Advances in pancreatic β-cell protective strategies / 中国药科大学学报

@#Pancreatic β cells, the only cells in the body that can synthesize and secrete insulin, can be damaged by a variety of pathological factors. Increasing attention has been paid to the studies of protecting pancreatic β cells in the treatment of diabetes. In this review, we highlight the studies that focus on enhancement of islet β cell function, reduction of islet β cell apoptosis, increase of islet β cell number and induction of islet β cell differentiation, providing novel targets and therapeutic strategies for the treatment of diabetes.

Using herbal medicine to target the "microbiota-metabolism-immunity" axis as possible therapy for cardiovascular disease.

The gut microbiota harvests nutrients from the host while making possible the digestion of complex nutrients and regulating and balancing the immune and metabolic functions. The microbiota itself, and the dysbiosis of the gut flora, are correlated to the onset and progress of diabetes, obesity, and atherosclerosis. Herbal medicine (HM) plays a role in modulating gut microbiota and is widely used in the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and its associated conditions, such as diabetes, obesity, and hyperlipidemia. In this review, we focus on the relationship between the microbiota-metabolism-immunity (MMI) axis and CVD (including its risk factors) and the beneficial effects of HM to regulate this crosstalk. The insights may redefine our understanding of how HM works and spark a revolution in HM-based drug discovery.