[Microcirculatory visualization and metabolomics of Dalbergia cochinchinensis in ameliorating coronary microvascular dysfunction in rats].

This study employed microcirculation visualization and metabolomics methods to explore the effect and possible mechanism of Dalbergia cochinchinensis in ameliorating coronary microvascular dysfunction(CMD) induced by microsphere embolization in rats. Sixty SPF-grade male SD rats were randomized into sham, model, and low-, medium-, and high-dose [1.5, 3.0, and 6.0 g·kg~(-1)·d~(-1), respectively] D. cochinchinensis water extract groups. The rats in sham and model groups were administrated with equal volume of normal saline by gavage once a day for 7 consecutive days. The rat model of CMD was prepared by injecting polyethylene microspheres into the left ventricle, while the sham group was injected with an equal amount of normal saline. A blood flow meter was used to measure blood flow, and a blood rheometer to measure blood viscosity and fibrinogen content. An automatic biochemical analyzer and reagent kits were used to measure the serum levels of myocardial enzymes, glucose, and nitric oxide(NO). Hematoxylin-eosin(HE) staining was used to observe the pathological changes of myocardial tissue. DiI C12/C18 perfusion was used to infuse coronary microvessels, and the structural and morphological changes were observed using a confocal laser scanning microscope. AngioTool was used to analyze the vascular area, density, radius, and mean E lacunarity in the microsphere embolization area, and vascular blood flow resistance was calculated based on Poiseuille's law. Non-targeted metabolomics based on high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry(UPLC-Q-TOF-MS) was employed screen potential biomarkers and differential metabolites regulated by D. cochinchinensis and the involved metabolic pathways were enriched. The pharmacodynamic results showed that compared with the model group, D. cochinchinensis significantly increased mean blood flow, reduced plasma fibrinogen content, lowered the levels of myocardial enzymes such as creatine kinase(CK), creatine kinase-MB(CK-MB), and lactate dehydrogenase(LDH), alleviate myocardial injury, and protect damaged myocardium. In addition, D. cochinchinensis significantly increased serum NO content, promoted vascular smooth muscle relaxation, dilated blood vessels, lowered serum glucose(GLU) level, improved myocardial energy metabolism, and alleviated pathological changes in myocardial fibrosis and inflammatory cell infiltration. The results of coronary microcirculation perfusion showed that D. cochinchinensis improved the vascular morphology, increased the vascular area, density, and radius, reduced vascular mean E lacunarity and blood flow resistance, and alleviated vascular endothelial damage in CMD rats. The results of metabolomics identified 45 differential metabolites between sham and model groups, and D. cochinchinensis recovered the levels 25 differential metabolites, which were involved in 8 pathways including arachidonic acid metabolism, arginine biosynthesis, and sphingolipids metabolism. D. cochinchinensis can ameliorate coronary microcirculation dysfunction caused by microsphere embolization in rats, and it may alleviate the pathological changes of CMD rats by regulating inflammatory reaction, endothelial damage, and phospholipid metabolism.

Phyllanthus emblica Linn: A comprehensive review of botany, traditional uses, phytonutrients, health benefits, quality markers, and applications.

Phyllanthus emblica Linn is not only an edible fruit with high nutritional value, but also a medicinal plant with multiple bioactivities. It is widely used in clinical practice with functions of clearing heat, cooling blood, digesting food, strengthening stomach, promoting fluid production, and relieving cough. This review summarized a wide variety of phytonutrients, including nutritional components (mineral elements, amino acids, vitamins, polysaccharides, unsaturated free fatty acids) and functional components (phenolic acids (1-34), tannins (35-98), flavonoids (99-141), sterols (142-159), triterpenoids (160-175), lignans (176-183), alkaloids (184-197), alkanes (198-212), aromatic micromolecules (213-222), other compounds (223-239)). The isolated compounds and the various extracts of P. emblica Linn presented a diverse spectrum of biological activities such as anti-oxidant, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, hepatoprotective, hypoglycemic, anti-atherosclerosis, neuroprotective, enhancing immunity, anti-fatigue, anti-myocardial fibrosis. The quality markers of P. emblica Linn were predicted and analyzed based on traditional medicinal properties, traditional efficacy, plant genealogy and chemical component characteristics, biogenic pathway of chemical components, measurability of chemical components, transformation characteristics of polyphenolic components, homologous characteristics of medicine and food, compound compatibility environment, and clinical applications. This review also summarized and prospected applications of P. emblica Linn in beverages, preserved fruits, fermented foods, etc. However, the contents of mechanism, structure-activity relationship, quality control, toxicity, extraction, processing of P. emblica Linn are not clear, and are worth further studies in the future.

Three novel dalbergiphenol hybrids from the heartwood of Dalbergia cochinchinensis.

A novel discovery of two hybrid benzodioxepin-dalbergiphenol epimers, named cochindalbergiphenols A-B (1-2), and a benzofuran-dalbergiphenol hybrid, named cochindalbergiphenol C (3), were isolated and identified from the heartwood of Dalbergia cochinchinensis. The structures of all the isolated compounds were identified through NMR and HRESIMS techniques, while the absolute configurations were determined by comparing the experimental and calculated ECD spectra. Compounds 1-3 exhibited potential protective effects against hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R) induced injury in H9c2 cells.

[UPLC-Q-TOF-MS metabolomic study on improvement of acute myocardial ischemia in rats by Dalbergia cochinchinensis heartwood].

This paper aimed to study the effect of Dalbergia cochinchinensis heartwood on plasma endogenous metabolites in rats with ligation of the left anterior descending coronary artery, and to analyze the mechanism of D. cochinchinensis heartwood in improving acute myocardial ischemic injury. The stability and consistency of the components in the D. cochinchinensis heartwood were verified by the establishment of fingerprint, and 30 male SD rats were randomly divided into a sham group, a model group, and a D. cochinchinensis heartwood(6 g·kg~(-1)) group, with 10 rats in each group. The sham group only opened the chest without ligation, while the other groups established the model of ligation. Ten days after administration, the hearts were taken for hematoxylin-eosin(HE) staining, and the content of heart injury indexes in the plasma creatine kinase isoenzyme(CK-MB) and lactate dehydrogenase(LDH), energy metabolism-related index glucose(Glu) content, and vascular endothelial function index nitric oxide(NO) was determined. The endogenous metabolites were detected by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-time-of-flight-mass spectrometry(UPLC-Q-TOF-MS). The results showed that the D. cochinchinensis heartwood reduced the content of CK-MB and LDH in the plasma of rats to relieve myocardial injury, reduced the content of Glu in the plasma, improved myocardial energy metabolism, increased the content of NO, cured the vascular endothelial injury, and promoted vasodilation. D. cochinchinensis heartwood improved the increase of intercellular space, myocardial inflammatory cell infiltration, and myofilament rupture caused by ligation of the left anterior descending coronary artery. The metabolomic study showed that the content of 26 metabolites in the plasma of rats in the model group increased significantly, while the content of 27 metabolites decreased significantly. Twenty metabolites were significantly adjusted after the administration of D. cochinchinensis heartwood. D. cochinchinensis heartwood can significantly adjust the metabolic abnormality in rats with ligation of the left anterior descending coronary artery, and its mechanism may be related to the regulation of cardiac energy metabolism, NO production, and inflammation. The results provide a corresponding basis for further explaining the effect of D. cochinchinensis on the acute myocardial injury.

Activating α7nAChR helps post-myocardial infarction healing by regulating macrophage polarization via the STAT3 signaling pathway.

BACKGROUND: Monocytes/macrophages play critical roles in inflammation and cardiac remodeling following myocardial infarction (MI). The cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway (CAP) modulates local and systemic inflammatory responses by activating α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (α7nAChR) in monocytes/macrophages. We investigated the effect of α7nAChR on MI-induced monocyte/macrophage recruitment and polarization and its contribution to cardiac remodeling and dysfunction. METHODS: Adult male Sprague Dawley rats underwent coronary ligation and were intraperitoneally injected with the α7nAChR-selective agonist PNU282987 or the antagonist methyllycaconitine (MLA). RAW264.7 cells were stimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) + interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) and treated with PNU282987, MLA, and S3I-201 (a STAT3 inhibitor). Cardiac function was evaluated by echocardiography. Masson's trichrome and immunofluorescence were used to detect cardiac fibrosis, myocardial capillary density, and M1/M2 macrophages. Western blotting was used to detect protein expression, and the proportion of monocytes was measured using flow cytometry. RESULTS: Activating the CAP with PNU282987 significantly improved cardiac function and reduced cardiac fibrosis and 28-day mortality after MI. On days 3 and 7 post-MI, PNU282987 reduced the percentage of peripheral CD172a + CD43low monocytes and the infiltration of M1 macrophages in the infarcted hearts, whereas it increased the recruitment of peripheral CD172a + CD43high monocytes and M2 macrophages. Conversely, MLA exerted the opposite effects. In vitro, PNU282987 inhibited M1 macrophage polarization and promoted M2 macrophage polarization in LPS + IFN-γ-stimulated RAW264.7 cells. These PNU282987-induced changes in LPS + IFN-γ-stimulated RAW264.7 cells were reversed by administering S3I-201. CONCLUSION: Activating α7nAChR inhibits the early recruitment of pro-inflammatory monocytes/macrophages during MI and improves cardiac function and remodeling. Our findings suggest a promising therapeutic target for regulating monocyte/macrophage phenotypes and promoting healing after MI.

A novel four-gene signature for predicting the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: To identify and utilize gene signatures for the prognostic evaluation of postoperative patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). METHODS: The gene mRNA expression profiles and corresponding clinicopathological data of postoperative patients with HCC were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. Highly differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in tumor tissues compared to adjacent tissues were identified, and their associations with the overall survival (OS) of HCC patients were analyzed. The strongly associated genes were used to develop a prognostic score for the survival stratification of HCC, and the underlying mechanisms were analyzed using bioinformatics. RESULTS: A total of 376 DEGs were identified and four DEGs (ADH4, COL15A1, RET and KCNJ16) were independently associated with OS. A prognostic score derived from the four genes could effectively stratify HCC patients with different OS outcomes, independent of clinical parameters. Patients with high scores exhibited poorer OS than patients with low scores (HR 5.526, 95% CI: 2.451-12.461, p < .001). The four genes were involved in cancer-related biological processes and were independent of each other in bioinformatics analyses. CONCLUSION: Four genes strongly associated with the prognosis of postoperative patients with HCC were identified, and the derived prognostic score was simple and valuable for overall survival prediction.

Loss of SIRT5 promotes bile acid-induced immunosuppressive microenvironment and hepatocarcinogenesis.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: The liver is a metabolically active organ and is also 'tolerogenic', exhibiting sophisticated mechanisms of immune regulation that prevent pathogen attacks and tumorigenesis. How metabolism impacts the tumor microenvironment (TME) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains understudied. METHODS: We investigated the role of the metabolic regulator SIRT5 in HCC development by conducting metabolomic analysis, gene expression profiling, flow cytometry and immunohistochemistry analyses in oncogene-induced HCC mouse models and human HCC samples. RESULTS: We show that SIRT5 is downregulated in human primary HCC samples and that Sirt5 deficiency in mice synergizes with oncogenes to increase bile acid (BA) production, via hypersuccinylation and increased BA biosynthesis in the peroxisomes of hepatocytes. BAs act as a signaling mediator to stimulate their nuclear receptor and promote M2-like macrophage polarization, creating an immunosuppressive TME that favors tumor-initiating cells (TICs). Accordingly, high serum levels of taurocholic acid correlate with low SIRT5 expression and increased M2-like tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) in HCC patient samples. Finally, administration of cholestyramine, a BA sequestrant and FDA-approved medication for hyperlipemia, reverses the effect of Sirt5 deficiency in promoting M2-like polarized TAMs and liver tumor growth. CONCLUSIONS: This study uncovers a novel function of SIRT5 in orchestrating BA metabolism to prevent tumor immune evasion and suppress HCC development. Our results also suggest a potential strategy of using clinically proven BA sequestrants for the treatment of patients with HCC, especially those with decreased SIRT5 and abnormally high BAs. LAY SUMMARY: Hepatocellular caricinoma (HCC) development is closely linked to metabolic dysregulation and an altered tumor microenvironment. Herein, we show that loss of the metabolic regulator Sirt5 promotes hepatocarcinogenesis, which is associated with abnormally elevated bile acids and subsequently an immunosuppressive microenvironment that favors HCC development. Targeting this mechanism could be a promising clinical strategy for HCC.

[Quality evaluation of Dalbergiae Odoriferae Lignum by HPLC fingerprint and multi-component quantitative analysis].

The present study detected the component content in Dalbergiae Odoriferae Lignum by HPLC fingerprint and the multi-component determination method. HPLC analysis was performed on the Agilent ZORBAX SB-C_(18) column(4.6 mm×250 mm, 5 µm). Acetonitrile-0.5% phosphoric acid aqueous solution with gradient elution was employed as the mobile phase. The flow rate was 1.0 mL·min~(-1) and the column temperature was maintained at 30 ℃. The detection wavelength was 210 nm and the sample volume was 10 µL. The similarity of 18 batches of Dalbergiae Odoriferae Lignum was 0.343-0.779, indicating that there were great differences between different batches of Dalbergiae Odoriferae Lignum. Eighteen common peaks were identified, including eight flavonoids such as liquiritigenin and latifolin. The mass fractions of liquiritigenin, luteolin, naringenin, isoliquiritigenin, formononetin, dalbergin, latifolin, and pinocembrin were in the ranges of 0.134 1%-0.495 2%, 0.028 2%-0.167 0%, 0.016 3%-0.591 3%, 0.053 5%-0.188 0%, 0.142 4%-0.640 1%, 0.068 0%-0.590 7%, 0.003 2%-1.980 7%, and 0.009 6%-0.740 2%, respectively. Eighteen batches of Dalbergiae Odoriferae Lignum were divided into three categories by cluster analysis and eight differential components in Dalbergiae Odoriferae Lignum were marked by partial least-squares discriminant analysis(PLS-DA). The cumulative variance contribution rate was 90.5%. The HPLC fingerprint combined with the multi-component determination method for Dalbergiae Odoriferae Lignum is easy in operation and accurate in results, with good repeatability and reliability. The quality of Dalbergiae Odoriferae Lignum can be evaluated and analyzed by the PLS-DA model. This study is expected to provide a reference for the quality control and clinical application of Dalbergiae Odoriferae Lignum.

[Comparative study of rat serum pharmacochemistry between Puerariae Lobatae Radix and Puerariae Thomsonii Radix based on UPLC-Q-TOF-MS].

UPLC-Q-TOF-MS and serum pharmacochemistry were employed to study the migrating components in rat sera after intragastric administration of the water extracts of Puerariae Lobatae Radix(PLR) and Puerariae Thomsonii Radix(PTR). After the respective intragastric administration of PLR and PTR extracts, blood samples were collected from the orbital vein. The serum samples were treated by protein precipitation method with methanol and acetonitrile at a ratio of 1∶1 and then passed through Agilent ZORBAX RRHD SB-C_(18) column(3 mm×100 mm, 1.8 µm) and Agilent SB-C_(18) pre-column(3 mm×5 mm, 1.8 µm) with 0.1% formic acid aqueous solution(A)-acetonitrile(B) as the mobile phase. The elution was performed at the flow rate of 0.25 mL·min~(-1), the column temperature of 40 ℃, and the injection volume of 2 µL. By comparison of the total ion chromatogram and secondary fragment ion information of PLR and PTR water extracts, PLR-and PTR-containing sera, and blank serum, we found 42 migrating components(including 17 prototype components and 25 metabolites) in the sera of rats treated with PLR and 35 migrating components(including 15 prototype components and 20 metabolites) in the sera of rats treated with PTR. Thirty-three common components were shared by the two treatments, including 13 prototype components and 20 metabolites. The differences of migrating components in the PLR-and PTR-treated rat sera provide a scientific basis for further study of the active components and quality markers of PLR and PTR.

Neoflavonoids from the heartwood of Dalbergia melanoxylon.

Three new neoflavonoids, named (1S,8R,9S)-1,5-dihydroxy-4,12-dimethoxy-8-vinyl-tricyclo[7.3.1.02,7]trideca-2,4,6,11-tetraen-10-one (1), 2,5,2',5'-tetrahydroxy-4-methoxybenzophenone (2) and 2,5,3'-trihydroxy-4-methoxybenzophenone (3), were isolated from the heartwood of Dalbergia melanoxylon. Their structures were established by spectroscopic methods, including UV, IR, HRMS, 1 D and 2 D-NMR. Compounds 1-3 were evaluated for inhibitory activity against three fungal strains Candida albicans, Mucor ramosissimus, Saccharomycopsis fermentans and seven bacterial strains Shigella dysenteriae, Salmonella enteri, Bacillus cereus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Bacillus sphaericus, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli using the broth dilution method. However, none of compounds 1-3 showed potential antimicrobial activities in vitro.

[Molecular mechanism of Dalbergia cochinchinensis heartwood in regulation of energy metabolism to treat myocardial ischemia based on network pharmacology and experimental validation].

Dalbergia cochinchinensis(DC) is chemically similar to the valuable and scarce Chinese herb Dalbergiae Odoriferae Lignum, and both of them belong to the Dalbergia Leguminosae. DC is used for treating cardiovascular diseases and cancer. However, its potent active ingredient groups and molecular mechanisms in anti-myocardial ischemia are not fully clarified. In this study, the active ingredient groups, targets, and signaling pathways of DC heartwood for the treatment of myocardial ischemia were screened out based on network pharmacology and molecular docking technology, and the effects were verified by the rat model of acute myocardial ischemia induced by isoprenaline(ISO). The molecular mechanism of DC heartwood was elucidated based on the target of multi-ingredient and multi-target pathways. The crossing targets of DC heartwood for the treatment of myocardial ischemia were identified through the screening of active ingredients in DC heartwood and the prediction of targets. The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genomes(KEGG) pathway enrichment and Gene Ontology(GO) functional annotation were performed. AutoDock was used to bind the active ingredient groups to the pathway targets. Finally, the molecular mechanism of myocardial ischemia treatment by DC heartwood extracts in the treatment of myocardial ischemia was revealed through the rat model of ISO-induced acute myocardial ischemia by performing electrocardiogram(ECG), hemodynamic, cardiac enzymes, hematoxylin-eosin(HE) staining, high-energy phosphate compounds, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR), and Western blot pharmacodynamic experiments, based on the multi-ingredient and multi-target action of active ingredient groups and pathway targets. The network pharmacology showed that the 18 ingredients of DC heartwood corresponded to 510 targets, 629 myocardial ischemia-related targets, and 101 cross-targets. GO and KEGG enrichment analyses showed that DC heartwood was involved in the hypoxic response, vasoconstriction, and nitric oxide biosynthesis, and had effects on the molecular functions of hemoglobin binding, protein binding, and adenosine triphosphate(ATP) binding. It regulated the signaling pathways such as hypoxia-inducible factor 1(HIF-1), vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF), and phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase/protein kinase B(PI3 K/AKT) to act on myocardial ischemia. Experimental studies showed that DC heartwood slowed down the heart rate and ST segment change(ΔST), and increased systolic blood pressure(SBP), diastolic blood pressure(DBP), and mean arterial pressure(MBP) in rats with ISO-induced acute myocardial ischemia. It also reduced plasma lactate dehydrogenase(LDH), creatine kinase isoenzyme MB(CK-MB), and glutamate transaminase(AST) levels, relieved myocardial fiber disorders and inflammatory cell infiltration, and increased ATP and cellular energy(EC) levels. DC heartwood increased the mRNA expressions of calmodulin-dependent protein kinase kinase(CAMKK) in the myocardial tissue, 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase 3(PFKFB3), mammalian target of rapamycin(mTOR), PI3 K, VEGF, endothelial nitric oxide synthase(eNOS), HIF-1α in the myocardial tissue. It decreased the mRNA expression of pyruvate dehydrogenase(PDH), and increased the protein expressions of PFKFB3, VEGFA, and eNOS. Molecular docking showed that liquiritigenin, stigmasterol, isodalbergin, latifolin, 4-methoxydalbergione, dibutyl terephthalate, 2,4-dihydroxy-5-methoxybenzophenone in DC heartwood produced bio-binding activities with epidermal growth factor receptor(EGFR), HIF-1α, CAMKK, PI3 K, mTOR, and PDH, respectively. Therefore, the active ingredient groups of DC heartwood act on the HIF-1 signaling pathway, regulate cardiomyocyte energy metabolism, and increase ATP energy charge in a multi-ingredient and multi-target manner, improving cardiac function and histopathological changes to protect rats with acute myocardial ischemia induced by ISO.

Melanoxylonin A-G, neoflavonoids from the heartwood of Dalbergia melanoxylon and their cardioprotective effects.

Seven undescribed neoflavonoids, named melanoxylonins A-G, were isolated from the heartwood of Dalbergia melanoxylon, and all the non-toxic isolates were evaluated for their cardioprotective effect against ischemia/reoxygenation (I/R) injury in H9c2 cells. Of these, melanoxylonin A-D containing the 8-OH group showed better potent cardioprotective effects than the other four congeners. Molecular docking studies confirmed the capacity of melanoxylonin D to interact with the myeloperoxidase (MPO) protein. These results indicated that the potential cardioprotective effects of melanoxylonin D in H9c2 cells with I/R injury may be imparted through suppression of MPO. These results may provide a new medicinal usage of D. melanoxylon.

Effects of Eucommia ulmoides extract against renal injury caused by long-term high purine diets in rats.

Diets of overloaded purine-rich foods for a long time are one of the important reasons to cause renal lesions. Eucommia ulmoides is one of the traditional Chinese medicine herbs, which has been used to recover functions of the kidney. However, its mechanism remains unclear. The aim of this study was to explore the effects and protective mechanism of Eucommia ulmoides extract on renal injury caused by long-term high purine diets in rats. SD rats underwent an intragastric adenine (200 mg kg-1 d-1) administration for 9 weeks and were treated for 15 weeks. The results demonstrated that Eucommia ulmoides extract significantly reduced serum Cre and BUN levels in rats. H&E and Masson's trichrome stains showed notable lowering of the infiltration of inflammatory cells, the formation of fibrous tissues and collagen fibers, and improvement in the pathological morphology of kidneys. It also suppressed the protein and mRNA expressions of TGF-ß1 and α-SMA and enhanced E-cadherin expression. Meanwhile, Eucommia ulmoides extract prominently inhibited the mRNA expression of Col I, Col III, Col IV, TIMP-1, and TIMP-2 and promoted expressions of MMP-1, MMP-2 and MMP-9. Through our study, it is the first time to prove that Eucommia ulmoides extract could ameliorate renal interstitial fibrosis and may involve in the regulation of the extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation enzyme (MMPs/TIMPs) system, promotion of the expression of E-cadherin, and suppression of expressions of TGF-ß1 and α-SMA. The results provide a significant implication for the utilization of Eunomia Ulmoides extract as functional foods to enhance renal functions and improve renal injury caused by high purine diets.

[Research advances in chemical constituents and pharmacological activities of Pueraria genus].

Kudzu plants in the subfamily sphenoideae of Leguminosae are commonly used herbs in China, Japan, Korea, India and Thailand, with a long history of medicinal use. They are recorded in Chinese Pharmacopoeia, Japanese Pharmacopeia, Korea Pharmacopeia, Ayurveda Pharmacopoeia of India and Flora of Thailand. There are 15-20 species of Pueraria in the world, including 7 species and 2 varieties in China. At present, there are 6 species with medicinal value, such as Pueraria lobata and P. thomsonii. The main chemical components of the genus are isoflavones, flavonoids, terpenes, steroids, coumarins, puerarin glycosides and benzopyrans. A total of 240 compounds have been isolated and identified from this genus, and their pharmacological effects mainly include improvement of the cardiovascular system, antioxidant, hypoglycemic, antipyretic, anti-inflammatory, anti-alcoholic and estrogen-like effects. In this study, chemical constituents and pharmacological activities of Pueraria at home and abroad were systematically summarized, in order to provide references for the material basis, quality control and further development of Pueraria genus.

Association between Health-Related Physical Fitness and Risk of Dyslipidemia in University Staff: A Cross-Sectional Study and a ROC Curve Analysis.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to assess the relationship between dyslipidemia (DL) risk and health-related physical fitness (HPF) and evaluated the prognostic value of HPF for risk of DL. METHODS: A total of 776 university staff members were recruited, of which 407 were females, and 369 males. Blood samples and HPF tests were collected from all participants after 12 h fasting. RESULTS: The prevalence of DL was 41.77% and 51.49% in female and male university staff members, respectively, and there was no significant difference between genders (χ2 = 2.687, p = 0.101). According to the logistic regression analysis, age, male sex, GLU, hypertension, BMI, BF, WHtR, and LAP were significant risk factors for DL (p < 0.05), VCI and, SAR were significant protective factors for DL (p < 0.05), and SMI, GS, and VG were not significantly associated with the risk of DL. The area under the receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) analysis indicated that, LAP (AUC: 0.730, 95CI%: 0.697-0.762), WHtR (AUC: 0.626, 95CI%: 0.590-0.660), and BMI (AUC: 0.599, 95CI%: 0.563-0.634) are valid predictors of DL, and LAP and WHtR perform better than BMI (Z = 8.074, p < 0.001) in predicting DL in male and female university staff members. CONCLUSION: The risk of DL is significantly related to body composition, cardiorespiratory fitness, and flexibility. LAP and WHtR perform better than BMI in predicting risk of DL in male and female university staff members.

Latifolin protects against myocardial infarction by alleviating myocardial inflammatory via the HIF-1α/NF-κB/IL-6 pathway.

CONTEXT: The Traditional Chinese herb medicine Dalbergia odorifera T. Chen (Fabaceae), exerted a protective effect on myocardial ischaemia. Latifolin is a neoflavonoid extracted from Dalbergia odorifera. It has been reported to have the effects of anti-inflammation and cardiomyocyte protection. OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether latifolin can improve myocardial infarction (MI) through attenuating myocardial inflammatory and to explore its possible mechanisms. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Left coronary artery was ligated to induce a rat model of MI, and the rats were treated with sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC-Na) or different doses of latifolin (25, 50, 100 mg/kg/d) by oral gavage for 28 days. Serum contents of myocardial enzyme were measured at seven and fourteen days after treatment. Cardiac function, infarct size, histopathological changes and inflammatory cells infiltration was assessed at 28 days after treatment. Western blotting was used to investigate the underlying mechanisms. RESULTS: Latifolin treatment markedly decreased the contents of myocardial enzymes, and increased left ventricular ejection fraction (85.27% vs. 59.11%) and left ventricular fractional shortening (62.71% vs. 45.53%). Latifolin was found to significantly reduced infarction size (27.78% vs. 39.07%), myocardial fibrosis and the numbers of macrophage infiltration (436 cells/mm2 vs. 690 cells/mm2). In addition, latifolin down-regulated the expression levels of hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (0.95-fold), phospho-nuclear factor-κB (0.2-fold) and interleukin-6 (1.11-fold). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: Latifolin can protect against myocardial infarction by improving myocardial inflammation through the HIF-1α/NF-κB/IL-6 signalling pathway. Accordingly, latifolin may be a promising drug for pharmacological treatment of ischaemic cardiovascular disease.

Structural characterization of a homopolysaccharide with hypoglycemic activity from the roots of Pueraria lobata.

A water-soluble neutral homopolysaccharide (PLP-1) was obtained from the roots of Pueraria lobata by DEAE cellulose and Sephadex G-200 gel chromatography purification. The average molecular weight of PLP-1 was 16.2 kDa. Monosaccharide composition analysis showed that PLP-1 was composed of glucose as a glucan. The structure of PLP-1 was characterized on the basis of extensive physical and chemical analysis, which indicated that the backbone of PLP-1 was mainly composed of →3)-α-d-Glcp(1→ and →4)-ß-d-Glcp(1→ with a molar ratio of 7.0 : 1.0. Moreover, the hypoglycemic activity of PLP-1 was investigated by palmitic acid and high glucose induced insulin resistant HepG2 cells. The results elucidated that PLP-1 could decrease the glucose concentration by up-regulating the expression of PI3K and AKT, and down-regulating the expression of FoxO1, PCK2, and G6Pase in insulin resistant cells. Therefore, PLP-1 could serve as a dietary supplement to ameliorate insulin resistance for diabetic patients.

Two new compounds from the heartwood of Dalbergia melanoxylon.

A new neoflavonoid, named S(+)-3'-hydroxy-4',2,4,5-tetramethoxydalbergiquinol (1), and a new benzofuran, named (2S,3S)-5-hydroxy-6-methoxy-3-methyl-2-(4'-hydroxyphenyl)-2,3dihydrobenzofuran (4), together with two known neoflavonoids, were isolated from the heartwood of Dalbergia melanoxylon. Their structures were elucidated by a combination of spectroscopic methods and comparison with the literature. Compounds 1-4 were evaluated for inhibitory activity against Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, Escherichia coli ATCC 6538, Salmonella enteri CMCC 50041 and Candida albicans ATCC 289065, which all exhibited inactive or weak activity.

Rapid Analysis of the Chemical Compositions in Semiliquidambar cathayensis Roots by Ultra High-Performance Liquid Chromatography and Quadrupole Time-of-Flight Tandem Mass Spectrometry.

Semiliquidambar cathayensis Chang was a traditional medicinal plant and used to treat rheumatism arthritis and rheumatic arthritis for centuries in China with no scientific validation, while only 15 components were reported. Thus, a rapid, efficient, and precise method based on ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS) was applied in both positive- and negative-ion modes to rapidly analysis the main chemical compositions in S. cathayensis for the first time. Finally, a total of 85 chemical compositions, including 35 alkaloids, 12 flavonoids, 7 terpenoids, 5 phenylpropanoids, 9 fatty acids, 7 cyclic peptides, and 10 others were identified or tentatively characterized in the roots of S. cathayensis based on the accurate mass within 5 ppm error. Moreover, alkaloid, flavonoid, phenylpropanoid, and cyclic peptide were reported from S. cathayensis for the first time. This rapid and sensitive method was highly useful to comprehend the chemical compositions and will provide scientific basis for further study on the material basis, mechanism and clinical application of S. cathayensis roots.

[Study on neoflavonoids from heartwood of Dalbergia latifolia].

Dalbergiae Odoriferae Lignum is derived from heartwood of Dalbergia odorifera,which is national Ⅱ level of rare and endangered protective plants in China. Its resources are scarce and its price is high. In order to find substitutes of D. odorifera,the chemical constituents of 70% ethanol extract of heartwood of D. catifolia were systematically studied by using silica gel,Sephadex LH-20 column chromatography,and semi-preparative HPLC. Sixteen neoflavanoids were isolated and identified as eight dalbergiphenols( 1-8),three dalbergiones( 9-11),two dalbergins( 12,13),two benzophenones( 14,15) and one other type neoflavanoids( 16) based on spectroscopic data analyses and/or comparing the spectroscopic data with those in literature. Among them,compounds 3,7 and 11 were isolated from the genus Dalbergia for the first time,and compounds 2,4-6,8,14 and 15 were isolated from the D. latifolia for the first time. Ten neoflavonoids were both discovered from D. latifolia and D. odorifera.