Research progress of exosomes as drug delivery systems in the treatment of brain diseases / 药学学报

Exosomes are disk-shaped vesicles with a diameter of 40-100 nm, which are composed of natural lipid bilayers. Most cells can produce exosomes, which play an important role in physiological and pathological processes, affecting signal pathways, intercellular communication, tumor progression and molecular metastasis. Exosomes are characterized by low immunogenicity, good natural stability, long half-life, high delivery efficiency, and the ability to cross the blood-brain barrier, which can be used as a good carrier for drug delivery. This review focuses on the research progress of exosomes as drug delivery systems in the treatment of brain diseases, such as central nervous system degenerative diseases, brain tumors and cerebrovascular diseases and so on.

Progress in active compounds effective on ulcerative colitis from Chinese medicines / 中国天然药物

Ulcerative colitis (UC), a chronic inflammatory disease affecting the colon, has a rising incidence worldwide. The known pathogenesis is multifactorial and involves genetic predisposition, epithelial barrier defects, dysregulated immune responses, and environmental factors. Nowadays, the drugs for UC include 5-aminosalicylic acid, steroids, and immunosuppressants. Long-term use of these drugs, however, may cause several side effects, such as hepatic and renal toxicity, drug resistance and allergic reactions. Moreover, the use of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in the treatment of UC shows significantly positive effects, low recurrence rate, few side effects and other obvious advantages. This paper summarizes several kinds of active compounds used in the experimental research of anti-UC effects extracted from TCM, mainly including flavonoids, acids, terpenoids, phenols, alkaloids, quinones, and bile acids from some animal medicines. It is found that the anti-UC activities are mainly focused on targeting inflammation or oxidative stress, which is associated with increasing the levels of anti-inflammatory cytokine (IL-4, IL-10, SOD), suppressing the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IL-23, NF-κB, NO), reducing the activity of MPO, MDA, IFN-γ, and iNOS. This review may offer valuable reference for UC-related studies on the compounds from natural medicines.

Effects of Celastrol on Accelerated Healing of Skin Wounds of Diabetic Ulceration in Rats and Mechanism Revealed by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance-based Metabonomics / 分析化学

The experimental SD rats were randomly divided into normal control group (Con group),diabetic ulcer model group (DM group) and Celastrol group (Cel group).Except the control group,diabetic ulceration rat models were established by intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin along with skin scald.And then,each group was treated by spraying the saline solution on the affected skin with (Cel group) or without (Con group and DM group) Cel (q.d.×14 d).Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabonomic analysis was applied to detect metabolic characteristics,accompanied by healing rate calculation and HE and Masson staining to study therapeutic effect of celastrol on accelerated healing of skin wounds of diabetic ulceration rats,which could be used to elucidate therapeutic effects of celastrol on the rat diabetic ulceration and its mechanism.The results showed that celastrol could induce epithelial regeneration of the rat ulcer wound,regulate the infiltration of inflammatory cells and the distribution of collagen fibers,and promote the healing of the ulcer wound.About 20 endogenous potential differential metabolites were screened and identified by partial least square analysis.Metabolic pathway analysis was carried out to show that celastrol can significantly recovery the level of the tricarboxylic acid cycle,promote its energy supply,accelerate the protein synthesis,improve mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress,and accelerate the self-repair ability of skin tissue.Celastrol can promote the healing of ulcers skins of the diabetic rats,which contribute to experimental basis of the drugs for the treatment of diabetic ulcers.