Anti-pyroptosis effect of Albiziae Cortex-Tribuli Fructus combination on hepatic stellate cell line LX2: based on network pharmacology / 中国中药杂志

Based on network pharmacology, molecular docking, and in vitro experimental verification, this study aims to explore the effect of Albiziae Cortex-Tribuli Fructus combination on HSC-LX2 pyroptosis. Specifically, the targets of Albiziae Cortex, Tribuli Fructus, and hepatic fibrosis were retrieved from an online database and CNKI, and "drug-component-target" network and "drug-component-target-disease" network were constructed. Protein-protein interaction(PPI) network was established based on STRING. Metascape was employed for Gene Ontology(GO) term enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG) pathway enrichment, and the mechanism of Albiziae Cortex-Tribuli Fructus combination against liver fibrosis was predicted. Molecular docking was used to verify some of the results of network pharmacology, and in vitro experiment was carried out to further verify the above conclusions. According to the results of network pharmacological analysis, 25 active components and 439 targets of Albiziae Cortex-Tribuli Fructus combination and 152 anti-liver fibrosis targets were screened out, including nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain and leucine-rich-repeat-and pyrin-domain-containing 3(NLRP3) and caspase-1. The key targets were involved in 194 KEGG pathways in which the NOD-like receptor signaling pathway topped. The binding common targets were related to pyroptosis. The results of in vitro experiment showed that the pair-containing serum reduced the proliferation rate of HSC-LX2 and the content of reactive oxygen species(ROS), interleukin-18(IL-18), and interleukin-1β(IL-1β)(P<0.05). Western blot and qRT-PCR suggested that the protein and gene expression of NLRP3, caspase-1, α-smooth muscle actin(α-SMA), and gasdermin D(GSDMD) in HSC-LX2 increased after AngⅡ stimulation, and the expression decreased after the intervention of pair-containing serum(P<0.05). In summary, the pair-containing serum can inhibit the classic pathway of pyroptosis, which may be the anti-liver fibrosis mechanism. This is consistent with the predicted results of network pharmacology.

Study on transformation rules of terrestrosin D in course of Tribuli Fructus stir-frying based on simulated processing technology / 中国中药杂志

The contents of terrestrosin D and hecogenin from Tribuli Fructus were determined before and after stir-frying. The results showed that the content of terrestrosin D was decreased significantly,and the content of hecogenin was increased significantly after such processing. In order to verify the inference that terrestrosin D was converted to hecogenin by stir-frying,the quantitative variation rules of terrestrosin D and hecogenin were studied by simulated processing technology,and the simulated processing product of terrestrosin D was qualitatively characterized by ultra performance liquid chromatography/time of flight mass spectrometry( UPLC-TOF/MS) to clarify its transformation process during stir-frying. The results showed that the content of terrestrosin D was decreased significantly at first and then a platform stage appeared with the prolongation of processing time at a certain temperature. Raising the stir-frying temperature could further decrease the content of terrestrosin D and delay the time that the platform stage appeared. When the processing was simulated at higher temperatures( 220 ℃ and 240 ℃),the content of hecogenin was increased gradually with the increase of processing temperature and the prolongation of processing time. In the process of stir-frying,the deglycosylation reaction of terrestrosin D to hecogenin was not completed in one step. The deglycosylation reaction occurred first at the end of the sugar chain,and then other glycosyl units in the sugar chain were sequentially removed from the outside to the inside to finally form the hecogenin. This study provides a basis for further revealing the detoxification mechanism of stir-fried Tribuli Fructus.

Changes and mechanisms of terrestroside B and terrestrosin K in stir-frying Tribuli Fructus / 中国中药杂志

The contents of terrestroside B and terrestrosin K in Tribuli Fructus with different degree of stir-frying were determined by high performance liquid chromatography with evaporative light-scattering detector( HPLC-ELSD). The results showed that the contents of terrestroside B and terrestrosin K were increased at first and then decreased,and both of them had the highest content at the best time of heating. The results of simulated processing of Tribulus Terrestris saponins showed that when the processing time kept constant,the contents of terrestroside B and terrestrosin K were decreased gradually with the increase of processing temperature from 180 ℃ to240 ℃. At a certain temperature,the content of terrestrosin K was increased first and then decreased with the prolongation of processing time,and reached the highest level at 5 min. However,the content of terrestroside B was increased first and then decreased with the increase of processing time only at 180 ℃,and reached the highest level at 10 min. When the processing temperature was controlled at200,220 and 240 ℃ respectively,the content of terrestroside B was decreased gradually with the increase of processing time. The simulated processing products of tribuluside A,terrestroside B and terrestrosin K were qualitatively characterized by ultra-performance liquid chromatography-time of flight mass spectrometry( UPLC-TOF/MS). It was proved that tribuluside A and terrestrosin Ⅰ containing C-22-OH were dehydroxylated in the processing of Tribuli Fructus and transformed respectively into terrestroside B and terrestrosin K containing C-20-C-22 double bond. As a result,the contents of terrestroside B and terrestrosin K were increased. The sugar chains at C-3 and C-26 positions of terrestroside B and terrestrosin K could be deglycosylated and converted into monosaccharide chain saponins and short sugar chain saponins,so the contents of terrestroside B and terrestrosin K were reduced. The study provides reference for further revealing the processing principle of Tribuli Fructus.

Anti-coccidial activity of the ethanol extract of Tribulus terrestris fruits on Eimeria tenella / 한국실험동물학회지

Anti-coccidial effects of the fruits of Tribulus terrestris (Tribuli fructus) ethanol extract (TTE) were studied with animal experiment following per oral administration with Eimeria (E.) tenella. This experiment was performed on the 3-day-old chicks (n=30). The animals were divided with 3 groups; TFE 15mg per animal+infected (n=10), TTE untreated+infected (n=10) and non-infected control (n=10). Animals were administrated with or without TTE during 1 week, and then inoculated with E. tenella. The anti-coccidial activity were evaluated with oocysts shedding numbers in stools, body weights changes and food intake changes. The TTE-inoclated animals revealed significantly decreased stool oocysts numbers (P < 0.05) when compared to the TTE untreated animals. Also, TTE-treated animals showed more increased body weight gains (P < 0.05) than the TTE untreated animals. These results demonstrate that TTE produce anticoccidial activities against E. tenella. TTE could be a promising treatment for the coccidiosis.