Humulus lupulus L. extract and its active constituent xanthohumol attenuate oxidative stress and nerve injury induced by iron overload via activating AKT/GSK3ß and Nrf2/NQO1 pathways.

Hops, the dried female clusters from Humulus lupulus L., have traditionally been used as folk medicines for treating insomnia, neuralgia, and menopausal disorders. However, its pharmacological action on iron overload induced nerve damage has not been investigated. This study aims to evaluate the protective effects of hops extract (HLE) and its active constituent xanthohumol (XAN) on nerve injury induced by iron overload in vivo and in vitro, and to explore its underlying mechanism. The results showed that HLE and XAN significantly improved the memory impairment of iron overload mice, mainly manifested as shortened latency time, increased crossing platform times and spontaneous alternation ratio, and increased the expression of related proteins. Additionally, HLE and XAN significantly increased superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX) activities, and remarkably decreased malondialdehyde (MDA) level in hippocampus. Also, HLE and XAN apparently reduced reactive oxygen species (ROS) content of PC12 cells induced by iron dextran (ID), and improved the oxidative stress level. Moreover, HLE and XAN significantly upregulated the expression of nuclear factor E2-related factor (Nrf2), NAD(P)H quinone oxidoreductase (NQO1), heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), SOD, phosphorylated AKT (p-AKT), and phosphorylated GSK3ß (p-GSK3ß) both in hippocampus and PC12 cells. These findings demonstrated the protective effect of HLE and XAN against iron-induced memory impairment, which is attributed to its antioxidant profile by activation of AKT/GSK3ß and Nrf2/NQO1 pathways. Also, it was suggested that hops could be a potential candidate for iron overload-related neurological diseases treatment.

Research progress of aristolochic acids and their biomarkers / 药学学报

Aristolochic acids (AAs) are widely distributed in Aristolochiaceae, and are important toxic components in medicinal plants of Aristolochiaceae. As one of the most powerful carcinogens in the Carcinogenic Potency Database (CPDB), AAs can induce hepatotoxicity, nephrotoxicity, carcinogenicity, mutagenicity, and other adverse reaction. AAs also can produce a series of metabolites such as AA-DNA adducts in the body, and their specific metabolites can be used as biomarkers for early diagnosis and treatment of related diseases. Thus, the current discovery for technical means that can quickly and accurately detect biomarkers possesses significant research value. AAs can be attenuated by processing, compatibility, molecular breeding, and other methods to improve the clinical safety of Chinese medicine containing AAs. In this review, we report the distribution of AAs, attenuation strategies and biomarker detection. We would like to provide a reference for the quality control of AAs-containing Chinese medicines, as well as for the prevention and control of diseases caused by AAs.

Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis of Aristolochic Acids in Aristolochia cinnabarina Dried Root Tubers by UPLC-QTOF-MS/MS / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Objective:To establish a qualitative and quantitative method for the determination of aristolochic acids in <italic>Aristolochia cinnabarina</italic> dried root tubers. Method:The dried root tubers of <italic>A. cinnabarina </italic>was qualitative and quantitative analysis by ultra-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry （UPLC-QTOF-MS/MS）. The analysis was performed on Waters ACQUITY UPLC-BEH C₁₈ column （ 2.1 mm×100 mm， 1.7 μm） with the mobile phase of 0.1% formic acid aqueous solution （A）-acetonitrile （B） for gradient elution （0-1 min， 10%B； 1-9 min， 10%-30%B； 9-11 min， 30%-50%B； 11-15 min， 50%-90%B）. The flow rate was 0.45 mL·min^-1， column temperature was 35 ℃， and the detection wavelength was 250 nm. Mass spectral data was acquired in positive mode of electrospray ionization （ESI）. At the same time， the UPLC fingerprints of aristolochic acids in 21 batches of <italic>A. cinnabarina</italic> dried root tubers were established， and the contents of 5 aristolochic acids in <italic>A. cinnabarina</italic> dried root tubers from different producing areas and different harvesting periods were determined. Result:A total of 17 compounds， including 8 aristolochic acids， 7 aristololactams and 2 4，5-dioxoaporphine alkaloids， were identified from <italic>A. cinnabarina</italic> dried root tubers by mass spectrometry data and bibliographic information. Ten common peaks were identified in the UPLC fingerprint， and they were tuberosinone-<italic>N</italic>-<italic>β</italic>-<italic>D</italic>-glucoside， aristolactam Ⅰa-<italic>N</italic>-<italic>β</italic>-<italic>D</italic>-glucoside， aristolochic acid Ⅳa-<italic>O</italic>-<italic>β</italic>-<italic>D</italic>-glucoside， aristolactam Ⅲa-<italic>N</italic>-<italic>β</italic>-<italic>D</italic>-glucoside， aristolactam Ⅰ-<italic>N</italic>-<italic>β</italic>-<italic>D</italic>-glucoside， aristolochic acid Ⅲa， aristolochic acid Ⅳa， aristolochic acid Ⅱ， aristolactam Ⅰ and aristolochic acid Ⅰ. According to the quantitative analysis， the results exhibited that aristolochic acid Ⅲa， aristolochic acid Ⅳa， aristolochic acid Ⅱ， aristolactam Ⅰ and aristolochic acid Ⅰ had good linear relationships in the linear range. The relative standard deviations （RSDs） of precision， stability and reproducibility tests were all less than 3.0%， the recovery was 97.06%-101.84% （RSD<3.0%）. The contents of aristolochic acid Ⅰ， aristolochic acid Ⅱ， aristolochic acid Ⅲa， aristolochic acid Ⅳa， and aristolactam Ⅰ in 21 batches of <italic>A. cinnabarina</italic> dried root tubers were 0.938 6-3.567 5， 1.377 6-3.688 1， 0.056 3-0.527 7， 0.108 8-0.305 5， 0.021 0-0.081 7 mg·g^-1， respectively. Conclusion:The content of aristolochic acids in <italic>A. cinnabarina</italic> dried root tubers has a certain difference， the contents of aristolochic acid Ⅰ and Ⅱ are higher than other aristolochic acids. The established method is rapid， simple， accurate and reliable， which can provide reference for the quality control and evaluation of <italic>A. cinnabarina</italic> dried root tubers.