Construction and Application of Liver Injury Risk Prediction Model of Chinese Medicinals based on Indirect Toxicity / 中医杂志

ObjectiveTo explore and establish the liver injury risk prediction model of indirect toxicity of Chinese medicinals under the condition of compound formulas， and provide new ideas and methods for the study of evaluation of liver injury of Chinese medicinals based on indirect toxicity. MethodsTaking Buguzhi （Fructus Psoraleae） pre-parations as model drug， the combined Chinese medicinals with Buguzhi （Fructus Psoraleae） of high frequency are screened out， and their components and action targets were obtained through TCMSP， TCMIP and PharmMapper databases. The association strength value and risk value of Chinese medicinals that acted on the nuclear factor κB （NF-κB） pathway were analyzed. For those having greater values than the median association strength value and risk value were regarded as indirect Chinese medicinals of liver injury risk. In this way， a prediction model of liver injury risk of Chinese medicinals was constructed based on immune activation-related indirect liver injury process （taking NF-κB pathway as an example）. And verification of the prediction model was performed using Heshouwu （Radix Polygoni Multiflori） preparations. ResultsThe prediction model of liver injury risk based on important immunoactivated pathway （taking NF-κB pathway as an example） found that Yinyanghuo （Herba Epimedii） （association strength value = 0.18， risk value = 0.25） was a Chinese medicinal with potential risk of indirect liver injury within Buguzhi （Fructus Psoraleae） prepartions， which may increase the risk of liver injury by positively regulating Bruton's tyrosine kinase （Btk） and protein kinase C theta （PKCθ） on NF-κB pathway. Further verification of prediction model by Heshouwu （Radix Polygoni Multiflori） preparations showed that Buguzhi （Fructus Psoraleae） （association strength value = 0.25， risk value = 0.33） and Tusizi （Semen Cuscutae） （Semen Cuscutae， association strength value = 0.34， risk value = 0.33） may increase the liver injury risk of Heshouzu. ConclusionThe liver injury risk prediction model of indirect toxicity of Chinese medicinals has been constructed in this study， providing metho-dological reference for the identification of Chinese medicinals of indirect liver injury risk under the condition of compound formulas.

Blocking and reversing liver fibrosis with traditional Chinese medicine compound prescriptions: Beyond the known frontiers / 临床肝胆病杂志

Liver fibrosis is the inevitable course for the progression of chronic hepatitis B to liver cirrhosis and is also the most important risk factor for hepatocarcinogenesis, and therefore, blocking and reversing liver fibrosis is an important strategy to effectively reduce the development of chronic hepatitis B cirrhosis and liver cancer. There are currently no effective drugs and measures for the treatment of liver fibrosis in Western medicine, and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has unique advantages in the treatment of liver fibrosis; however, due to a lack of strict and standardized clinical research, there is still no high-quality evidence for support from the aspect of evidence-based medicine (EBM). With subsidies from National Science and Technology Major Project in the 12th and 13th five-year plans, the authors conducted a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial on compound Biejia Ruangan tablets combined with entecavir in blocking and reversing chronic hepatitis B liver fibrosis. With liver biopsy as the gold standard, 1000 patients were enrolled to confirm the efficacy of compound Biejia Ruangan tablets combined with entecavir in blocking and reversing liver fibrosis and cirrhosis, and this study has become the first clinical trial investigating the anti-liver fibrosis effect of TCM supported by high-quality EBM evidence, bringing great hope to patients with chronic liver diseases and helping TCM move towards the world. This article introduces these research findings and reviews the current status and challenges of TCM in blocking and reversing liver fibrosis.

Bavachin enhances NLRP3 inflammasome activation induced by ATP or nigericin and causes idiosyncratic hepatotoxicity / 医学前沿

Psoraleae Fructus (PF) is a well-known traditional herbal medicine in China, and it is widely used for osteoporosis, vitiligo, and other diseases in clinical settings. However, liver injury caused by PF and its preparations has been frequently reported in recent years. Our previous studies have demonstrated that PF could cause idiosyncratic drug-induced liver injury (IDILI), but the mechanism underlying its hepatotoxicity remains unclear. This paper reports that bavachin isolated from PF enhances the specific stimuli-induced activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome and leads to hepatotoxicity. Bavachin boosts the secretion of IL-1β and caspase-1 caused by ATP or nigericin but not those induced by poly(I:C), monosodium urate crystal, or intracellular lipopolysaccharide. Bavachin does not affect AIM2 or NLRC4 inflammasome activation. Mechanistically, bavachin specifically increases the production of nigericin-induced mitochondrial reactive oxygen species among the most important upstream events in the activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome. Bavachin increases the levels of aspartate transaminase and alanine aminotransferase in serum and hepatocyte injury accompanied by the secretion of IL-1β via a mouse model of lipopolysaccharide-mediated susceptibility to IDILI. These results suggest that bavachin specifically enhances the ATP- or nigericin-induced activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome. Bavachin also potentially contributes to PF-induced idiosyncratic hepatotoxicity. Moreover, bavachin and PF should be evaded among patients with diseases linked to the ATP- or nigericin-mediated activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome, which may be a dangerous factor for liver injury.

Regulation of EMT in lung cancer cells by interaction of Hsp90 and SIRT1 / 国际肿瘤学杂志

Objective:To investigate the interaction between heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) and silent mating-type information regulation 2 homolog 1 (SIRT1) and evaluate its effect on epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of lung cancer A549 cells.Methods:EMT model was established by treating lung cancer A549 cells with 5 μg/L transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), which was used as TGF-β1 group, and the normal lung cancer A549 cells were used as control group. The interaction between Hsp90 and SIRT1 in lung cancer A549 cells was detected by immunocoprecipitation method. The expression of Hsp90 gene was silenced by RNA interference technique, and the cells were divided into TGF-β1 group, TGF-β1+ siRNA-Hsp90-neg group and TGF-β1+ siRNA-Hsp90 group. Transwell invasion assay was used to investigate the effect of the interaction of Hsp90 and SIRT1 on the invasion ability of lung cancer A549 cells. The expressions of Hsp90, SIRT1, E-cadherin and vimentin were detected by Western blotting. The effect of inhibiting Hsp90 expression on the stability of SIRT1 protein and EMT of lung cancer A549 cells was observed.Results:After 48 h induction with TGF-β1, EMT characteristics of lung cancer A549 cells were induced successfully. The relative expression levels of Hsp90 protein in the control group and TGF-β1 group were 0.45±0.05 and 1.31±0.06, respectively, the relative expression levels of SIRT1 protein were 0.29±0.04 and 0.95±0.08, respectively, and there were statistically signigicant differences ( t=10.98, P=0.018; t=7.39, P=0.028). The results of immunocoprecipitation showed that there was an interaction between Hsp90 and SIRT1 protein in lung cancer A549 cells. The relative expression levels of Hsp90 in the TGF-β1 group, TGF-β1+ siRNA-Hsp90-neg group and TGF-β1+ siRNA-Hsp90 group were 0.75±0.07, 0.63±0.06 and 0.23±0.05, respectively, and there was a statistically significant difference ( F=18.85, P=0.012). The relative expression levels of SIRT1 in the above three groups were 0.99±0.08, 0.97±0.12 and 0.35±0.05, respectively, and there was a statistically significant difference ( F=16.52, P=0.014). The expression levels of Hsp90 and SIRT1 in the TGF-β1+ siRNA-Hsp90 group were significantly lower than those in the TGF-β1 group ( P=0.019, P=0.016). The numbers of cells passing Matrigel in the above three groups were 378.13±27.70, 323.52±19.82 and 142.51±22.54, respectively, and there was a statistically significant difference ( F=27.35, P=0.022). The number of cells passing Matrigel in the TGF-β1+ siRNA-Hsp90 group was significantly less than that in the TGF-β1 group ( P=0.028). The relative expression levels of E-cadherin in the above three groups were 0.31±0.02, 0.34±0.04 and 0.63±0.05, respectively, and there was a statistically significant difference ( F=19.39, P=0.031). The relative expression levels of vimentin in the above three groups were 0.33±0.02, 0.27±0.05 and 0.09±0.03, respectively, and there was a statistically significant difference ( F=12.58, P=0.012). The expression level of E-cadherin in the TGF-β1+ siRNA-Hsp90 group was significantly higher than that in the TGF-β1 group ( P=0.017), while the expression level of vimentin was significantly lower than that in the TGF-β1 group ( P=0.023). Conclusion:Hsp90 interacts with SIRT1, and Hsp90 inhibition can lead to the decrease of SIRT1 protein level. Hsp90 may play a role of molecular chaperone to maintain the conformation stability of SIRT1, and the interaction between Hsp90 and SIRT1 may be one of the molecular mechanisms for the occurrence of EMT and the enhancement of invasion ability of lung cancer A549 cells.

Erratum: Author correction to 'Cardamonin from a medicinal herb protects against LPS-induced septic shock by suppressing NLRP3 inflammasome' Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 9 (2019) 734-744

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.apsb.2019.02.003.].

Cardamonin from a medicinal herb protects against LPS-induced septic shock by suppressing NLRP3 inflammasome

Aberrant activation of NLRP3 inflammasome has been implicated in the pathogenesis of diverse inflammation-related diseases, and pharmacological molecules targeting NLRP3 inflammasome are of considerable value to identifying potential therapeutic interventions. Cardamonin (CDN), the major active ingredient of the traditional Chinese medicinal herb , has exerted an excellent anti-inflammatory activity, but the mechanism underlying this role is not fully understood. Here, we show that CDN blocks canonical and noncanonical NLRP3 inflammasome activation triggered by multiple stimuli. Moreover, the suppression of CDN on inflammasome activation is specific to NLRP3, not to NLRC4 or AIM2 inflammasome. Besides, the inhibitory effect is not dependent on the expression of NF-B-mediated inflammasome precursor proteins. We also demonstrate that CDN suppresses the NLRP3 inflammasome through blocking ASC oligomerization and speckle formation in a dose-dependent manner. Importantly, CDN improves the survival of mice suffering from lethal septic shock and attenuates IL-1 production induced by LPS , which is shown to be NLRP3 dependent. In conclusion, our results identify CDN as a broad-spectrum and specific inhibitor of NLRP3 inflammasome and a candidate therapeutic drug for treating NLRP3 inflammasome-driven diseases.

Cause analysis and countermeasures of the comfort degree of PICC patients in the process of placing tube / 中国基层医药

Objective To investigate the reasons and nursing countermeasures of the discomfort of peripher-ally inserted central catheter(PICC)intubation patients in the process of placing tube.Methods 290 patients with PICC who were treated with PICC for the first time were summarized.Results 290 patients with PICC in catheter had not comfortable experience.The main reason of causing discomfort was psychological factors,accounted for 90.0%, catheter when the cold experience leads to the discomfort of 82.8%,catheter environmental factors accounted for 6 3 .8 % ,pain caused by discomfort accounted for 15.5% ,puncture posture factors leading to 13.1% .Conclusion The causes of discomfort in the process of PICC is more,strengthen preoperative health education and the operation of effective communication,to create a relaxed comfortable environment to help patients take comfortable posture,improve a catheter success rate,preventing catheter during cold and other measures can improve the patients'comfort.

Clinical Study on Hot Compress with Medicinal Salt Pack in Preventing PICC-associated Mechanical Phlebitis / 上海针灸杂志

Objective To observe the effect of hot compress with medicinal salt pack in preventing PICC-associated mechanical phlebitis.Method Totally 200 inpatients undergone PICC intubation were randomized into a treatment group and a control group, 100 cases in each group. After PICC intubation, the treatment group was intervened by hot compress with medicinal salt pack, while the control group was by hot compress with warm wet towel. The occurrence of mechanical phlebitis was observed at different time points and compared between the two groups. Result The occurrence rate of mechanical phlebitis was 9.0% in the treatment group versus 26.0% in the control group, and the difference was statistically significant (P72 h, versus 16.0% and 10.0% in the control group, and the differences were statistically significant (P<0.05). Conclusion Hot compress with medicinal salt pack can effectively reduce the occurrence of PICC-associated mechanical phlebitis.