A Randomized Double-blind Clinical Trial of Weierkang Pills for the Treatment of Chronic Atrophic Gastritis.

BACKGROUND AND GOALS: There are currently no standard treatments for chronic atrophic gastritis and traditional Chinese medicine may be effective. This study aims to investigate the efficacy and safety of Weierkang pills in treating chronic atrophic gastritis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: There were 108 patients in our study. They were randomly assigned to 2 groups. In group A, patients received Weierkang pills and patients in group B received folic acid combined with teprenone. Symptoms, endoscopic scores, and biopsy specimens were compared at baseline and 3 months after treatment. Meanwhile, the expressions of vascular endothelial growth factor and trefoil factor 3 (TFF3) in biopsy specimens were also compared. RESULTS: Our study showed that the total effective rates of atrophy/intestinal metaplasia in group A reached the same level as group B (51.7% vs. 40.0%, P =0.419). Weierkang significantly improved the total effective rate of atrophy/intestinal metaplasia in gastric angle compared with group B (64.7% vs. 33.3%, P =0.024). Weierkang can significantly lower the total Kyoto risk score (2.6±1.1 vs. 3.3±1.0, P =0.002) and atrophy score (1.4±0.6 vs. 1.8±0.5, P =0.001) after treatment. In addition, Weierkang improves symptoms (1.3±1.3 vs. 2.3±1.8, P =0.003) and epigastric pain (0.2±0.4 vs. 0.5±0.6, P =0.041). The expression of TFF3 in gastric mucosa decreased significantly after treatment with Weierkang ( P =0.002). CONCLUSIONS: Weierkang can improve the endoscopic appearance and pathologic changes of chronic atrophic gastritis patients. Symptoms also improved. TFF3 may be involved the pathophysiology mechanism.

Mulberry Anthocyanins Ameliorate DSS-Induced Ulcerative Colitis by Improving Intestinal Barrier Function and Modulating Gut Microbiota.

Mulberry has attracted wide attention due to its substantial nutritional values. This work first studied the protective effect of mulberry anthocyanins (MAS) on dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced colitis. The mice experiment was designed as four groups including normal mice (Control), dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-fed mice, and DSS plus 100 mg/kg·bw MAS-fed mice (LMAS-DSS) or DSS plus 200 mg/kg·bw MAS-fed mice (HMAS-DSS). Mice were given MAS by gavage for 1 week, and then DSS was added to the drinking water for 7 days. MAS was administered for a total of 17 days. The results showed that oral gavage of MAS reduced the disease activity index (DAI), prevented colon shortening, attenuated colon tissue damage and inflammatory response, suppressed colonic oxidative stress and restored the protein expression of intestinal tight junction (TJ) protein (ZO-1, occludin and claudin-3) in mice with DSS-induced colitis. In addition, analysis of 16S rRNA amplicon sequences showed that MAS reduced the DSS-induced intestinal microbiota dysbiosis, including a reduction in Escherichia-Shigella, an increase in Akkermansia, Muribaculaceae and Allobaculum. Collectively, MAS alleviates DSS-induced colitis by maintaining the intestinal barrier, modulating inflammatory cytokines, and improving the microbial community.

Research advances in bioactive components and health benefits of jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.) fruit.

Jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.), a highly nutritious and functional fruit, is reported to have various health benefits and has been extensively planted worldwide, especially in China. Many studies have shown that bioactive components derived from jujube fruit have significant nutritional and potential biological effects. In this paper, the latest progress in research on major bioactive compounds obtained from jujube is reviewed, and the potential biological functions of jujube fruit resources are discussed. As a dietary supplement, jujube fruit is well recognized as a healthy food which contains a variety of bioactive substances, such as polysaccharides, polyphenols, amino acids, nucleotides, fatty acids, dietary fiber, alkaloids, and other nutrients. These nutrients and non-nutritive phytochemicals obtained from jujube fruit have physiological functions including anticancer, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-hyperlipidemic, anti-hyperglycemic, immunoregulatory, neuroprotective, sedative, and antiviral functions. Of note is that new constituents, including alkaloids, dietary fiber, and other bioactive substances, as well as the antiviral, hypoglycemic, lipid-lowering, and neuroprotective effects of jujube fruit, are systematically reviewed here for the first time. Meanwhile, problems affecting the exploitation of jujube fruit resources are discussed and further research directions proposed. Therefore, this review provides a useful bibliography for the future development of jujube-based products and the utilization of jujube nutritional components in functional foods.

Black mulberry (Morus nigra L.) polysaccharide ameliorates palmitate-induced lipotoxicity in hepatocytes by activating Nrf2 signaling pathway.

Black mulberry (Morus nigra L.) has shown health benefits against metabolic disorders. Lipotoxicity is considered as a potentially cause of metabolic syndrome, and there is no effective treatment. However, the protective effect and its mechanism of black mulberry against lipotoxicity are unclear. In this study, three polysaccharide fractions (BP1, BP2, BP3) were isolated from black mulberry by stepwise precipitation with 30%, 60%, and 90% of ethanol and analyzed by GPC, HPLC and FT-IR methods. BP1 exhibited a better protective effect than BP2 and BP3 on palmitic acid (PA)-induced lipotoxicity in HepG2 cells. BP1 effectively reduced PA-induced lipotoxicity by eliminating accumulation of ROS, improving mitochondrial function, reversing glutathione depletion and enhancing antioxidant enzyme activities. Mechanistically, BP1 activated the Nrf2 signaling pathway, a master regulator of the antioxidant defense system, through increasing Nrf2 nuclear translocation and phosphorylation. Collectively, these results demonstrate that BP1 has the great potential for applications in lipid disorders.

Andrographolide Exerts Antihyperglycemic Effect through Strengthening Intestinal Barrier Function and Increasing Microbial Composition of Akkermansia muciniphila.

Accumulating evidence indicates that type 2 diabetes (T2D) is associated with intestinal barrier dysfunction and dysbiosis, implying the potential targets for T2D therapeutics. Andrographolide was reported to have several beneficial effects on diabetes and its associated complications. However, the protective role of andrographolide, as well as its underlying mechanism against T2D, remains elusive. Herein, we reported that andrographolide enhanced intestinal barrier integrity in LPS-induced Caco-2 cells as indicated by the improvement of cell monolayer barrier permeability and upregulation of tight junction protein expression. In addition, andrographolide alleviated LPS-induced oxidative stress by preventing ROS and superoxide anion radical overproduction and reversing glutathione depletion. In line with the in vitro results, andrographolide reduced metabolic endotoxemia and strengthened gut barrier integrity in db/db diabetic mice. We also found that andrographolide appeared to ameliorate glucose intolerance and insulin resistance and attenuated diabetes-associated redox disturbance and inflammation. Furthermore, our results indicated that andrographolide modified gut microbiota composition as indicated by elevated Bacteroidetes/Firmicutes ratio, enriched microbial species of Akkermansia muciniphila, and increased SCFAs level. Taken together, this study demonstrated that andrographolide exerted a glucose-lowering effect through strengthening intestinal barrier function and increasing the microbial species of A. muciniphila, which illuminates a plausible approach to prevent T2D by regulating gut barrier integrity and shaping intestinal microbiota composition.

Structure-based design of human pancreatic amylase inhibitors from the natural anthocyanin database for type 2 diabetes.

Human Pancreatic Amylase (HPA) is an important target for prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes. Acarbose is a currently available drug acting as a HPA inhibitor, but its gastrointestinal side-effects cannot be neglected. Thus, developing novel HPA inhibitors with no side-effects is of great importance. Herein, we adopted a structure-based design approach and discovered a potent HPA inhibitor, malvidin 3-O-arabinoside (M3A), from the natural anthocyanin database. We identified M3A as an effective HPA inhibitor through virtual screening, enzyme activity and enzyme kinetic assays. We reported the structure and activity relationships as both the anthocyanidin core and glucosyl group affected the HPA inhibitory effect of anthocyanins. Molecular dynamics studies indicated that the HPA inhibition of M3A occurred via its binding to the HPA key catalytic residues Arg195 and Asp197 through stable hydrogen bonding. In addition, M3A was found to reduce α-helix fractions and increase ß-sheet fractions in CD spectrometry. Further in vivo studies showed that M3A significantly ameliorated the postprandial blood glucose level. Taken together, our results provide new insights into the development of novel HPA inhibitors from natural sources as food supplements for type 2 diabetes.