Genus Paeonia monoterpene glycosides: A systematic review on their pharmacological activities and molecular mechanisms.

BACKGROUND: Genus Paeonia, which is the main source of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Paeoniae Radix Rubra (Chishao in Chinese), Paeoniae Radix Alba (Baishao in Chinese) and Moutan Cortex (Mudanpi in Chinese), is rich in active pharmaceutical ingredient such as monoterpenoid glycosides (MPGs). MPGs from Paeonia have extensive pharmacological effects, but the pharmacological effects and molecular mechanisms of MPGs has not been comprehensively reviewed. PURPOSE: MPGs compounds are one of the main chemical components of the genus Paeonia, with a wide variety of compounds and strong pharmacological activities, and the structure of the mother nucleus-pinane skeleton is similar to that of a cage. The purpose of this review is to summarize the pharmacological activity and mechanism of action of MPGs from 2012 to 2023, providing reference direction for the development and utilization of Paeonia resources and preclinical research. METHODS: Keywords and phrases are widely used in database searches, such as PubMed, Web of Science, Google Scholar and X-Mol to search for citations related to the new compounds, extensive pharmacological research and molecular mechanisms of MPGs compounds of genus Paeonia. RESULTS: Modern research confirms that MPGs are the main compounds in Paeonia that exert pharmacological effects. MPGs with extensive pharmacological characteristics are mainly concentrated in two categories: paeoniflorin derivatives and albiflflorin derivatives among MPGs, which contains 32 compounds. Among them, 5 components including paeoniflorin, albiflorin, oxypaeoniflorin, 6'-O-galloylpaeoniflorin and paeoniflorigenone have been extensively studied, while the other 28 components have only been confirmed to have a certain degree of anti-inflammatory and anticomplementary effects. Studies of pharmacological effects are widely involved in nervous system, endocrine system, digestive system, immune system, etc., and some studies have identified clear mechanisms. MPGs exert pharmacological activity through multilateral mechanisms, including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, inhibition of cell apoptosis, regulation of brain gut axis, regulation of gut microbiota and downregulation of mitochondrial apoptosis, etc. CONCLUSION: This systematic review delved into the pharmacological effects and related molecular mechanisms of MPGs. However, there are still some compounds in MPGs whose pharmacological effects and pharmacological mechanisms have not been clarified. In addition, extensive clinical randomized trials are needed to verify the efficacy and dosage of MPGs.

MicroRNA-4286 promotes esophageal carcinoma development by targeting INPP4A to evoke the JAK2/STAT3 pathway activation.

This study aimed to investigate the key roles of miR-4286 in regulating the development of esophageal carcinoma, as well as its regulatory mechanism. The expression of miR-4286 in esophageal carcinoma tissues and cells was determined. Effects of abnormal expression of miR-4286 cell viability, apoptosis, migration and invasion were further investigated. Furthermore, the potential target of miR-4286 was explored, and the regulatory relationship between miR-4286 and Janus tyrosine kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (JAK2/STAT3) pathway was elucidated. The results showed that miR-4286 was highly expressed in esophageal carcinoma tissues and cells. Overexpression of miR-4286 significantly promoted cell viability, migration and invasion. In addition, Inositol Polyphosphate 4-Phosphatase Type I Gene (INPP4A) was a target of miR-4286. The effects of miR-4286 inhibitor on cell proliferation, migration, invasion and apoptosis were significantly counteracted by knockdown of INPP4A concurrently. Furthermore, inhibition of miR-4286 suppressed the activation of JAK2/STAT3 pathway, which was reversed after miR-4286 inhibition and INPP4A knockdown at the same time. Our findings reveal that highly expression of miR-4286 may promote the development of esophageal carcinoma by targeting INPP4A to evoke the JAK2/STAT3 pathway activation. miR-4286 may serve as a promising target for esophageal carcinoma treatment.

SRAP analysis on genetic relationships of genotypes in the genus Malus Mill.

Thirteen sequence-related amplified polymorphism (SRAP) primers combined with polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were used to evaluate the genetic relationships among 24 genotypes of the genus Malus Mill. including Sect. Malus, Baccatus, Sorbomalus and Chloromeles. Out of 115 surveyed fragments, 107 (93.04%) were polymorphic. Coefficients of genetic similarity ranged from 0.538 to 0.868, with an average value of 0.720 between pairs of materials, which indicated the high degree of polymorphism within this species. Cluster analysis showed that all genotypes were divided into six groups. A dendrogram showed that some of the clustered genotypes were largely congruent for geographical distribution. The species in Sect. Malus, Sorbomalus and Chloromeles were separated to a great extent. However, the DNA patterns for some genotype groups did not demonstrate relative agreement in their pedigrees. In Sect. Sorbomalus, M. yunnanesis was independently separated, while M. prattii were clustered in group III with M. bhutanica, M. platycarpa and M. fusca classified into Ser. Kansuenses. Five species originated from the American region were dispersed into two groups within the dendrogram. The conflicts were reflecting their complex genetic backgrounds.