Effect of Ru′ai Shuhou Prescription on Proliferation and Metastasis of Breast Cancer MDA-MB-453 Cells Through SDF-1/CXCR4 Biological Axis / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Objective:To investigate the effect of Ru′ai Shuhou prescription （RSR） drug-containing serum on the proliferation and invasion ability of breast cancer cells MDA-MB-453 based on the biological axis of stromal cell-derived factor-1（SDF-1）/chemokine receptor 4 （CXCR4）. Method:A model of MDA-MB-453 cells with SDF-1-induced high expression of CXCR4 was established， and the rat drug-serum containing RSR and blank rat serum were prepared respectively. The cells were divided into fetal bovine serum control group （Blank）， blank rat serum group， SDF-1+blank rat serum group， SDF-1+RSR group， AMD3100+ SDF-1+blank rat serum group， and AMD3100+ SDF-1+RSR group. After intervention for 48 h， cell proliferation was detected by cell counting kit-8 （CCK-8） assay， cell invasion ability was detected by transwell assay， and mRNA and protein expressions of CXCR4， matrix metalloproteinase-2 （MMP-2） and MMP-9 were detected by Real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction （Real-time PCR） and Western blot， respectively. Result:As compared with the blank serum group， the proliferation of MDA-MB-453 cells was promoted and expression of CXCR4 mRNA was increased significantly when SDF-1 was 100 μg·L-1 （P<0.05）. As compared with SDF-1+blank rat serum group， RSR inhibited the proliferation and invasion of MDA-MB-453 cells induced by SDF-1， and at the same time， down-regulated the mRNA and protein expressions of CXCR4， MMP-2 and MMP-9 （P<0.05）. After pre-treatment with AMD3100 for 24 h， the inhibitory effect of RSR to cell proliferation was significantly increased （P<0.05）， and meanwhile， the decreases in mRNA and protein expression of CXCR4， MMP-2 and MMP-9 were more obvious， with statistically significant differences （P<0.05）. Conclusion:Through SDF-1/CXCR4 biological axis， RSR could down-regulate the expression of MMP-2 and MMP-9， reduce the degradation of extracellular matrix （ECM）， and then inhibit the metastasis of MDA-MB-453 cells. In addition， it has a synergistic effect with CXCR4 inhibitor AMD3100.

In Silico Screening of Potential Spike Glycoprotein Inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 with Drug Repurposing Strategy / 中国结合医学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To select potential molecules that can target viral spike proteins, which may potentially interrupt the interaction between the human angiotension-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor and viral spike protein by virtual screening.@*METHODS@#The three-dimensional (3D)-coordinate file of the receptor-binding domain (RBD)-ACE2 complex for searching a suitable docking pocket was firstly downloaded and prepared. Secondly, approximately 15,000 molecular candidates were prepared, including US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved drugs from DrugBank and natural compounds from Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology (TCMSP), for the docking process. Then, virtual screening was performed and the binding energy in Autodock Vina was calculated. Finally, the top 20 molecules with high binding energy and their Chinese medicine (CM) herb sources were listed in this paper.@*RESULTS@#It was found that digitoxin, a cardiac glycoside in DrugBank and bisindigotin in TCMSP had the highest docking scores. Interestingly, two of the CM herbs containing the natural compounds that had relatively high binding scores, Forsythiae fructus and Isatidis radix, are components of Lianhua Qingwen (), a CM formula reportedly exerting activity against severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-Cov-2. Moreover, raltegravir, an HIV integrase inhibitor, was found to have a relatively high binding score.@*CONCLUSIONS@#A class of compounds, which are from FDA-approved drugs and CM natural compounds, that had high binding energy with RBD of the viral spike protein. Our work provides potential candidates for other researchers to identify inhibitors to prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection, and highlights the importance of CM and integrative application of CM and Western medicine on treating COVID-19.

In Silico Screening of Potential Spike Glycoprotein Inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 with Drug Repurposing Strategy / 中国结合医学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To select potential molecules that can target viral spike proteins, which may potentially interrupt the interaction between the human angiotension-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor and viral spike protein by virtual screening.@*METHODS@#The three-dimensional (3D)-coordinate file of the receptor-binding domain (RBD)-ACE2 complex for searching a suitable docking pocket was firstly downloaded and prepared. Secondly, approximately 15,000 molecular candidates were prepared, including US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved drugs from DrugBank and natural compounds from Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology (TCMSP), for the docking process. Then, virtual screening was performed and the binding energy in Autodock Vina was calculated. Finally, the top 20 molecules with high binding energy and their Chinese medicine (CM) herb sources were listed in this paper.@*RESULTS@#It was found that digitoxin, a cardiac glycoside in DrugBank and bisindigotin in TCMSP had the highest docking scores. Interestingly, two of the CM herbs containing the natural compounds that had relatively high binding scores, Forsythiae fructus and Isatidis radix, are components of Lianhua Qingwen (), a CM formula reportedly exerting activity against severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-Cov-2. Moreover, raltegravir, an HIV integrase inhibitor, was found to have a relatively high binding score.@*CONCLUSIONS@#A class of compounds, which are from FDA-approved drugs and CM natural compounds, that had high binding energy with RBD of the viral spike protein. Our work provides potential candidates for other researchers to identify inhibitors to prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection, and highlights the importance of CM and integrative application of CM and Western medicine on treating COVID-19.

Effect of endometrial thickness on the day of hCG administration on pregnancy outcome in the fresh IVF/ICSI cycle-a retrospective multicenter study / 中国实用妇科与产科杂志

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of endometrial thickness(EMT)on the day of hCG administration on preg⁃nancy outcome in the fresh in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection(IVF/ICSI)cycle.METHODS:A retrospec⁃tive analysis was conducted of 3601 IVF/ICSI-ET cycles between January 1,2015 and December 31,2015 in eight repro⁃ductive centers.The endometrial thickness was measured on hCG injection day and the distribution of endometrial thick⁃ness and pregnancy outcome was drawn.Patients were divided into two groups based on the EMT:group A(289 cycles,EMT<8 mm),group B(3312 cycles,EMT≥duration of pregnancy and birth weight of single gestation were compared.RESULTS:Group A had significantly lower clini⁃cal pregnancy rate(46.0% vs.55.9%,P=0.001),live birth rates(35.3% vs. 47.0%,P=0.000)and higher pregnancy loss rate(23.3% vs.15.8%,P=0.024)compared with group B,while there was no significant difference in duration of pregnan⁃cy or birth weight of single gestation.Logistic regression analyses showed that clinical pregnancy rate(aOR=1.492,P=0.001)and live birth rate(aOR=1.621,P=0.000)increased in group B compared with group A,when correcting for the women age,BMI and transfer embryo numbers.CONCLUSION:The endometrial thickness on the day of hCG administra⁃tion affects the pregnancy outcome in the fresh IVF/ICSI cycle.When EMT<8 mm,the clinical pregnancy rate and live birth rate of IVF-ET are lower,and the patient should be well informed before making the decision of em⁃bryo transfer.However,endometrial thickness on the day of hCG administration does not affect the duration of preg⁃nancy and the birth weight of the fetus.

Menopausal Symptoms and Sleep Quality During Menopausal Transition and Postmenopause / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Menopausal symptoms and sleep difficulty were physiological processes that were affected by genetic and other factors. This study was to investigate the prevalence of menopausal symptoms and sleep quality in menopausal transition (MT) and postmenopause (PM) women in Taiyuan, Shanxi.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A community-based survey of women's menopausal symptoms and sleep quality was conducted between July 2012 and May 2013 at six municipal districts of Taiyuan, Shanxi. A sample of 2429 women aged 40-59 years was divided into four groups: early MT, late MT, early PM, and late PM. Sleep quality in the past 2 weeks before the interview was recorded. The data were analyzed using SPSS 16.0.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The prevalence of menopausal symptoms was 49.8%. Mild, moderate, and severe symptoms were observed in 28.9%, 18.5%, and 2.5% of participants, respectively. The highest prevalence of menopausal symptoms occurred in the early postmenopausal stage; the subsequences were the late postmenopausal stage and the early MT stage. Interestingly, among the 13 items of modified Kupperman index, the five most common symptoms were fatigue, arthralgia and myalgia, decreased libido, insomnia, and nervousness. Meanwhile, 55% perimenopausal women had poor sleep.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Menopausal symptoms are common but mild among women in Taiyuan, Shanxi during MT and PM. In these stages, the prevalence of poor sleep is high.</p>

Effects of ru'ai shuhou recipe on the matrix metalloproteinases and the inhibitive factors in the recurrence and metastasis of HER2 positive breast cancer / 中国中西医结合杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the anti-tumor recurrent and metastatic efficacy of Ru'ai Shuhou Recipe (RSR) on HER2 positive breast cancer, to evaluate the effects of RSR on the expressions of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and the tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases (TIMPs) in the recurrence and metastasis of HER2 positive breast cancer, thus revealing its anti-tumor recurrent and metastatic mechanisms.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Selected were 30-week-old HER2/neu transgenic spontaneous breast cancer mice FVB/neu. The primary tumor resection was carried out. After surgery they were randomly divided into the blank control group, the RSR group, the Herceptin group, and the combination group (RSR + Herceptin group). The treatment lasted for 4 months. The inhibition rate of the recurrent tumor volume and the inhibition rate of the lung metastasis were evaluated. The expressions of matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2), matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase (TIMP-1), and TIMP-2 in the recurrent tumor tissue were detected using Western blot.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>By the end of the treatment the average recurrent tumor volume was 11.11 +/- 8.71 cm3 in the blank control group and 5.56 +/- 5.55 cm3 of the RSR group, showing statistical difference between the two groups (P = 0.037). The average lung metastatic nodule was 16 in the blank control group and 10 in the RSR group. The inhibition rate of lung metastasis was 37. 85% in the RSR group, but with no statistical significance. The expression level of activated MMP-2 in the RSR group was down-regulated when compared with the blank control group, the Herceptin group, and the combination group (P < 0.05). The expression of MMP-9 of the RSR group, the Herceptin group, and the combination group was significantly down-regulated when compared with the blank control group (P < 0.05). The expression of MMP-9 of the RSR group and the combination group was further down-regulated when compared with the Herceptin group (P < 0.05). The expressions of both TIMP-1 and TIMP-2 of the RSR group, the Herceptin group, and the combination group were all up-regulated when compared with the blank control group (P < 0.05). The increased expression of TIMP-1 was more significantly in the RSR group and the combination group when compared with the Herceptin group (P < 0.05). It was higher in the combination group than in the RSR group (P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>RSR could inhibit the tumor recurrence of FVB/neu mice. It could reduce the degradation of extracellular matrix and increase the protective effects of extracellular matrix. It might achieve its anti-tumor effect through effecting the invasive and metastatic capabilities of breast tumor cells.</p>

Effect of ru'ai shuhou recipe on immune response in HER2/neu tranagenic mice undergoing breast cancer carcinogenesis process / 中国中西医结合杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the immune response induced by HER2/neu oncogene in the breast cancer (BC) carcinogenesis process and the immunological mechanism of Ru'ai Shuhou Recipe (RSR) in the prevention and treatment of BC.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>HER2/neu transgenic spontaneous breast tumor model mice were fed with RSR from 5 weeks old, the occurrence of breast tumor in them was observed, and the changes of T cell-mediated immune response and associated cytokines were detected during the carcinogenesis process, i. e., when mice aged between 15 and 25 weeks.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>RSR showed significant effects in postponing and reducing the carcinogenesis of primary breast tumor, up-regulating the amount of T cell in splenic lymphocyte in tumor-bearing mice, promoting the proliferation of T lymphocyte, and inducing the secretion of cytokines such as interleukin-2, interleukin-12 and interferon-y.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>A serial immune response reveals in the carcinogenesis process. The immunologic function of HER-2/neu transgenic mice is significantly different to that of the same strain non-transgenic mice. Effect of RSR in preventing and postponing breast cancer carcinogenesis is possibly realized through enhancing the anti-tumor immune response of transgenic mice themselves.</p>

Effect of Runing II on expression of vascular endothelial growth factor in transplanted tumor of mammary cancer MA-891 in TA2 mice / 中国中西医结合杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the effect of Runing II on expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in transplanted tumor of mammary cancer MA-891 in TA2 mice.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The MA-981 mice mammary cancer cell cultivated in vivo was inoculated into the right axilla subcutaneously of TA2 mice to establish the transplanted tumor model, which were treated with Runing II.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Runing II could inhibit the growth of transplanted tumor and the occurrence of lung metastasis (P < 0.05), reduce the expression of VEGF protein and mRNA in tumor tissue (P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Runing II could reduce the expression of VEGF protein and mRNA, hence to inhibit the growth of tumor and lung metastasis.</p>