Serum and urine metabolomics based on UPLC-QTOF/MS reveal the effect and potential mechanism of "schisandra-evodia" herb pair in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.

The "schisandra-evodia" herb pair (S-E) is a herbal preparation to treat Alzheimer's disease (AD). This study aims to investigate the therapeutic efficacy and potential mechanism of S-E in AD rats, utilizing pharmacodynamic assessments and serum- and urine-based metabolomic analyses. Pharmacodynamic assessments included Morris water maze test, hematoxylin-eosin staining and immunohistochemistry experiments. The results of the study showed that the AD model was successful; the S-E significantly enhanced long-term memory and spatial learning in AD rats. Meanwhile, S-E notably ameliorated Aß25-35-induced cognitive impairment, improved hippocampal neuron morphology, decreased Aß deposition in the hippocampus and mitigated inflammatory damage. We then analyzed serum and urine samples using UPLC-MS/MS to identify potential biomarkers and metabolic pathways. Metabolomic analysis revealed alterations in 40 serum metabolites and 38 urine metabolites following S-E treatment, predominantly affecting pathways related to taurine and hypotaurine metabolism, linoleic acid metabolism, α-linolenic acid metabolism, glycerophospholipid metabolism and arachidonic acid metabolism. This study elucidates the biochemical mechanism underlying AD and the metabolic pathway influenced by S-E, laying the groundwork for future clinical applications.

Effect and mechanism of "Danggui-kushen" herb pair on ischemic heart disease.

AIMS: The purpose of this study was to investigate the mechanism and effects of "Danggui-kushen" herb pair (DKHP) better than single drug in ischemic heart disease (IHD). METHODS: IHD model was established by left anterior descending branch of coronary artery in rats. Rats were randomized into six groups and oral administration for 7 days: control, model, Danshen dripping pills (DS) (5.103 g/kg), Danggui (DG) (2.7 g/kg), Kushen (KS) (2.7 g/kg) and DKHP (2.7 g/kg). Electrocardiogram (ECG), myocardial infarction and damage assessment, histological inspection analysis, and various biochemical indexes of myocardial tissue were measured to evaluate the myocardial damage and the protective effects of drugs. The inflammatory levels were identified by HE staining and serum cytokine, and the expression of hypoxia-inducible factor 1α (HIF-1α), inhibitor kappa B kinaseß (IKKß) and nuclear transcription factor kappa B (NF-κB) were measured by immunohistochemistry. KEY FINDINGS: The results suggested that: compared with the control group, model group showed significantly myocardial tissue abnormalities, and increased levels of inflammatory cytokine. Treatment with drugs inhibited the increase of α-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase (α-HBDH), creatine kinase (CK), creatinekinase isoenzyme (CK-MB), interleukin 1 (IL-1) and interleukin 6 (IL-6). The results of immunohistochemical showed that drugs-treatment inhibited the expression of IKKß and the P-p65, increased the expression of HIF-1α, which demonstrated that the anti-inflammatory effects of DKHP was achieved by suppressing of NF-κB signaling. CONCLUSION: These observations indicated that DKHP can ameliorate myocardial injury better than single. And these are related to the inhibition of NF-κB and actives HIF-1α signaling.

Synthesis and evolution of neuroprotective effects of oxymatrine derivatives as anti-Alzheimer's disease agents.

While screening for natural product scaffolds as potential anti-Alzheimer's disease (AD), oxymatrine (OMT) was found to relieve symptoms of AD through diminishing death of neuronal cells caused by microglia-induced inflammation. In this study, 13 derivatives of OMT were synthesized and their neuroprotective effects were evaluated on Aß1-42 -induced PC12 cells using MTT method. In addition, the best neuroprotective potencies were obtained with compounds 4, 6e, and 6f, which were selected for evaluation of decrease in IL-1ß and TNF-α in Aß1-42 -treated PC12 cells. Collectively, these data reveal that derivatives 6e and 6f possess the best ability of diminish IL-1ß production and reverse cell damage in all compounds, which are possible to develop as therapeutic agents for AD.

P­glycoprotein inhibition increases the transport of dauricine across the blood­brain barrier.

Dauricine is the major bioactive component isolated from the roots of Menispermum dauricum D.C. The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of P­glycoprotein in the transport of dauricine across the blood­brain barrier by pre­treatment with the P­glycoprotein inhibitor verapamil. Sprague Dawley rats were divided into a verapamil group (pretreated with verapamil at a dose of 20 mg/kg) and a control group (pretreated with the same volume of normal saline). After 90 min, the animals were injected intravenously with dauricine (10 mg/kg). At 15, 30 and 60 min after dauricine administration, the levels of dauricine in the blood and brain were detected by high­performance liquid chromatography. Compared with the control group, the dauricine concentration in the brains of the rats in the verapamil group was significantly increased. Furthermore, the brain­plasma ratio of dauricine in the rats pretreated with verapamil was significantly higher than that of the animals in the control group. However, there was no difference identified between dauricine levels in the plasma of the verapamil and the control groups. The results indicated that dauricine is able to pass the blood­brain barrier, and that P­glycoprotein has an important role in the transportation of dauricine across the blood­brain barrier.