Exploring mechanism of hypolipidemic effect of total Ligustrum robustum (Roxb. ) Blume on hyperlipidemic golden hamsters based on intestinal flora / 中国药理学通报

Aim To evaluate the hypolipidemic effect of the total phenylpropanoid glycosides extracted from Ligustrum robustum (Roxb.) Blume (LRTPG) on hyperlipidemic golden hamsters and explore its regulatory effect on intestinal flora. Methods Sixty hamsters were randomly divided into a control group, a model group, a positive drug group, LRTPG-L group, LRTPG-M group, and LRTPG-H group. After the successful induction of the model by high-fat diet, the animals were continuously administered for four weeks, and their blood lipids and liver lipids were detected. The formed feces from the colorectal region of the hamsters in the control group, model group and LRTPG-H group were collected for 16S rDNA sequencing. Results LRTPG reduced serum TG, TC, LDL-C and liver TG, TC concentrations significantly in hyperlipidemic hamsters. The results of the intestinal microbiota sequencing showed that compared to the control group, LRTPG significantly decreased the relative abundance of the phylum Firmicutes and increased the relative abundance of the phylum Bacteroidetes and Verrucomicrobia (P < 0.01) at the phylum level. At the family level, LRTPG significantly increased the relative abundance of Christensenellaceae, Peptococcaceae, and Verrucomicrobiaceae (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01). At the genus level, LRTPG significantly increased the relative abundance of Oscillospira, Oscillibacter, Flavonifractor and Akkermansiaceae (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01). These changes in the flora were beneficial to the hypolipidemic effect of LRTPG. Conclusion LRTPG may exert its hypolipidemic effect by improving the intestinal flora disorder caused by a high-fat diet in golden hamsters.

Effect of ursolic acid extracted from Hippophae Rhamnoides L.on repair of sciatic nerve injury in rats / 实用医学杂志

Objective To investigate the repairing effect of ursolic acid extracted from Hippophae rhamnoi-des L.on sciatic nerve injury in rats.Methods After preparing a sciatic nerve damage model,thirty 2-month old Wistar rats were randomly divided into ursolic acid and control groups,with 15 rats in each group.Ursolic acid group was given Ursolic acid 150 mg/(kg·d)by gavage,while the control group was given the same dose of normal saline for 6 weeks.After 6 weeks,H&E staining was used to observe the pathological changes of rat sciatic nerves,and SFI and MNCV were calculated;The expression of NGF in sciatic nerve was detected by immunohistochemistry,and the expression of GAP-43 in L4-L6 spinal cord was detected by Western blotting.Results After 6 weeks,compared to the control group,the number of regenerated nerve fibers in the ursolic acid group increased,the arrangement was slightly regular,the capillary structure was abundant,and the proliferation of fibroblasts decreased;SFI and MNCV%were significantly increased(P<0.05),NGF protein positive expression was significantly increased(P<0.05),and the difference was statistically significant(P<0.05).GAP-43 protein expression in sciatic nerve tissue was significantly increased(P<0.05).Conclusions The intervention of ursolic acid extracted from Hippophae rhamnoides L.can improve the function of rats after sciatic nerve injury,promote the increase of regenerated nerve fibers and the repair of myelin sheath in rats with sciatic nerve injury,which may be related to increased NGF and GAP-43 protein expression in rats.

Evaluation of Natural Pigments Extracted from Tomato Wastes and the Possibility of their Encapsulation

This study aimed to evaluate the best methods from extracting natural pigments from tomato fruit wastes by four techniques used to extract lycopene and β-carotene each of them consisting of three solvents: ethanol, acetone and hexane in the following ratios (1:1:1), (2:1:1), (1:2:1) and (1:1:2) ml respectively. We studied too the possibility of encapsulation by freeze drying with a mixture of gelatin and gum Arabic as a carrier in nine microcapsules differing with respect to the total encapsulant (E) (2.5, 5.0, and 7.5%) and core (C) concentrations, the latter varying in relation to the total weight of encapsulant (25, 50, and 75%). The nine microcapsules were coded as follows: (1) E2.5/C25; (2) E2.5/C50; (3) E2.5/C75; (4) E5.0/C25; (5) E5.0/C50; (6) E5.0/C75; (7) E7.5/C25; (8) E7.5/C50; and (9) E7.5/C75. We found that the best solvent mixture for the extraction process was 1:1:2, and the most efficient microcapsules were E5.0/C75, E5.0/C50 and E2.5/C25. By studying the stability of the best three microcapsules when exposed to different values of heat, light, oxygen and pH, it was found that the most stable of them was E5.0/C75, followed by E5.0/C50 and then E2.5/C25. It was therefore recommended that further future studies are needed to evaluate the potential of this microcapsule as a natural additive in food, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics.

GC-MS analysis of essential oil extracted from Chimonanthus praecox flowers and exploration of its anti-inflammatory effect / 西安交通大学学报(医学版)

【Objective】 To clarify the composition of essential oil extracted from Chimonanthus praecox flowers in Shiyan area and to explore its anti-inflammatory effects to provide support for further development of the resources of Chimonanthus praecox flowers. 【Methods】 SD rats were randomly divided into blank control group, model group, positive control group (aspirin 200 mg/kg), and low-, medium- and high-dose essential oil groups (0.1, 0.3 and 0.8g/kg). The blank control group and the model group were treated with distilled water by intragastric administration. The positive control group was treated with aspirin by intragastric administration. The low, medium, and high doses of the essential oil extracted from Chimonanthus praecox flowers were given 10, 30 and 80 mL/L at 10 mL/kg once a day. On day 5 of the experiment, 30 minutes after intragastric administration, 0.1 mL of Freund’s complete adjuvant was injected subcutaneously into the right foot plantar of each group of rats, and the blank control group was subcutaneously injected with 0.1 mL of normal saline. We observed and measured the toe’s volume of the rats before and 1, 2, 3, 5, 24, 48, and 72 h after injection by using drainage method. We then calculated the toe’s swelling rate in each group of rats at each time point, and used ELISA kit to measure the content of inflammatory factors in swollen foot tissue. 【Results】 In the medium- and high-dose essential oil groups, we observed significant inhibitory effects on the toe’s swelling rate in rats at 1, 2, 3, 5, 24, and 48 h after inflammation with Freund’s complete adjuvant (P<0.05). The essential oil extracted from Chimonanthus praecox flowers could significantly decrease the contents of TNF-α and IL-1β in the swollen foot tissue, and its anti-inflammatory effect was dose-dependent. 【Conclusion】 The essential oil extracted from Chimonanthus praecox flowers has obvious inhibitory effects on the rate of the toe’s swelling induced by Freund’s complete adjuvant. The anti-inflammatory effect may be related to the inhibition of TNF-α and IL-1β, but its anti-inflammatory effect is weaker than that of aspirin.

Soil phosphorus availability and uptake by mycorrhizal and non-mycorrhizal plants in an onion no-tillage system / Disponibilidade e absorção de fósforo no solo por plantas micorrízicas e não micorrízicas em sistema de plantio direto de cebola

ABSTRACT: Onion is an important vegetable crop, predominantly grown under conventional tillage system management. Alternatively, the vegetable no-tillage system uses cover crops to form a residue layer, which improves soil physical, chemical, and biological attributes. Aiming to understand the interaction of mycorrhizal and non-mycorrhizal cover crops, phosphatase activity, and soil phosphorus availability and uptake by plants, a no-tillage vegetable production system experiment with onion was carried out in Ituporanga, Southern Brazil. The treatments were black oats (Avena strigosa); rye (Secale cereale); oilseed radish (Raphanus sativus); rye + oilseed radish; black oats + oilseed radish, and a control with spontaneous plants. Additionally, two plots, a conventional tillage system area and a forest, both adjacent to the experiment, were evaluated. We measured cover crop biomass, onion yield, acid phosphatase activity, and resin-extracted phosphorus in the soil, shoot and root phosphorus content, and root colonization in cover crops, spontaneous plants, and onions. The treatments with cover crops had the highest plant biomass in winter and onion yield. Available soil phosphorus and acid phosphatase activity were higher in no-tillage plots than in the conventional tillage system area. The presence of non-mycorrhizal oilseed radish was associated with decreased colonization of rye and onion roots by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. No-tillage areas with cover crops or spontaneous plants in winter accumulated more phosphorus than conventional tillage system areas. The conventional tillage system showed adverse effects on most soil attributes, as shown by a Principal Component Analysis.

RESUMO: A cebola é uma importante cultura vegetal, cultivada predominantemente sob sistema de preparo convencional. Como alternativa, o sistema de plantio direto de hortaliças utiliza culturas de cobertura para formar uma camada de biomassa, o que melhora os atributos físicos, químicos e biológicos do solo. Com o objetivo de entender a interação de culturas de cobertura micorrízicas e não-micorrízicas, atividade da fosfatase ácida e disponibilidade e absorção de fósforo do solo pelas plantas, foi realizado um experimento em sistema de plantio direto de hortaliças com a cultura da cebola em Ituporanga, sul do Brasil. Os tratamentos foram: aveia preta (Avena strigosa); centeio (Secale cereale); nabo forrageiro (Raphanus sativus); centeio + nabo forrageiro; aveia preta + nabo forrageiro e um controle com vegetação espontânea. Além disso, duas outras parcelas, uma área em sistema de preparo convencional e uma floresta, ambas adjacentes ao experimento, foram avaliadas. Medimos a biomassa da cultura de cobertura, o rendimento de cebola, a atividade de fosfatase ácida e o fósforo extraído por resina no solo, bem como o conteúdo de fósforo da parte aérea e da raiz e a colonização das raízes em plantas de cobertura, plantas espontâneas e cebolas. Os tratamentos com plantas de cobertura apresentaram a maior biomassa de culturas de cobertura e rendimento de cebola. A atividade de fosfatase ácida e fósforo disponível no solo foram maiores nas parcelas de plantio direto do que na área convencional. A presença de nabo forrageiro, uma planta não micorrízica, foi associada a reduções na colonização de raízes de centeio e cebola por fungos micorrízicos arbusculares. As áreas de plantio direto com plantas de cobertura ou plantas espontâneas no inverno acumularam mais fósforo do que as áreas com preparo convencional. O sistema convencional de lavoura mostrou efeitos adversos para a maioria dos atributos do solo, como mostra a Análise de Componentes Principais.

A simplified system for simulation of Streptococcus mutans biofilm on healthy extracted human tooth as dental plaque model

The understanding and capability to simulate reproducible in vitro plaque model are important where this artificialplaque can be utilized as a tool in assessing the efficacy of tooth cleaning products. Previous studies were done onsynthetic surfaces such as glass beads under a very strict, controlled environment. Thus, the aim of this study wasto establish a simplified system to enable the formation of single species biofilm on the extracted natural tooth asplaque model. Healthy extracted natural tooth was incubated in broth mixture of Streptococcus mutans, containing5% sucrose and stimulated saliva in a simplified system. The incubation was set at room temperature for 24, 48,and 72 hours. After 24 hours, the sticky deposit was formed on the surface of the tooth. The area of biofilm, stainedwith disclosing agent, expended from 19.05 ± 1.41 mm2 (24 hours) to 23.25 ± 0.35 mm2 (48 hours). However,no significant expansion of the plaque area was observed on 72 hours (23.83 ± 0.52 mm2). The biofilm was thenobserved under Infinite Focus Microscope (IFM) to measure the biofilm thickness. The preliminary attempt showedthat plaque appeared as dark deposit with a certain thickness. Therefore, this simplified system is a reliable methodfor producing artificial plaque.

The Use of Micro-Computed Tomography for Evaluation of Internal Adaptation of Dental Restorative Materials in Primary Molars: An In-Vitro Study

Aim: To evaluate the internal adaptation of some dental adhesive restorative material (Nano-composite resin /Biodentine,Nanocomposite resin / Nano- resin-modified glass ionomer and Nano-composite resin) to the primary dentinal surface usingmicro-computed tomography (Micro-CT) Materials and methods: Forty-five extracted primary molars, due to caries ororthodontic reasons, were collected provided that it has an intact buccal/ lingual surface(s) and one half to two-thirds ofroot length. The selected teeth were disinfected and stored in normal saline at room temperature. The teeth were randomlyassigned to one of the three experimental restorative groups according to the restoration type (15 per group): group A:Nanocomposite resin / Biodentine, group B: Nanocomposite resin / Nano-resin-modified glass ionomer and group C:restored totally with Nanocomposite resin. A high- resolution desktop micro-CT (Model 1172, Skyscan, Belgium) was usedto image the samples. Results: The mean rank of volumetric dimension values of the total gap at the restorative material –dentine interface demonstrated significant difference among the three groups (P= 0.003). Moreover, there was a significantdifference in the mean rank of the ratio of total gap volume/cavity volume among the three restorative groups (P=0.015).The data demonstrate that group A showed the lowest in total gap volume and mean ratio of total gap volume /cavity volumewhile group C recorded the highest value. Conclusion: Biodentine exhibited a higher internal adaptation to a dentinalsurface which is comparable to Nano resin-modified glass ionomer. The study results potentiate the importance of usingBiodentine liners under Nano-composite (sandwich technique) in terms of excellent internal adaptation, in addition to itshigh biocompatibility and easy handling as well.

Effects of active components extracted from Dachuanxiong Decoction on the expressions of CGRP and its receptors in rats with migraine / 中成药

AIM To study the effects of active components extracted from Dachuanxiong Decoction (DCXD,Chuanxiong Rhizoma,Gastrodiae Rhizoma) on the expressions of calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) and its receptors in hypothalamus and periaqueductal gray (PAG) of rats with migraine.METHODS Seventy-two rats were evenly assigned to six groups at random,normal group,model group,positive drug group,groups of highdose,middle-dose and low-dose DCXD.Each group was then divided into Subgroup A and Subgroup B.The migraine rat model was established by subcutaneous nitroglycerin injection.The expressions of CGRP in Subgroup B's rat hypothalamus and PAG were observed by immunohistochemical staining,while the levels of CGRP in rat plasma,hypothalamus and PAG in Subgroup A were detected by ELISA.All the gene expressions of CGRP and its receptors (CRLR,RCP,RAMP1) in Subgroup A's rat hypothalamus and PAG were assessed by real-time PCR.RESULTS There was a more significant CGRP level increase in plasma,hypothalamus and PAG in the model group than that in the normal group (P ＜ 0.01).The modelled rats found their up-regulated expressions of CGRP and RCP in hypothalamus (P ＜ 0.05),up-regulated expressions of CGRP and CRLR in PAG,and down-regulated expression of RCP (P ＜ 0.05).All low-dose,middle-dose,high-dose active components worked in decreasing the CGRP levels in plasma,hypothalamus and PAG.The middle-dose led to down-regulation of CGRP,RCP expressions in hypothalamus (P ＜0.05,P ＜0.01),down-regulation of CGRP,CRLR expressions in PAG (P ＜0.05),and up-regulation of RCP expression in PAG (P ＜ 0.05).CONCLUSION The mechanism of active components extracted from DCXD in migraine management may associate with its capability in down-regulating CGRP expressions in hypothalamus and PAG,reducing CGRP synthesis and inhibiting neurogenic inflammation.

Effect of saponins extracted from Panax japonicas on inhibiting myocardial fibrosis by TGF-β1/Smad3 signaling pathway in aging rats / 中国中药杂志

To investigate the amelioration effect of saponins extracted from Panax japonicas (SPJ) on myocardial fibrosis in natural aging rats and its mechanisms, male SD rats aged 18 months were randomly divided into 3 groups (aging model group, low-dose SPJ group and high-dose SPJ group), with 10 rats in each group. SPJ groups were given SPJ at different doses (10, 60 mg·kg⁻¹·d⁻¹) consecutively for 6 months, meanwhile, aging model group was treated with the equal volume of saline for 6 months until 24 months old. Another 10 rats aged 6 month were used as young control group. The changes of myocardial morphological were observed by haematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining. Masson staining was used to observe the changes of collagen deposition in rat hearts. RT-PCR was used to detect the mRNA expression levels of myofibroblast marker α-SMA, collagen-related protein COL1α2, COL3α1 and matrix metalloproteinase MMP2, MMP9. Western blot was used to test the changes of the protein expressions of TGF-β1, p-Smad3, IL-1β and TNF-α in heart tissues. SPJ can effectively improve the arrangement of myocardial fibers, decrease inflammatory infiltration and reduce collagen deposition in aging rats. SPJ can effectively down-regulate the mRNA expression levels of COL1α2, COL3α1, α-SMA, MMP9, MMP2 and inhibit the protein expressions of TGF-β1, p-Smad3, TNF-α, IL-1β in the natural aging heart tissues. SPJ can effectively alleviate myocardial fibrosis in natural aging rats, and its mechanisms was related to the inhibition of the protein expressions of TGF-β1, p-Smad3 and the reduction of myocardial inflammation in rat hearts.

Effects of bioactive glass and extracted dentin proteins on human dental pulp cells / 北京大学学报(医学版)

Objective:To investigate the proliferation,odontogenic differentiation and mineralization of human dental pulp cells (HDPCs) on bioactive glass(BG) and extracted dentin proteins(EDP).Me-thods: Primary HDPCs were isolated from third molars by enzyme digestion and were cultured in Dulbecco's minimum essential medium (DMEM).Then the 4th generation of HDPCs was cultured with DMEM,which contained BG-EDP,BG,and EDP,respectively.Meanwhile HDPCs were cultured in DMEM as control group.Proliferation of HDPCs was evaluated by 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2-H-tetrazolium bromide(MTT) colorimetric assay.Odontogenic differentiation was determined by alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity assay and real-time PCR.Mineralization was investigated by Alizarin red staining and cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC) assay.Results: The proliferation of HDPCs was increased significantly in BG-EDP group on 3,7,and 9 d(optical density value:1.36±0.06,2.52±0.20,2.72±0.29) compared with BG(optical density value: 1.20±0.26,2.33±0.26,2.50±0.30),EDP(optical density value: 1.13±0.15,2.10±0.13,2.38±0.22) and control group(optical density va-lue: 0.84±0.17,1.84±0.18,1.95±0.19),P0.05).After 14 days,ALP activity of BG-EDP group (56.67±1.83) was significantly upregulated compared with EDP group (41.98±9.71) and control group (30.82±6.70),P0.05;DSPP gene expression was upregulated significantly in BG-EDP group (5.79±1.94) compared with the other groups (P0.05).The alizarin red staining showed more mineral nodules in BG-EDP group,the cetylpyridinium chloride semi-quantification presented higher calcification in BG-EDP group (0.27±0.01) compared with the other groups (P<0.05).Conclusion: Compared with either BG or EDP,BG-EDP significantly promotes the proliferation,odontogenic differentiation and mineralization of HDPCs.