RESUMO
Intervertebral disc degeneration is one of the common causes of chronic low back pain. As a common spinal disease， its clinical symptoms are mainly low back pain and limited function， which seriously affects physical and psychological health. Because of its complex and unclear pathogenesis， the treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration has been the focus of scientific researchers and clinical workers. At present， the treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration mainly includes non-surgical therapy and surgical therapy， which can alleviate the clinical symptoms of patients to a certain extent， but easily induce new complications， and it is difficult to restore the normal physiological function of the intervertebral disc. In recent years， along with the advanced research on matrix metalloproteinases （MMPs） in the tissues of intervertebral disc degeneration， it has been found that MMPs can be used as molecular therapeutic targets. The expression of MMPs in the intervertebral disc tissues can be regulated by reducing the content and composition of the extracellular matrix of the intervertebral disc， so as to slow down intervertebral disc degeneration and even reverse the occurrence of intervertebral disc degeneration. This treatment is expected to delay intervertebral disc degeneration caused by changes in extracellular matrix composition or content. In recent years， with the continuous development of network pharmacology and bioinformatics research， a large number of researchers have explored the treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration by traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） and found that TCM can reduce the degradation of extracellular matrix by inhibiting the expression of MMPs， thus alleviating the symptoms of intervertebral disc degeneration and slowing down the progression of intervertebral disc degeneration. This paper reviewed the research progress of TCM intervention in MMP expression in the treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration， aiming at providing references for the application of TCM in the prevention and treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration.
RESUMO
Osteoporosis is a chronic skeletal disease characterized by low bone mass， destruction of bone tissue microarchitecture， and imbalance of bone homeostasis， leading to increased bone fragility and increased risk of fractures. Oxidative stress caused by the disruption of the balance between excess reactive oxygen species （ROS） and the anti-oxidative system is an important factor in the occurrence and progression of osteoporosis. Nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 （Nrf2）/heme oxygenase-1 （HO-1） is an important anti-oxidative stress pathway. Nrf2 is a primary factor in regulating cellular oxidative stress. Activating Nrf2 can stimulate the expression of HO-1. HO-1 is a key enzyme whose metabolites are bile green Oxygen， carbon monoxide， and free iron. The metabolites can scavenge ROS， thereby exerting an antioxidant effect in cells. At present， domestic and foreign scholars have reported that the Nrf2/HO-1 signaling pathway is closely related to the occurrence and development of osteoporosis and the mechanism of drugs. Chinese medicine can effectively solve the insufficiency of western medicine with multi-target， multi-channel， and multi-level advantages. Chinese medicine can resist oxidative stress， inflammatory response， and apoptosis by regulating the Nrf2/HO-1 signaling pathway， thus treating osteoporosis. This article reviewed the relationship between Nrf2/HO-1 signaling pathway and its key target protein factors and osteoporosis， to clarify the important role of the Nrf2/HO-1 signaling pathway in osteoporosis. At the same time， a systematic summary of Chinese medicines targeting and regulating the Nrf2/HO-1 signaling pathway for the treatment of osteoporosis was conducted， to provide a theoretical basis for further precise treatment of osteoporosis.