Natural borneol enhances the anti-cerebral ischaemia efficacy of formononetin in MCAO/R rats by promoting its delivery in the brain.

Objectives Due to its high morbidity, high mortality, and high disability, stroke has been the first cause of death and the major cause of adult disability in China. Natural borneol has been widely utilized in Traditional Chinese Medicine to promote drug absorption. Formononetin is a natural isoflavonoid with potent neuroprotective activity but poor brain delivery. Methods This study aimed to screen the optimum proportion that natural borneol promotes formononetin entry into the brain, evaluate the anti-cerebral ischaemia efficacy of formononetin/natural borneol combination in middle cerebral artery occlusion/reperfusion model rats, and clarify the possible mechanism for natural borneol's promoting formononetin delivery in the brain. Key findings Our studies exhibited that natural borneol remarkably promoted formononetin entry into the brain when combined with formononetin in a 1 : 1 molar ratio and notably improved neuro-behavioural scores and reduced the infarct of middle cerebral artery occlusion/reperfusion model rats. This study further discovered that the enhanced anti-cerebral ischaemia effect resulted from natural borneol increasing the permeability of the blood-brain barrier to elevate formononetin concentration in the brain rather than the pharmacodynamic synergy or addition between formononetin and natural borneol. Conclusions The study provides a good strategy to screen drug combinations for the treatment of brain disease by combining natural borneol with other drugs.

[Possible pharmaceutical effect and active components in different parts of Eucommia ulmoides based on network pharmacology].

The difference in pharmacological activities and active components between leaves, barks and flowers of Eucommia ulmoides(EU) are still unclear. However, clarifying the differences in pharmacological effects of different parts of EU is of great significance for the development of EU products, and their corresponding active components provide basis for quality control of different parts of EU. Based on the chemical compositions of different parts of EU, integrated strategy of target prediction and target analysis of the compounds was used to investigate the difference in the pharmacological effects of leaves, barks and followers. The "component-target-function" association network was constructed to mine the specific material basis corresponding to specific efficacy of different parts of EU. In this study, the author found that EU may have the activities of anti-oxidation, neuromodulation, blood pressure regulation, myo-cardial expansion, and anti-apoptosis according to target prediction and function analysis. However, the effects of different parts of EU were different. Leaves were involved in the process of bone development such as osteoblast differentiation and bone mineralization in a specific way. In addition, the leaves may affect the process of bone development by regulating the metabolism of vitamin D and affecting the absorption of calcium. Leaves may also specifically act on estrogen and estradiol response processes where estrogen receptors were involved. Regarding its protective function for the liver, leaves may play a role by regulating vitamin A-related pathways. As compared with leaves, the specific pharmacological effects of barks may be related to the development of the urinary system. Flowers specifically participate in functions related to pain sensation, glutamate signaling pathway, and excitatory postsynaptic potential. Based on the hie-rarchical network of "component-target-pathway", we further found that specific activities of different parts of EU were inseparable from its specific chemical compositions. Phenylpropanoids, terpenoids and rings, iridoids, flavonoids and other components which are specific in leaves can target the specific effects of leaves, while the flavonoids in barks and the quinones in flowers may be the material basis for their respective specific effects. The prediction of the activities of different parts of EU provides a new basis for the focuses and differences in subsequent Eucommia product development. At the same time, the material basis research based on differential efficacy also provides a basis for the quality control of Eucommia differentiated products.

[Research advances in chemical constituents and pharmacological activities of different parts of Eucommia ulmoides].

To date, 205 compounds have been identified from different medicinal parts of Eucommia ulmoides, including lignans, iridoid terpenoids, phenols, flavonoids, terpenoids and steroids, polysaccharides and others. Their pharmacological effects include blood pressure-lowering, blood sugar-lowering, blood lipids-regulating, prevention of osteoporosis, anti-inflammation, liver protection, anti-cancer and so on. Their efficacy and mechanism from different parts are slightly different. In this paper, the chemical composition, pharmacological action and mechanism of different parts of E. ulmoides were systematically summarized, as well as its quality control and processing research, to provide theoretical basis for further rational development and utilization of E. ulmoides.

Preconcentration of nickel and cadmium by TiO2 nanotubes as solid-phase extraction adsorbents coupled with flame atomic absorption spectrometry.

TiO(2) nanotubes, a new nanomaterial, are often used in the photocatalysis. Due to its relatively large specific surface areas it should have a higher enrichment capacity. However, very few applications in the enrichment of pollutants were found. This paper described a new procedure to investigate the trapping power of TiO(2) nanotubes with cadmium and nickel in water samples as the model analytes and flame atomic absorption spectrometry for the analysis. The possible parameters influencing the enrichment were optimized. Under the optimal SPE conditions, the method detection limits and precisions (R.S.D., n=6) were 0.25 ngmL(-1) and 2.2% for cadmium, 1 ngmL(-1) and 2.6% for nickel, respectively. The established method has been successfully applied to analyze four realworld water samples, and satisfactory results were obtained. The spiked recoveries were in the range of 90.2-99.2% for them. All these indicated that TiO(2) nanotubes had great potential in environmental field.

Application of multiwalled carbon nanotubes treated by potassium permanganate for determination of trace cadmium prior to flame atomic absorption spectrometry.

In this study we investigated the enrichment ability of oxidized multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and established a new method for the determination of trace cadmium in environment with flame atomic absorption spectrometry. The MWCNTs were oxidized by potassium permanganate under appropriate conditions before use as preconcentration packing. Parameters influencing the recoveries of target analytes were optimized. Under optimal conditions, the target analyte exhibited a good linearity (R2=0.9992) over the concentration range 0.5-50 ng/ml. The detection limit and precision of the proposed method were 0.15 ng/ml and 2.06%, respectively. The proposed method was applied to the determination of cadmium in real-world environmental samples and the recoveries were in the range of 91.3%-108.0%. All these experimental results indicated that this new procedure could be applied to the determination of trace cadmium in environmental waters.

Rapid determination of phenolic compounds in water samples by alternating-current oscillopolarographic titration.

A rapid, simple and sensitive method was demonstrated for the determination of phenolic compounds in water samples by alternating-current oscillopolarographic titration. With the presence of sulfuric acid, phenol could be transferred into a nitroso-compound by reacting with NaNO2. The titration end-point was obtained by the formation of a sharp cut in the oscillopolarographic with infinitesimal NaNO2 on double platinum electrodes. The results showed that phenol concentration had an excellent linear relationship over the range of 4.82 x 10(-6)-9.65 x 10(-3) mol/L, the RSD of the proposed method was lower than 1.5%, and the spiked recoveries of three real water samples were in the range of 95.6%-106.9%.

[Study on effect of Tiaomaiyin injection on experimental arrhythmia].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of Tiaomaiyin injection on the experimental arrhythmia for analyzing its underlying mechanism in the treatment of cardiovascular disease. METHOD: Experimental animals anesthetized with 20% urethane (6 mL x kg(-1)) were evenly randomized into control group, positive control group, low-dose and high-dose Tiaomaiyin group. The rate of ventricular fibrillation (VF) chloroform-induced in mice, and the epoch of ventricular extrasystole (VE), ventricular tachycardia (VT),VF and cardiac arrest (CA), actonitine-induced in rats (1.0 microg x mL(-1) x min(-1)), and vabain-induced in guinea pigs (10 microg x mL(-1) x min(-1)), were detected respectively. The result loas converted into cumulative dosage of actonitine or vabain. In ischemia-reperfusion model in rats, the duration of arrhythmia and activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and malondialdehyde (MDA) were detected. RESULT: After venous injection of Tiaomaiyin, VF in mice was lower significantly (P < 0.01), VE, VT, VF in rats and VF in guinea pigs were lowered considerably (P <0.05). The duration of arrhythmia in ischemia-reperfusion model was reduced considerably (P < 0.05), and the activity of myocardial SOD was raised significantly (P <0.01). CONCLUSION: Tiaomaiyin shows the reduction of experimental arrhythmia and protect effect to ischemia-reperfusion injury of the heart, which indicates that the effect mechanism may have the relationship with inhabition of lipid peroxidation and damnification of the free radical.