The Effect of TCM-Induced HAMP on Key Enzymes in the Hydrolysis of AD Model Cells.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) process is characterized classically by two hallmark pathologies: ß-amyloid (Aß) plaque deposition and neurofibrillary tangles of hyperphosphorylated tau. Aß peptides play an important role in AD, but despite much effort the molecular mechanisms of how Aß contributes to AD remain unclear. The present study evaluated the effects of the active components of Epimedium, Astragalus and Radix Puerariae induced HAMP on key enzymes in the hydrolysis of APP in HT22 cells. The active components of Epimedium, Astragalus and Radix Puerariae could effectively up-regulate the expression of HAMP, alleviate the iron overload in the brain tissues of mice, significantly improve the learning and memory ability of AD, down-regulate the expression of Aß and reduce the deposition of SP in an APPswe/PS1ΔE9 transgenic mouse model of AD. HAMP and Aß25-35 induced HT22 cells are used as AD cell models in this study to investigate the effect of the compound consisting of the effective components of Epimedium, Astragalus and Pueraria on the key enzymes in the hydrolysis of APP. After the administration of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), the expression levels of ADAM10 and ADAM17 were increased while the expression level of BACE1 decreased. This indicates that TCM can promote the expression level of ADAM10 and ADAM17, inhibit the expression level of BACE1, thus further inhibiting the production of amyloid protein and reducing the production of Aß and SP. Compared with RNAi group, the expression level of ADAM10 and ADAM17 in Aß + RNAi group was decreased while the expression level of BACE1 increased. Compared with the Aß + RNAi group the expression level of ADAM10 and ADAM17 in the Aß + RNAi + TCM group was increased while the expression level of BACE1 was decreased. The present study indicated the effects of the active components of Epimedium, Astragalus and Radix Puerariae may alleviate AD by up-regulating the expression of HAMP, thus reducing brain iron overload, promoting the expression of ADAM10 and ADAM17, inhibiting the expression of BACE1, and reducing the deposition of Aß.

Effect of calycosin in reducing cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury in rats by regulating cytochrome C/apoptotic protease activating factor-1 apoptosis signal pathway / 解剖学报

Objective To investigate the effect of calycosin on cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury and its mechanism. Methods Forty SPF male SD rats were randomly divided into sham group, model group, calycosin group (20 mg/kg), nimodipine group (0.7 mg/kg, positive control group). The occlusion model of middle cerebral artery in rats was established by modified thread occlusion method, and the environment of cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury was simulated in vivo. Zea longa score was used to detect the neurological deficit of rats after ischemia-reperfusion injury, 2, 3, 5-triphenyltetranitrogen (TTC) was used to detect the volume of cerebral infarction, HE staining was used to detect the pathomorphological changes of nerve cells, Nissl staining was used to observe the changes of nissl bodies, TUNEL staining was used to detect the apoptosis of nerve cells, Western blotting was used to detect the expression of cytochrome C (Cyt C), apoptotic protease activating factor-1 (Apaf-1), Caspase-9 and Caspase-3. Results Compared with the sham group, the neurological deficit symptoms in the model group were significant (P<0.05), the volume of cerebral infarction increased significantly (P<0.05). Under the microscope, it was found that the nerve cells showed contraction of cell body, hyperchromatic and pyknosis of nucleus and poor growth state, the expression of nissl body reduced significantly (P < 0.05), the apoptotic nerve increased significantly (P< 0.05), the expression of Cyt C, Apaf-1, Caspase-9 and Caspase-3 increased significantly (P<0.05). Compared with the model group, the neurological deficit symptoms of calycosin group and nimodipine group reduced significantly (P<0.05), the volume of cerebral infarction reduced significantly (P<0.05). Under the microscope, the damage of nerve cells reduced significantly, the expression of nissl body increased significantly (P<0.05), the apoptotic nerve reduced significantly (P<0.05), the expression of Cyt C, Apaf-1, Caspase-9 and Caspase-3 decreased significantly (P<0.05). Conclusion Calycosin can significantly inhibit the apoptosis of nerve cells and reduce the cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury. Its mechanism of action is related to the effective regulation of Cyt C/Apaf-1 apoptosis signaling pathway by calycosin.

Effect of Huangqintang on Oxidative Stress and Ferroptosis-related Indexes GSH-Px4，P53，SLC7A11 in Ulcerative Colitis Mice / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Objective:To explore the possible mechanism of Huangqintang in treating ulcerative colitis （UC）. Method:The animal model of UC was induced by dextran sodium sulfate （DSS）．The experimental animals were divided into control group， model group，Huangqintang low dose （4.55 g·kg^-1）， medium dose （9.1 g·kg^-1）， and high dose（18.2 g·kg^-1） groups. Intragastric administration was also given in the modeling process for 7 consecutive days. At the end of the 8th day， colon tissues were collected to measure colon length and mass， and calculate the colon mass index. Pathological changes were observed by hematoxylin-eosin （HE） staining. Serum iron content， superoxide dismutase （SOD）， glutathione （GSH）， catalase （CAT） and myeloperoxidase （MPO） were determined by biochemical assay. Western blot was used to detect the protein expression of glutathione peroxidase 4 （GSH-Px4）， long-chain acyl-CoA synthetase 4 （ACSL4） and ferritin heavy chain 1（FTH1）. The mRNA expression levels of tumor trotein 53 （P53） and solute carrier family 7 member 11 （SLC7A11） in colon tissues were detected by Real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction （Real-time PCR）. Result:The experimental studies showed that compared with normal group， serum MPO and iron content， ACSL4 protein level and relative P53 mRNA expression in the model group significantly increased （<italic>P</italic><0.05）， while serum SOD， CAT， GSH content， GSH-Px4， FTH1 relative protein expression level and relative SLC7A11 mRNA expression in the model group significantly decreased （<italic>P</italic><0.01）. Compared with model group， serum MPO and iron content， ACSL4 protein level and relative P53 mRNA expression significantly decreased （<italic>P</italic><0.05）， while serum SOD， CAT， GSH content， GSH-Px4， FTH1 relative protein expression level and relative SLC7A11 mRNA expression significantly increased （<italic>P</italic><0.05） after the intervention of Huangqintang， and the effect was most significant in the high-dose group （<italic>P</italic><0.05）. The results of general condition， colon length， colon mass index and HE staining showed that Huangqintang could relieve clinical symptoms and histopathological changes in UC mice. Conclusion:These results indicated that Huangqintang had therapeutic effect on ulcerative colitis mice， and its mechanism might be related to inhibiting the oxidative stress and ferroptosis.

Effect of active component compound of Epimedii Folium,Astragali Radix,and Puerariae Lobatae Radix on expression of ADAM17 in HT22 cells by mediating hepcidin / 中国中药杂志

Alzheimer's disease(AD) patients in China have been surging, and the resultant medical burden and care demand have a huge impact on the development of individuals, families, and the society. The active component compound of Epimedii Folium, Astragali Radix, and Puerariae Lobatae Radix(YHG) can regulate the expression of iron metabolism-related proteins to inhibit brain iron overload and relieve hypofunction of central nervous system in AD patients. Hepcidin is an important target regulating iron metabolism. This study investigated the effect of YHG on the expression of a disintegrin and metalloprotease-17(ADAM17), a key enzyme in the hydrolysis of β amyloid precursor protein(APP) in HT22 cells, by mediating hepcidin. To be specific, HT22 cells were cultured in vitro, followed by liposome-mediated siRNA transfection to silence the expression of hepcidin. Real-time PCR and Western blot were performed to examine the silencing result and the effect of YHG on hepcidin in AD cell model. HT22 cells were randomized into 7 groups: control group, Aβ25-35 induction(Aβ) group, hepcidin-siRNA(siRNA) group, Aβ25-35 + hepcidin-siRNA(Aβ + siRNA) group, Aβ25-35+YHG(Aβ+YHG) group, hepcidin-siRNA+YHG(siRNA+YHG) group, Aβ25-35+hepcidin-siRNA+YHG(Aβ+siRNA+YHG) group. The expression of ADAM17 mRNA in cells was detected by real-time PCR, and the expression of ADAM17 protein by immunofluorescence and Western blot. Immunofluorescence showed that the ADAM17 protein expression was lower in the Aβ group, siRNA group, and Aβ+siRNA group than in the control group(P<0.05) and the expression was lower in the Aβ+siRNA group(P<0.05) and higher in the Aβ+YHG group(P<0.05) than in the Aβ group. Moreover, the ADAM17 protein expression was lower in the Aβ+siRNA group(P<0.05) and higher in the siRNA+YHG group(P< 0.05) than in the siRNA group. The expression was higher in the Aβ+siRNA+YHG group than in the Aβ+siRNA group(P<0.05). The results of Western blot and real-time PCR were consistent with those of immunofluorescence. The experiment showed that YHG induced hepcidin to up-regulate the expression of ADAM17 in AD cell model and promote the activation of non-starch metabolic pathways, which might be the internal mechanism of YHG in preventing and treating AD.

Neuroprotective effects of the Buyang Huanwu decoction on functional recovery in rats following spinal cord injury.

BACKGROUND: The Buyang Huanwu decoction (BYHWD) is a traditional Chinese herbal prescription and has been used in China to treat spinal cord injury (SCI) for hundreds of years. Clinical trials have shown that BYHWD improves the outcome of SCI in clinical trials, but the mechanisms are not known. This study observed the neuroprotective effects of BYHWD on spinal nerve cells after SCI and investigated possible mechanisms. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty female Wistar rats were randomized equally to four groups treated by sham injury, SCI, BYHWD, or methylprednisolone (MP). The Basso, Beattie, and Bresnahan (BBB) score was used to evaluate hind-limb locomotor function. Neuron apoptosis was assessed by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling staining and caspase-3, Bax, and Bcl-2 mRNA and protein expression were evaluated by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction and Western blotting, respectively. RESULTS: In the sham group, walking was mildly abnormal after anesthesia but recovered completely in 2 days. The BBB score in the SCI model group was significantly different from that in the sham group. The BBB scores of rats in both the BYHWD and MP groups were significantly higher than scores of rats in the SCI group. BYHWD had an antiapoptosis effect, as shown by significant decreases in expression of caspase-3 and Bax and increase in Bcl-2 expression. CONCLUSION: BYHWD treatment restored hind-limb motor function of rats with SCI. The neuroprotective effect of BYHWD was associated with modulation of the expression of apoptosis-related proteins.

Age-related changes of brain iron load changes in the frontal cortex in APPswe/PS1ΔE9 transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer's disease.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) as a neurodegenerative brain disorder is a devastating pathology leading to disastrous cognitive impairments and dementia, associated with major social and economic costs to society. Iron can catalyze damaging free radical reactions. With age, iron accumulates in brain frontal cortex regions and may contribute to the risk of AD. In this communication, we investigated the age-related brain iron load changes in the frontal cortex of 6- and 12-month-old C57BL/6J (C57) and APPswe/PS1ΔE9 (APP/PS1) double transgenic mouse by using graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (GFAAS) and Perls' reaction. In the present study, we also evaluated the age-related changes of DMT1 and FPN1 by using Western blot and qPCR. We found that compared with 6-month-old APP/PS1 mice and the 12-month-old C57 mice, the 12-month-old APP/PS1 mice had increased iron load in the frontal cortex. The levels of DMT1 were significantly increased and the FPN1 were significantly reduced in the frontal cortex of the 12-month-old APP/PS1 mice than that in the 6-month-old APP/PS1 mice and 12-month-old C57 mice. We conclude that in AD damage occurs in conjunction with iron accumulation, and the brain iron load associated with loss control of the brain iron metabolism related protein DMT1 and FPN1 expressions.