Search

Poria cocos (Schw.) Wolf (PC) is a well-known saprophytic fungus, and its sclerotium without the epidermis (PCS) is widely used in traditional Chinese medicine and as a functional food in many countries. PCS is normally collected from multiple geographical regions, but whether and how the quality of PCS correlates with where it grows have not been determined. This correlation could be significant both for quality control and optimum utilization of PCS as a natural resource. In this study, a qualitative fingerprint profiling method performed by ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) with diode array detection (DAD) combining quadrupole time-of-flight-mass spectrometry (QTOF-MS/MS) and a quantitative UHPLC coupled with triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (QqQ-MS/MS) approach were established to investigate whether and how the quality of PCS correlates with its collection location. A standard fingerprint of PCS was generated by median simulation of 25 tested samples collected from four main producing areas of China, and similarity analysis was applied to evaluate the similarities between the fingerprints of samples and the standard fingerprint. Twenty three common peaks occurring in the fingerprint were unequivocally or tentatively identified by UHPLC-QTOF-MS/MS. Meanwhile, principal component analysis (PCA), supervised orthogonal partial least squares-discriminate analysis (OPLS-DA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) were employed to classify 25 batches of PCS samples into four groups, which were highly consistent with the four geographical regions. Ten compounds were screened out as potential markers to distinguish the quality of PCS. Nine triterpene acids, including five compounds that played important roles in the clusters between different samples collected from the four collection locations, were simultaneously quantified by using the multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode of UHPLC-QqQ-MS/MS. The current strategy not only clearly expounded the correlation between quality and geographical origins of PCS, but also provided a fast, accurate and comprehensive qualitative and quantitative method for assessing the quality of PCS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In clinical practice polysaccharides from herbal medicines are conventionally prepared by boiling water extraction (BWE), while ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) has often been used instead employed in laboratory research due to its strong extraction ability and efficiency. However, if and how the polysaccharides obtained by UAE and BWE are comparable, and hence whether the UAE-based research is instructive for the actual usage of herbal polysaccharides still requires further evaluation. To address this issue, here we chemically analyzed and compared the UAE- and BWE-obtained polysaccharides from three herbal medicines, i.e., Ginseng Radix, Astragali Radix and Dendrobii Officinalis Caulis. Then, the spike recovery of two series of standard dextran and pullulan by UAE and BWE was tested. The results showed that the polysaccharides from the herbal medicines by UAE were quantitatively and qualitatively different with those by BWE. The powerful extraction ability and polysaccharide degradation caused by ultrasound collectively contributed to these differences. It was then revealed that not only the UAE conditions but also the polysaccharide structures could affect the extraction ability and polysaccharide degradation. Given these, we highly recommended that the effects of UAE on polysaccharides from herbal medicines should be first carefully considered before employing it in relevant chemical and pharmacological analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gastric cancer remains a major health problem worldwide. Natural products, with stronger antitumor activity and fewer side effects, are potential candidates for pharmaceutical development as anticancer agents. In this study, quercetin and curcumin were chosen for testing and were applied separately and in combination to human gastric cancer MGC-803 cells. The MTT assay was used to evaluate cell growth inhibition. Annexin V-FITC/PI was carried out to measure apoptosis rate. Flow cytometry was performed to analyze mitochondrial membrane potential levels. Western blots were applied to detect expression of cytochrome c, total and phosphorylated ERK and AKT. Combined treatment with curcumin and quercetin resulted in significant inhibition of cell proliferation, accompanied by loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm), release of cytochrome c and decreased phosphorylation of AKT and ERK. These results indicate that the combination of curcumin and quercetin induces apoptosis through the mitochondrial pathway. Notably, effect of combined treatment with curcumin and quercetin on gastric cancer MGC-803 cells is stronger than that of individual treatment, indicating that curcumin and quercetin combinations have potential as anti-gastric cancer drugs for further development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

"Dragon's blood" is the name given to a deep red resin obtained from a variety of plant sources. The resin extracted from stems of Dracaena cochinchinensis is one such source of "dragon's blood". It has a reputation for facilitating blood circulation and dispersing blood stasis. In traditional Chinese medicine, this resinous medicine is commonly prescribed to invigorate blood circulation for the treatment of traumatic injuries, blood stasis and pain. Modern pharmacological studies have found that this resinous medicine has anti-bacterial, anti-spasmodic, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, anti-diabetic, and anti-tumor activities, while it is also known to enhance immune function, promote skin repair, stop bleeding and enhance blood circulation. Various compounds have been isolated from the plant, including loureirin A, loureirin B, loureirin C, cochinchinenin, socotrin-4'-ol, 4',7-dihydroxyflavan, 4-methylcholest-7-ene-3-ol, ethylparaben, resveratrol, and hydroxyphenol. The present review summarizes current knowledge concerning the botany, phytochemistry, pharmacological effects, toxicology studies and clinical applications of this resinous medicine as derived from D. cochinchinenesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, reversal activities of Euphorbia factor L1 (EFL1) against ABCB1-mediated multidrug resistance (MDR) and apoptosis sensitization in K562/ADR cells are reported. EFL1 decreased the IC50 values of anticancer agents in K562/ADR cells over-expressing ABCB1. However, EFL1 did not affect the IC50 values of anticancer agents in sensitive K562 cells. Additionally, EFL1 increased the intracellular accumulation of rhodamine 123 and doxorubicin in K562/ADR cells without affecting their accumulation in K562 cells. Furthermore, EFL1 sensitized the apoptosis triggered by vincristine in K562/ADR cells via mitochondrial pathway, as confirmed by Annexin V-FITC/PI detection and western blot. At the same time, EFL1 did not influence the apoptosis induced by vincristine in K562 cells. Western blot results showed that EFL1 did not affect the phosphorylation level of AKT and ERK in K562 and K562/ADR cells. Finally, EFL1 did not down-regulate protein expression of ABCB1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]