6MV-X-ray 18Gy full chest radiation, one week before modeling, the rats in the last 3 groups were given (60, 120, 240) mg/kg unsaturated fatty acid of actinidia chinesis planch seed oil. The first two groups were given 0.9% sodium chloride solution by gavage, once a day in each rat. 14 days, 28 days, and 56 days after radiation, the rats were randomly sacrificed and their chests were cut, and ave lung tissue was saved. HE and Masson staining were performed to observe the pathological changes, and the content of SOD, GSH-Px, MPO was determined. The expression of TGF-β1 was analyzed by immunohistochemical staining. RESULTS: Compared with the model group, (60, 120, 240) mg/kg unsaturated fatty acid of actinidia chinesis planch seed oil significantly reduced the degree of lung alveolitis and radiation pulmonary fibrosis, reduced the content of hydroxyproline (HYP), MPO, increased the antioxidant enzymes SOD and GSH-Px content, down-regulated the expression of TGF-β1.There were significant differences in the above-mentioned indicators among the intervention groups of (60, 120, 240) mg/kg unsaturated fatty acid of actinidia chinesis planch seed oil group, and it was positively correlated with dosage. CONCLUSION: Unsaturated fatty acid of actinidia chinesis planch seed oil has a preventive effect on radiation-induced lung injury, and its mechanism may be related to the reduction of oxidative stress damage and down-regulation of TGF-β1 expression.

Significance and value analysis of 3.0 T time-leaps magnetic resonance angiography for trigeminal microvascular decompression / 中国医师进修杂志

Objective:To analyze the clinical guidance value of 3.0 T three-dimensional time of fly magnetic resonance angiography (3D-TOF-MRA) in patients with trigeminal neuralgia (TN) who underwent microvascular decompression (MVD) treatment.Methods:The clinical and imaging data of 60 TN patients who underwent MVD treatment in Jinhua People′s Hospital from January 2019 to December 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. All patients underwent 3D-TOF-MRA examination before the surgery. The relationship and direction of the trigeminal neuralgia and surrounding blood vessels were observed, the responsible blood vessels that compressed the nerves before the surgery were determined, and vascular nerve compression (NVC) was clarified.Results:Among the 60 TN patients, pain symptoms of 52 patients (86.67%) completely disappeared after the surgery, and the pain symptoms of the remaining 8 patients (13.33%) were also significantly relieved. There was no statistically significant difference between 3D-TOF-MRA examination and MVD surgery in the judgment of the responsible vessel ( P>0.05). The positive rate of TN diagnosed by MVD surgery was 98.33% (59/60), and the positive rate of TN diagnosed by 3D-TOF-MRA was 91.67% (55/60), with no statistically significant difference ( P>0.05), and with highly consistency by Kappa test ( Kappa value=0.867). The area under the curve (AUC) of TN diagnosed by 3D-TOF-MRA through receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was 0.730 (95% CI 0.526~0.934). The incidence of NVC diagnosed by 3D-TOF-MRA was 63.33%(38/60), and the incidence of NVC seen by MVD surgery was 61.67%(37/60). There was no statistically significant difference in the diagnosis of NVC between 3D-TOF-MRA and MVD surgery. ( P>0.05). Conclusions:The 3D-TOF-MRA examination can more accurately know the position, orientation, shape and compression degree of the responsible blood vessel in TN patients, which has important guiding value for the clinical diagnosis of TN and preoperative evaluation of MVD.

Efficacy of acting κ opioid receptor for prevention of high altitude pulmonary edema in rats / 中华麻醉学杂志

Objective To evaluate the efficacy of acting κ opioid receptor for prevention of high altitude pulmonary edema (HAPE) in rats.Methods Forty male Sprague-Dawley rats,aged 8 weeks,weighing 250-300 g,were randomly divided into 5 groups (n =8 each) using a random number table:control group (group C),hypobaric hypoxia group (group H),normal saline + hypobaric hypoxia group (group NH),U50488H (a selective kappa-opioid receptor agonist) + hypobaric hypoxia group (group UH),and nor-binaltorphimine (norBNI,a selective kappa-opioid receptor antagonist) + U50488H + hypobaric hypoxia group (group NUH).The rats were put into the hyperbaric chamber and exposed to hypobaric hypoxia (atmospheric pressure 355 mmHg,partial pressure of oxygen 74 mmHg) for 2 days to induce HAPE.At 3 days before HAPE,normal saline 0.5 ml,U50488H 1.25 mg/kg,and nor-BNI 2.0 mg/kg were injected intraperitoneally once a day in NH,UH,and NUH groups,respectively,and in addition U50488H 1.25 mg/kg was injected intraperitoneally 10 min later in NUH group.After 2 h exposure to hypobaric hypoxia,mean pulmonary artery pressure (mPAP) was detected,and arterial blood samples were collected for determination of serum malondialdehyde (MDA) and erythropoietin (EPO) levels.The rats were then sacrificed and lungs were removed for microscopic examination and for determination of the levels of nitric oxide (NO),inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS),MDA,superoxide dismutase (SOD),endothelin-1 (ET-1),thromboxane B2 (TXB2),and 6-keto-prostaglandin F1α (6-keto-PGF1α) in lung tissues.Lung water content and TXB2/6-keto-PGF1α ratio was calculated.Results Compared with group C,mPAP,lung water content,ET-1,MDA,TXB2 and 6-keto-PGF1α levels,TXB2/6-ketoPGF1α ratio,and serum MDA and EPO levels were significantly increased,and iNOS,NO and SOD levels were decreased in the other four groups (P ＜ 0.05).Compared with group H,mPAP,lung water content,ET-1,MDA,TXB2 and 6-keto-PGF1α levels,TXB2/6-ketoPGF1α ratio and serum MDA and EPO levels were significantly decreased,and iNOS,NO and SOD levels were increased in UH group (P ＜ 0.05),and no significant changes were found in the indexes mentioned above in NH and NUH groups (P ＞ 0.05).The pathological changes of lung tissues were significantly attenuated in group UH as compared with H group.Conclusion Acting κ opioid receptor can produce prevention for HAPE in rats,and inhibition of lipid peroxidation and correction of the imbalance between vasoconstrictive factors and vasodilative factors may be involved in the mechanism.

Inhibitory Effects of Suramin in Combination with PG-Rg3 on the Growth of Lung Adencarcinoma in Mice / 天津医药

Objective To observe the effect of suramin combinated with PG-Rg3 on xenograft growth of lung adeno-carcinoma in mice, and the related mechanism thereof. Methods Forty C57BL/6J mice bearing Lewis cells were random-ized into five groups:control group, cisplatin (DDP) group, suramin group, PG-Rg3 group and combination group. Appropri-ate interventions were given in five groups of mice. Mice were sacrificed at day 24 after tumor inoculation. The subcutaneous tumors were stripped for histological examination. The tumor inhibitory rate was measured. The expressions of erythropoietin-producing hepatoma amplified sequences (Eph) B4 protein, Bcl-2 and tumors microvessel density (MVD) were determined by immunohistochemistry method with image analyze system. The apoptosis of tumor cells was measured by biotinyated dUTP nick and labeling (TUNEL) method. Results There were significantly lower values in subcutaneous tumor volume and weight in drug-treated groups than those in control group (P<0.05). The inhibitory rates were 39.20%, 49.11%, 54.86%and 62.49%in cisplatin group, suramin group, PG-Rg3 group and combined group (P<0.05). The values of EphB4, MVD and Bcl-2 grey values were significantly decreased, the apoptotic index was significantly increased, in suramin group, PG-Rg3 group and combined group than those of control group and DDP group (P<0.05). The values of EphB4, MVD and Bcl-2 grey values were significantly increased, the apoptotic index was significantly decreased, in suramin group and PG-Rg 3 group than those of combined group (P<0.05). Conclusion Suramin combinated with PG-Rg3 can produce a synergetic inhibitory activity against tumor growth of lung adenocarcinoma, which may be associated with the effect of suppressing the expression of EphB4 and angiogenesis, and the promotion of tumor cell apoptosis.

Prevalence of Dirofilaria immitis in Dogs in Shenyang, Northeastern China

In the present study, we first report the seroprevalence of Dirofilaria immitis in dogs in Shenyang, northeastern China. Sera from 528 randomly selected dogs were examined for D. immitis antigen using SNAP(R)4Dx test kit; 12.7% tested showed seropositive. No significant difference of infection was observed in different genders and breeds (P>0.05), but the difference was significant in different age groups and rearing conditions (P<0.05). The result suggested that the risk of exposure to D. immitis in dogs is high in Shenyang, and should be given attention.