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This work was performed to determine the pharmacological effects of Bufei Jianpi granules on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and its metabolism in rats.Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), ranked as the third leading cause of death worldwide, is seriously endangering human health. At present, the pathogenesis of COPD is complex and unclear, and the drug treatment mainly aims to alleviate and improve symptoms; however, they cannot achieve the purpose of eradicating the disease. Bufei Jianpi granule (BJG) is a Chinese medicine developed by the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine for treating COPD. This study focuses on the pharmacological effects of BJG on COPD and its metabolism in rats, aiming to provide a scientific basis for developing BJG against COPD. A total of 72 Sprague–Dawley (SD) rats were divided into the blank group, model group, positive control group, and BJG groups (2.36, 1.18, and 0.59 g/kg). Except for the blank group, rats in other groups were administered lipopolysaccharide (LPS) combined with smoking for 6 weeks to establish the COPD model. After another 6 weeks of treatment, the therapeutic effect of BJG on COPD rats was evaluated. In the BJG (2.36 g/kg) group, the cough condition of rats was significantly relieved and the body weight was close to that of the blank group. Compared with the mortality of 16.7% in the model group, no deaths occurred in the BJG (2.36 g/kg) and (1.18 g/kg) groups. The lung tissue damage in the BJG groups was less than that in the COPD group. Compared with the model group, MV, PIF, PEF, and EF50 in the BJG groups were observably increased in a dose-dependent manner, while sRaw, Raw, and FRC were obviously decreased. Also, the contents of IL-6, IL-8, TNF-α, PGE2, MMP-9, and NO in the serum and BALF were lowered dramatically in all BJG groups. All indicators present an obvious dose–effect relationship. On this basis, the UPLC-QTOF-MS/MS technology was used to analyze characteristic metabolites in rats under physiological and pathological conditions. A total of 17 prototype and 7 metabolite components were detected, and the concentration of most components was increased in the COPD pathologic state. It is suggested that BJG has a pharmacological effect in the treatment of COPD and the absorption and metabolism of chemical components of BJG in rats exhibited significant differences under physiological and pathological conditions.

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) refers to one of the top 10 cancers in terms of morbidity and mortality globally, seriously influencing people’s lives. First recorded in Compendium of Materia Medica, liquidambaris fructus (LF) generates definite anti-liver tumor effect. However, its effective substances and mechanism remain to be elucidated.Methods: Serum pharmacochemistry and UPLC-QTOF-MS technologies were employed to explore the plasma of rats after intragastric administration of liquidambaris fructus extract (LFE) in order to find the active ingredients. Subsequently, DEN-induced rat liver cancer model was established with the purpose of investigating the anti-tumor activity of LFE from physiological, pathological and biochemical aspects. Finally, non-target metabonomics combined with q-PCR and Western blot methods were adopted for revealing the mechanism.Results: Totally 11 prototype blood transfused ingredients, including imperatorin and phellopterin were detected. LFE presents excellent impact on enhancing the quality of life, prolonging the life cycle, reducing inflammatory reaction, protecting hepatocytes, improving body immunity and killing liver tumor cells. Altogether 82 endogenous differential metabolites were found in metabonomics, suggesting that LFE can treat HCC by acting on key targets of PTEN/PI3K/Akt pathway and fatty acid metabolism. Further research also verified that LFE can upregulate the relative expression levels of PTEN, PDCD4, Caspase 9, Caspase 3, Bax and Bad as well as lower the relative expression levels of PI3K, AKT, VEGFA and Bcl-2.Conclusion: This study revealed the pharmacodynamic material basis of LFE in the treatment of HCC, and from the perspective of metabolomics proved that the effects of inhibiting the growth of tumor cells, promoting tumor cell apoptosis, reducing inflammatory reaction, protecting hepatocytes, improving the survival state of tumor rats, and prolonging the life cycle are related to its impact on PTEN/PI3K/Akt, fatty acid metabolism and other key signal pathways.

To investigate the possible molecular mechanism of total glycosides of Chishao (Radix Paeoniae Rubra) (TG-RPR) on proliferation and apoptosis of hepatocellular carcinoma cells.The proliferation of TG-RPR on HepG2 cells was detected using the 3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. The apoptosis of HepG2 cells was measured by annexin V-FITC/double staining. The phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome ten (PTEN) / phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) / protein kinase B (Akt) signaling pathway was evaluated by Western Blot and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).TG-RPR can up-regulation the expression of pro-apoptotic factors such as PTEN and BCL2-Associated X (Bax), down-regulation the expression of anti-apoptotic factors including B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2), PI3K, and Akt.TG-RPR significantly inhibits the proliferation of HepG2 cells in a dose-dependent manner and promotes apoptosis. These results demonstrated TG-RPR has significant inhibitory effect on HepG2 cells. These results identify a critical role of TG-RPR in proliferation and apoptosis of HepG2 cells via modulating PTEN/PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. TG-RPR may offer a promise as a potential pharmaceutical therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma.

Schizonepetae Spica (SS), a well-known traditional Chinese medicine has been widely used over thousands of years. In modern medicine, it has been adopted in the traditional prescription for cancer ...

Colitis-associated cancer (CAC) is the colorectal cancer (CRC) subtype that is difficult to treat, and shows high mortality. The consumption of flavonoid-rich fructus aurantii extracts (FAE) has been associated with multiple beneficial effects including anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties, but the potential effects on the colitis-associated carcinogenesis have not been thoroughly investigated. Recent clinical data show that, as yet, few agents clearly inhibited CRC development in long-standing inflammatory bowel diseases. Here, we identified that FAE showed significant efficiency to inhibit HT-29 cell proliferation. The potential of FAE in vivo was further evaluated in an AOM/DSS-induced CAC mouse model. Intriguingly, FAE diminished the number of polyps in mice. Furthermore, FAE inhibited CAC by regulating the gene expression of Notch/ NF-κB/IL-1 signaling pathways. Collectively, these results were indicative of FAE has great potential in CAC prevention and treatment.

Isolation and screening of different compounds from plant extracts are always the key for natural drug research, and the absorbed prototype components have been considered as potential active ingredients. UHPLC combined with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (Q-TOF-LC/MS) has been widely used in the research of natural drugs; however, we still need a more effective tool to compare and treat from a raw data. In this study, we provided a fast analytical method to measure the absorbed prototype components and their metabolites both qualitatively and quantitatively based on molecular networking (MN). For example, in Ardisia japonica (Thunb.) Blume, a total of eight absorbed prototype components in rat plasma were identified. Furthermore, pharmacokinetic study was also successfully performed on the eight absorbed prototype components in rat plasma. Our findings have provided important information on the investigation of A. japonica in vivo. More importantly, the MS network analysis pattern serves as an integral solution for qualitative and quantitative determination of phytochemical compounds in natural drugs.

Isolation and screening of different compounds from plant extracts are always the key for natural drug research, and the absorbed prototype components have been considered as potential active ingredients. UHPLC combined with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (Q-TOF-LC/MS) has been widely used in the research of natural drugs; however, we still need a more effective tool to compare and treat from a raw data. In this study, we provided a fast analytical method to measure the absorbed prototype components and their metabolites both qualitatively and quantitatively based on molecular networking (MN). For example, in Ardisia japonica (Thunb.) Blume, a total of eight absorbed prototype components in rat plasma were identified. Furthermore, pharmacokinetic study was also successfully performed on the eight absorbed prototype components in rat plasma. Our findings have provided important information on the investigation of A. japonica in vivo. More importantly, the MS network analysis pattern serves as an integral solution for qualitative and quantitative determination of phytochemical compounds in natural drugs.

Fructus Aurantii (FA) is a traditional herbal medicine that has been widely used for thousands of years in China and possesses a variety of pharmacological effects. FA is full of flavonoids. Several natural bioactive compounds of FA are involved in the treatment of various types of cancers, however, the beneficial effects of FA in hepatocarcinoma and the potential mechanisms of its therapeutic effects have not been fully explored. The present study investigates the anticancer role of flavonoids extracted from FA on human hepatoblastoma cell, HepG2. Eriocitrin, neoeriocitrin, narirutin, naringin, hesperidin, neohesperidin, hesperitin, poncirin, meranzin, nobiletin and tangeretin were identified in FAE. The FAE inhibit the proliferation of HepG2 cells in a dose-dependent manner. Metabolic alteration was detected by cell metabolomics and quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction. Flavonoids decreased the level of glycolysis rate-limiting enzymes gene expression in HepG2 cells. It was also observed that the PD-1 and PD-L1 gene expression level were decreased in FAE-treated cells. Collectively, these results suggest that flavonoid extracted from FA inhibits HepG2 cell proliferation by glycolysis and its downstream of PD-1/PD-L1 pathway. These findings suggest that the possible mechanism by which FA exerts its activities in the treatment of hepatocarcinoma and lays a foundation for further experiments and the development of a rational clinical application of FA, which still needs further in vivo investigation in animals and human beings.

A multifunctional integrated microfluidic biochip device was engineered to estimate the activity-toxicity and composition principle of medicine in a cell model in vitro. This biochip could be used for disease cells and healthy cells in two modules of “Yin-Yang” on the same chip for detecting the medicine efficacy-toxicity simultaneously, as well as adjust different gradient ratios of concentration through the Christmas tree structure in both “Yin-Yang” modules autonomously for detecting the best compatibility of medicine in maximum efficacy and minimal toxicity. In the applicability experiment, the best concentration of three chemical compounds including dinatin, diosmetin and cisplatin, were detected using the biochip and traditional 96-cell plate. Biochip assays showed perfect positive correlation compared with the results of traditional 96-cell plate, in addition presented advantages as less detection time and much lower price than the traditional 96-cell plate, which indicated the biochip is both convenient and feasible. Thus, the novel microfluidic chip-based multifunctional integrated system congregated the virtues of high throughput, rapid, sensitive, specific, cost-effective, and similar to the physical environment of the human body, which was especially suitable for the medicine efficacy-toxicity and compatibility evaluation.

As one of the major active components of Qizhiweitong (QZWT) prescription, corydalis alkaloid (CA) has been reported to have noticeable effect of anti-inflammation in pharmacological studies. However, the anti-inflammatory function and potential mechanism of CA in anti-inflammation remain to be clarified. Hence, the aim of this study was to investigate the anti-inflammation efficacy and potential mechanism of CA in anti-inflammation by metabonomic approach coupled with related gene analyzes in vivo and in vitro. Mice acute inflammation was induced by subcutaneous injection of formalin in hind paws, and evaluated the anti-inflammatory effect of CA via detecting the index of paw edema. The results indicated that CA has an anti-inflammatory effect on mice through alleviating the paw edema significantly. Moreover, metabolic profiling was performed by high performance liquid chromatography quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometer (HPLC-QTOF-MS) combined with multivariate data analysis, such as principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least-squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA). Thirteen metabolic targets (including lysophosphatidylcholine (LysoPC), choline, arachidonic acid, phosphodimethylethanolamine) and related pathways of the cholinergic anti-inflammatory and arachidonic acid (AA) metabolism were identified, Meanwhile, the relevant target genes, like iNOS, NF-κB, TNF-α, were detected and verified in vitro. The results indicated that CA has a good pharmacological effect of anti-inflammation through regulating multiple disordered targets and metabolic networks, which provides a theoretical basis for further research on CA. Furthermore, there is a great potential for the development of CA to be a new anti-inflammatory drug with high effective activities, little side effects and weak drug resistance.

Ethnopharmacological relevance Glycyrrhiza is the dry root and rhizome of the leguminous plant, Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch., Glycyrrhiza inflata Bat. or Glycyrrhiza glabra L., which was firstly cited in Shennong's Herbal Classic in Han dynasty and was officially listed in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia, has been widely used in China during the past millennia. Licoflavone is the major component of Glycyrrhiza with anti-ulcer activity. The present study is based on clarifying the anti-ulcer effect of licoflavone, aiming at elucidating the possible molecule mechanisms of its action for treating gastric ulcer rats induced by acetic acid. Materials and methods Rats were divided into 7 groups, and drugs were administered from on the day after the onset of gastric ulcer (day 3) until day 11 of the experiment once daily continuously. The plasma were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography combined with time-of-flight mass spectrometry (HPLC/ESI-TOF-MS), significant different metabolites were investigated to explain its therapeutic mechanism. Furthermore, quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis was performed to detect the expression of RNA in stomach tissue for verifying the above results. Results Licoflavone can effectively cure the gastric ulcer, particularly the middle dose group. According to the statistical analysis of the plasma different metabolites from each groups and the expression of genes in tissues, sixteen significant different metabolites, including histamine, tryptophan, arachidonic acid, phingosine-1-phosphate etc., contributing to the treatment of gastric ulcer were discovered and identified. In RT-PCR analysis, the results of the expression of RNA were corresponded with what we discovered. Conclusions Our study indicated licoflavone plays the role of treating gastric ulcer by regulating inflammation mediators and amino acid metabolism. We demonstrated that metabolomics technology combined with gene technology is a useful tool to search different metabolites and to dissect the potential mechanisms of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in treating gastric ulcer.

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is regarded as one of the major intractable diseases, which was cured mainly by chemotherapeutics in the clinical treatment at present. But it is still a vital mission for the current medical and researchers that hunting a natural medicine which have little side effects and high-efficiency against the NSCLC on account of the shortcomings on current drugs. Nepeta cataria L. plays an important role in anti-cancer treatment according to the reports which was recorded in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia of version 2015 and belongs to one of the Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Microfluidic chip technology is widely used in scientific research field due to its high-throughput, high sensitivity and low cost with the continuous progress of science and technology. In this study, we investigate the effect of total flavonoid extracted from Nepeta cataria L. (TFS) through human lung cancer cell line A549 based on the microfluidic device and Flow Cytometry. So we detected the mRNA expression of MicroRNA-126 (miR-126), VEGF, PI3K, PTEN and proteins expression respectively to explore the partial PI3K-AKT pathway molecular mechanisms through Quantitative Real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) and Western Blot. The results showed that TFS can disturb the expression of miR-126 and regulate the PI3K-AKT signaling pathway to meet the effect of anti-cancer. Taking all these results into consideration we can draw a conclusion that TFS may be used as a novel therapeutic agent for NSCLC in the near future.

Patrinia villosa (Thunb.) Juss. (PVJ) is described as pungent, bitter and slightly cold in Chinese medicine, and is associated with the large intestine, stomach and liver meridians. The preliminary experiments of our research team proved that PVJ total flavonoids have excellent inhibitory effects on liver cancer cells. The present experiment uses the UPLC-Q-TOF-MS technology and serum pharmacochemistry methods to analyze the chemical components in vitro and in vivo of PVJ antiliver tumors. A total of 14 chemical components were identified in the total flavonoids extract of PVJ, and it is mainly composed of flavonoids, flavonones, flavonols and phenolic acids. At the same time, seven prototypical components and seven metabolic components were detected in the drug-containing plasma. Hydrocaffeate and scutellarein are the phase I metabolites of caffeic acid and scutellarin, respectively. Sulfated apigenin, sulfated luteolin, sulfated kaempferol and methylated kaempferol are the II phase metabolites of apigenin, luteolin, kaempferol, respectively. The experiment provides a reference for the research and development of antitumor drug candidates, and provides a basis for revealing the bioactive components of PVJ and the antitumor mechanism.

Cirsium setosum (Willd.) MB. has been reported to exert significant anti-hemorrhagic, anti-inflammation, antimicrobial, sedative and detoxicating efficacy. It has been widely used to treat gastrointestinal bleeding, uterine bleeding, infectious hepatitis and cardiovascular disease in China. Recent studies have shown that flavonoids are the main active components in C. setosum. Nevertheless, to the best of our knowledge, there is no report concerning the simultaneous determinations and pharmacokinetics of constituents in C. setosum flavonoids in rat plasma. In this study, a rapid, sensitive and selective triple quadrupole liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry method was developed to determine eight analytes from the flavonoids of C. setosum in rat plasma. In addition, the pharmacokinetic study of the eight analytes in rats after oral administration of C. setosum flavonoids was successfully completed through this method. According to the pharmacokinetic parameters of the eight analytes, rutin, naringin, quercetin, acacetin, wogonin were the long-acting components of the C. setosum flavonoids, with long elimination time and high bioavailability. Of note, the method developed in this study fills a blank in pharmacokinetic studies of C. setosum flavonoids. Our findings provide valuable views on the understanding of the absorption mechanism of C. setosum flavonoids and their clinical efficacy.

A previously undescribed taraxerene-type triterpenoid possessing a class of rare natural taraxerene triterpenoid possessing skeleton with 14, 28-lactone, two undescribed oleane-type triterpenoids, and twenty-five known triterpenoids were isolated from Liquidambar formosana (Hamamelidaceae). The structures of undescribed compounds were determined on the basis of 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopic, HR-ESI-MS, and X-ray crystallographic data analysis. Among the isolates, ursolic acid, 3,6-dion-20(29)-lupen-28-oic acid, and 3-oxo-12α-hydroxyoleanan-28,13β-olide induced a significant apoptosis in SMMC7721 cells in the flow cytometer experiment with apoptosis rates of 94.5%, 57.3% and 89.9% at 8.0 μM, respectively, exhibiting near equivalent apoptosis-inducing abilities to that positive drug taxol (apoptotic rate of 71.2% at 1.4 μM). Mechanism studies suggested that these three compounds could regulate the mitochondrial pathway by up-regulating the expressions of pro-apoptotic factors (Bad and Bax) and activating caspase-3 and caspase-9 to induce apoptosis. Further studies indicated that the pro-apoptotic effects of these three compounds were associated with PI3K-AKT pathway inhibition. Taken together, these studies provide evidence that triterpenoids from L. Fructus are promising candidates for the hepatocellular carcinoma therapy.

As a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) with a usage history of over 2,000 years in China, Spica Schizonepetae possesses definite clinical activity in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, its active ingredients and mechanism of action remain unclear at present. The further exploration of its active components and underlying mechanism will provide a basis for the development of candidate anti-tumor drugs. Our previous study explored the chemical constituents of Spica Schizonepetae extract (SSE). On this basis, molecular networking technology was applied in analyzing the QTOF-MS/MS data of rat plasma after intragastric administration of SSE using the GNPS database platform. A total of 26 components were found, including 9 proterotype components and 17 metabolites, which revealed the potential active ingredients of SSE. Later, the Lewis lung cancer mouse model was established, and the inhibition rate and histopathological sections were used as the indicators to investigate the anti-tumor effect of SSE, whereas the body weight, survival rate, thymus index and spleen index served as the indicators to explore the pharmacological effects of SSE on improving mouse immunity. The results showed that SSE had comparable anti-tumor efficacy to cisplatin, which enhanced the immunity, improved the quality of life, and extended the survival time of lung cancer mice. Furthermore, human A549 lung tumor cells were selected to explore the mechanism of SSE in treating NSCLC based on cell metabonomics. After data mining by the MPP software, 23 differential endogenous metabolites were identified between SSE and tumor groups. Moreover, results of pathway enrichment analysis using the MetaboAnalyst 4.0 software indicated that these metabolites were mainly enriched in four metabolic pathways (p < 0.1). By adopting the network pharmacology method, the metabolic pathways discovered by cell metabolomics were verified against the ChEMBL, STITCH, UniProt and TCGA databases, and differences in the underlying mechanism between cells and humans were found. It was proved that SSE affected the metabolism of purine, arachidonic acid and histidine to exert the anti-tumor efficacy. Furthermore, the multi-target, multi-pathway, and immunoenhancement mechanism of SSE in anti-tumor treatment was revealed, which provided a scientific basis for new drug development and the rational application of Spica Schizonepetae in clinic.

Inflammation is an important immune response; however, excessive inflammation causes severe tissue damages and secondary inflammatory injuries. The long-term and ongoing uses of routinely used drugs such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) are associated with serious adverse reactions, and not all patients have a well response to them. Consequently, therapeutic products with more safer and less adverse reaction are constantly being sought. Radix Bupleuri, a well-known traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), has been reported to have anti-inflammatory effects. However, saikosaponins (SS) as the main pharmacodynamic active ingredient, their pharmacological effects and action mechanism in anti-inflammation have not been reported frequently. This study aimed to explore the anti-inflammatory activity of SS and clarify the potential mechanism in acute inflammatory mice induced by subcutaneous injection of formalin in hind paws. Paw edema was detected as an index to evaluate the anti-inflammatory efficacy of SS. Then, a metabolomic method was used to investigate the changed metabolites and potential mechanism of SS. Metabolite profiling was performed by high-performance liquid chromatography combined with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (HPLC-Q-TOF-MS). The detection and identification of the changed metabolites were systematically analyzed by multivariate data and pathway analysis. As a result, 12 different potential biomarkers associated with SS in anti-inflammation were identified, including nicotinate, niacinamide, arachidonic acid (AA), and 20-carboxy-leukotriene B4, which are associated with nicotinate and nicotinamide metabolism and arachidonic acid metabolism. The expression levels of biomarkers were effectively modulated towards the normal range by SS. It indicated that SS show their effective anti-inflammatory effects through regulating nicotinate and nicotinamide metabolism and arachidonic acid metabolism.

This study was designed to elucidate the chemical composition and anti-cancer effects of Schizonepeta tenuifolia’s ethanol extracts. Microfluidic technology was used in the study of Schizonepeta tenuifolia from 9 different geographic regions. The ethanol extracts were examined with HPLC to establish their Fingerprints in order to analyze the relationship between the spectrum and efficacy index through Grey Correlation software, and a rapid HPLC-Q-TOF/MS method was established. The result shows that chromatographic peaks of the 19, 6, 11, 16, 18th are the representative diosmetin, luteoloside, hesperidin, luteolin, and apigenin. The 10, 12, 20th peaks may be naringenin-7-O-glucuronide or quercitrin, rosmarinate or acetylcorynoline, and 5,7-dihydroxy-6,4-dimethoxy flavone. The major chemical composition of Schizonepeta tenuifolia was found to have the anti-lung-tumor effects. A new method was established for the quality control of traditional Chinese medicine.

Total flavonoids (TF), derived from the seeds of Oroxylum indicum (L.) Vent., possess many pharmacological functions. In the present study, H22-bearing mice and SMMC-7721 models were employed to evaluate the antitumor activity of TF and to and investigate its possible mechanisms both in vitro and in vivo. Cell viability was evaluated by MTT assay; cell apoptosis rate was analyzed via Annexin V-FITC/PI double staining by flow cytometer. Meanwhile, the expressions of apoptosis-related mRNA and proteins were evaluated by RT-PCR and Western blot analysis. The results revealed that TF could significantly inhibit the tumor growth, and the possible mechanism was related to the effect of inducing tumor cells apoptosis through PI3K/Akt/PTEN signaling pathway. This study has provided a theoretical basis for the further development and application of TF as antitumor drugs.

Two new C21 steroidal glycosides were isolated from Cynanchum otophyllum Schneid. Their structures were elucidated as qinyangshengenin-3-O-β-d-digitoxopyranoside (1) and rostratamine-3-O-β-d-cymaropyranosyl-(1 → 4)-β-d-digitoxopyranoside (2) on the basis of chemical and spectroscopic methods, including 1D and 2D NMR experiments.

One new and three known steroidal glycosides were isolated from the ethyl acetate extract of the roots of Cynanchum wallichii Wight. Their structures were characterized as qinyangshengenin-3-O-α-Lcymaropyranosyl-(1→4)-β-D-oleandropyranosyl-(1→4)-β-D-cymaropyranosyl-(1→4)-β-Ddigitoxopyranoside (1), otophylloside A (2), otophylloside B (3), and cynanauriculoside A (4).

A new alkaloid, speradine B (1), together with griseofulvin (2), epigriseofulvin (3), and isogriseofulvin (4), was purified from the extracts of Penicillium dipodomyicola isolated from Clerodendrum inerme, a tree from the intertidal zone of Nanhai. Their structures were elucidated on basis of extensive spectroscopic analysis.

Four steroids were isolated from the ethyl acetate extract of the roots of Cynanchum otophyllum. Their structures were identified as qinyangshengenin-3-O-β-D-oleandropyranosyl-(1→4)-β-D-oleandropyranosyl-(1→4)-β-D-cymaropyranosyl-(1→4)-β-D-cymaropyranoside (1), gagamine (2), otophylloside B (3), and caudatin (4). Compound 1 is a new steroidal glycoside, and the structures of these compounds were established on the basis of chemical and spectroscopic methods.

In order to further clarify the rational use of different medicinal parts of Schizonepeta, microfluidic technology was used in this study to investigate the differences in drug efficacy against lung cancer in vitro. The ethanol extracts were examined with HPLC to establish their fingerprints in order to analyze the relationship between the spectrum and efficacy index through Grey Correlation software, and a rapid HPLC-Q-TOF/MS method was established. The result in vitro shows that the effect and components of different medicinal parts had a certain differences, and apoptosis and necrosis rate from big to small in turn is leaf, flower, root, stem. The chromatographic peaks of the 26, 12, 2, 6 and 15th are the luteolin, icynaroside, rosmarinic, caffeic acid, and hesperidin, while the 20 and 10th may be dan phenolic acid L and benzoic acid. On the one hand, preliminary study reflects that the root of Schizonepeta tenuifolia may be developed into the medicinal parts in future. On the other hand, the major chemical composition of S. tenuifolia was found to have the anti-lung-tumor effects. This new method was established for the quality control and the rational use of different parts of traditional Chinese medicine.

Ethnopharmacological relevance Metabolomics is the comprehensive assessment of endogenous metabolites of a biological system in a holistic context, and its property consists with the global view of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). Shuihonghuazi Formula (SHHZF) has been used for liver cancer early treatment in clinical for more than thirty years, but its mechanism remains unclear completely. This paper was designed to explore the therapeutic effects of SHHZF on liver cancer and its metabolomic characters. Materials and methods All the rats were given diethylnitrosamine (DEN) at the dosage of 70 mg/kg for 14 weeks. From the 7th weeks, SHHZF was given to the rats which lasted for 10 weeks. Therapeutic effects of SHHZF was compared with that of cyclophosphamide (CTX). High performance liquid-chromatography/electrospray-ionization time of flight mass spectrometer (HPLC/ESI-TOF-MS) combined with pattern recognition approaches including principal component analysis (PCA), partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), was integrated to approximate the comprehensive metabolic signature and discover differentiating metabolites by Agilent MPP 12.1. The changes in metabolic profiling in plasma were restored to their baseline values after SHHZF treatment according to the PLS-DA score plots. Results The results indicated that 23 ions as “differentiating metabolites”. The alterations in those metabolites were associated with perturbations in fatty acid and bile acid metabolism, in response to liver cancer through immune and nervous system. And SHHZF could increase the uptake and utilization of linoleic acid and oleic acid, increase arachidonic acid-like substance content and enhance organism immunity of liver cancer rats. And it also could increase the translation from phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) to phosphatidylcholine (PC), linoleic acid metabolism and inhibits abnormal metabolism of bile acid. Conclusions The mechanism of therapeutic effects of SHHZF on liver cancer by adjusting the activities of PE N-methyl transferase (PEMT), Lysophospholipase D, methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) and lysophospholipase was elucidated by the method of metabonomics for the first time.

Glycyrrhiza, commonly known as licorice, is a herbal medicine that has been used for thousands of years. Licorice contains multiple flavonoids, which possess a variety of biological activities. On the basis of the anti-inflammatory effects of licorice flavonoids, the potential mechanism of action was investigated via a plasma metabolomics approach. A total of 9 differential endogenous metabolites associated with the therapeutic effect of licorice flavonoids were identified, including linoleic acid, sphingosine, tryptophanamide, corticosterone and leukotriene B4. Besides classical arachidonic acid metabolism, metabolism of sphingolipids, tryptophan and fatty acids, phospholipids synthesis, and other pathways were also involved. The multi-pathway integrated adjustment mechanism of licorice flavonoid action may reduce side effects in patients, along with any anti-inflammatory functions, which provides a foundation for identifying and developing novel, high-potential natural drugs with fewer side effects for clinical application.

Background: Oroxin B (OB) is one of flavonoids isolated from traditional Chinese herbal medicine Oroxylum indicum (L.) Vent. Recent studies suggest that flavonoids have obvious anti-liver tumors effect, but the precise molecular mechanism is still unclear. Objective: The current study was performed to investigate the antitumor effects of OB on human hepatoma cell line SMMC-772 and explore the part of molecular mechanisms in this process. Materials and Methods: MTT method, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling assay and flow cytometry were utilized to detect the inhibition of proliferation and the apoptosis after treating OB in of SMMC-7721 cells. The mRNA and proteins expressions of COX-2, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K), p-AKT, and PTEN were measured by a real-time polymerase chain reaction and Western Blot method. Results: The results showed that OB inhibited proliferation of SMMC-7721 cell in a dose-dependent manner, and induced its apoptosis. Moreover, OB unregulated PTEN and downregulated COX-2, VEGF, p-AKT, and PI3K. Conclusion: Our results demonstrated that OB significantly inhibits proliferation and induce apoptosis, which may be strongly associated with the inhibiting COX-2/VEGF and PTEN/PI3K/AKT pathway signaling pathway in SMMC-7721 cells, OB potentially be used as a novel therapeutic agent for liver cancer. SUMMARY OB (Oroxin B) is one of the effective flavonoid components of traditional Chinese medicine O. indicum (L.)OB can inhibite the proliferation and promoted apoptosis of the human hepatoma cell line SMMC 7721OB plays a role of antitumor effect may to regulate COX 2/VEGF and PTEN/PI3K/AKT pathways directly or indirectly. Abbreviations used: OB: Oroxin B; MTT: 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2-H-tetrazolium bromide; COX-2: cyclooxygenase-2; PI3K: phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase; PTEN: Phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome ten; VEGF: Vascular endothelial growth factor; RT-PCR: Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction; DAPI: Diamidino 2 phenylindole; PBS: Phosphate buffer saline; FITC: Fluorescein isothiocyanate; PI: Propidium Iodide; RIPA: Radio immunoprecipitation assay lysis buffer; PMSF: Phenylmethanesulfonyl fluoride; PAGE: Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis.

Qizhiweitong particles (QZWT) which is derived from the Sinisan decoction in Shang Han Za Bing Lun, composed of Bupleurum chinenis, Paeonia obovata, Citrus aurantium L., Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch., Cyperus rotundus and Rhizoma Corydalis is a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) treating gastrointestinal diseases. It have been used in clinical for years. It have been used in clinical for years. According to previous research, Bupleurum chinenis, Citrus aurantium, Cyperus rotundus in QZWT play the role of promoting gastric peristalsis, which consist of complex chemical constituents. The aim of this study is to probe the multiple effective components with gastrointestinal prokinetic efficacy in QZWT and investigate the multitarget integrated adjustment mechanism of QZWT curing atropine-induced gastrointestinal motility dysfunction mice.One hundred and thirty two male mice were randomly divided into 11 groups, including control group, model group, Domperidone group, Mosapride group, QZWT group and six components groups. With gastric retention rate, rate of small intestine propulsion, serum content of GAS and MTL as indexes to evaluate the curing effect on gastrointestinal movement disorders caused by atropine in mice. A serum metabonomics method based on the ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTOF-MS) had been established to investigate the mechanism of QZWT and these components, and PCA and PLS-DA have been used to distinguish different groups and found potential biomarkers.Four components from six present good prokinetic effects, including Bupleurum Polysaccharide, Citrus aurantium flavonoid, Citrus aurantium essential oil and Cyperus rotundus flavonoids. These components and QZWT regulate 5 potential biomarkers in the body, and primarily involved in 5 metabolic pathways. These potential biomarkers possess direct or indirect connections, each biomarker regulated by multiple components, each component adjusting multiple targets, and QZWT is nearly the sum of its components.This experiment deepened our understanding of insufficient gastrointestinal dynamics, confirmed that QZWT treating gastrointestinal disorders was through multicomponent, multitarget ways. These results fully reflect the multiple targets synergy characteristics of TCM.

To optimize conditions for extracting total flavonoids from Schizonepeta tenuifolia by the method of analytical hierarchy process with the correlation method of dose-effect.Take the amount and concentration of ethanol,the extraction time and times as examine factors, with the inhibition rate of Caco-2 human cloning colonic cancer cell as index to optimize the optimum conditions of total flavonoids from Schizonepeta tenuifolia by orthogonal experiment design, and analyze the Pearson correlation coefficient between the total flavonoids content, hesperidin content, extraction rate and pharmacodynamics indexes through SPSS 19.0 software to determine the dose-effect comparative indicators, and then analytic hierarchy process is adopted to define the weight coefficients range of the content of total flavonoids and hesperidin.The best extraction process conditions were as follows:15 times the amount of 75% ethanol, water circumfluence extracting for 3 times,each time for 2 hours; The weight coefficient ranges of the content of total flavonoids and hesperidin were 0.7500-0.9000 and 0.1000-0.2500 respectively.Using the comprehensive scores of the content of total flavonoids and hesperidin, which is calculated by weight coefficient ranges that based on the analytical hierarchy process,to replace the inhibition rate as the indicator to optimize the optimum extraction process is scientific and reasonable. This optimization process is simple and practical,which provides a new method for selecting the best extraction indicators to get effective ingredients from traditional Chinese medicine.

To establish the HPLC fingerprint of flavonoids of Phyllanthi Fructus from different habitats.HPLC method was adopted. The flavonoids composition of Phyllanthi Fructus from 10 different habitats was determined on an Agilent C, chromatographic column with 0. 5% formic acid water (A)-acetonitrile (B) as the mobile phase in gradient elution under the wavelength of 254 nm. The HPLC fingerprints of flavonoids composition of Phyllanthi Fructus were established to evaluate the qualitiy of them.The HPLC fingerprints of flavonoids composition of Phyllanthi Fructus from 10 different habitats were established. 18 common peaks were found and the similarities of them were more than 0. 90 except the ones from Guangxi and Guangdong.The method is simple, accurate and repeatable. It can be used for research and quality control of the effective components in Phyllanthi Fructus.

Background: Fructus Aurantii (FA) derived from the dried, and unripe fruit of Citrus aurantium L. is one of the commonly used traditional Chinese medicines to treat gastrointestinal motility dysfunction diseases. According to the literature research, FA flavonoids (FAF) are important active ingredients of FA promoting gastrointestinal motility, but the exact material basis and mechanism of action are still not very clear. Objective: This experiment was designed to illustrate the material basis of FAF promoting gastrointestinal motility and explore the mechanism of action from an organic and inorganic combination point of view. Materials and Methods: In this experiment, high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method was used to analyze the composition and content of FAF. Based on the prominent prokinetic effect of FAF on mice, the mechanism of action was speculated through a combination of HPLC coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (HPLC-QTOF-MS) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Results: With the method of HPLC, ten dominating components of FAF including neoeriocitrin, narirutin, rhoifolin, naringin, hesperidin, neohesperidin, neoponcirin, naringenin, hesperetin, and nobiletin accounting for more than 86% of FAF were identified. Combined HPLC-QTOF-MS with ICP-MS, the endogenous substances with difference in the blood of mice were analyzed, in which 4-dimethylallyltryptophan, corticosterone, phytosphingosine, sphinganine, LysoPC (20:4(5Z, 8Z, 11Z, 14Z)), LysoPC(18:2 (9Z, 12Z)), and Ca2+, Mg2+, Zn2+ metal ions had significant changes, involving tryptophan metabolism, corticosterone metabolism, sphingolipid metabolism, and other pathways. Conclusion: The results preliminarily elaborated the mechanism of FAF promoting gastrointestinal motility from an organic and inorganic point of view, which provide valuable information for researching and developing new multi-component Chinese medicine curing gastrointestinal underpower associated diseases. SUMMARY Fructus Aurantii flavonoids are one of the main components of Fructus Aurantii that possess prominent gastrointestinal motility promoting efficacyThe mainly material basis of Fructus Aurantii flavonoids promoting gastrointestinal motility were neoeriocitrin, narirutin, rhoifolin, naringin, hesperidin, neohesperidin, neoponcirin, naringenin, hesperetin, and nobiletinFructus Aurantii flavonoids can regulate the content of 4-dimethylallyltryptophan, corticosterone, phytosphingosine, sphinganine, LysoPC (20:4(5Z, 8Z, 11Z, 14Z)), LysoPC.(18:2(9Z, 12Z)) and Ca2+, Mg2+, Zn2+-metal ions, through tryptophan metabolism, corticosterone metabolism, sphingolipid metabolism, and other pathways to present its gastrointestinal motility promoting efficacy. Abbreviations used: FA: Fructus Aurantii; FAF: Fructus Aurantii flavonoids; HPLC: High performance liquid chromatography; HPLC-QTOF-MS: High performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry; ICP-MS: Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry; PCA: Principal components analysis; CG: Control group; FAFLG: Low-dosage group of Fructus Aurantii flavonoids; FAFMG: Middle-dosage group of Fructus Aurantii flavonoids; FAFHG: High-dosage group of Fructus Aurantii flavonoids; DPG: Domperidone group.

Two new C21 steroidal glycosides were isolated from Cynanchum wallichii Wight. Their structures were elucidated as caudatin-3-O-β-d-glucopyranosyl-(1 → 4)-β-d-oleandropyranosyl-(1 → 4)-β-d-cymaropyranosyl-(1 → 4)-β-d-digitoxopyranoside (1) and caudatin-3-O-β-d-glucopyranosyl-(1 → 4)-β-d-cymaropyranosyl-(1 → 4)-β-d-oleandropyranosyl-(1 → 4)-β-d-cymaropyranosyl-(1 → 4)-β-d-digitoxopyranoside (2) by spectroscopic methods including 1D and 2D NMR experiments.

To optimize the extraction technology of total flavonoids with antineoplastic activities in Juglans mandshurica, and explore the correlation between total flavonoids and pharmacodynamics indicators.The quantity of antineoplastic components, ratio of extraction and cell inhibition rate were taken as the comprehensive indexes to optimize the main factors that influence the extraction of effective components by orthogonal experiment design. SPSS 17.0 software was used to analyze the Pearson correlation between effective components and pharmacodynamics indexes.The best extracting condition of total flavonoids were as follows: the ratio of 60% ethanol to Juglans mandshurica was 20: 1, extracting for 3 times, each time for 2 hour at 70 degrees C. Flavonoids extraction yield and cell inhibition rate was positively related in the straight line.This study provides a new insight into the optimization of extraction technology for traditional Chinese medicine, and lays a safe and reliable experimental basis for the clinical application of Juglans mandshurica.

To establish the chromatography-efficacy relation method for analyzing the anti-inflammatory activity of Qizhi Weitong particles, in order to lay a foundation for quality control and pharmacodynamic evaluation of traditional Chinese medicine compounds.On the basis of a full-time multi-wavelength fusion fingerprint of Qizhi Weitong particles, the latin hypercube sampling was used to divide six herbs in Qizhi Weitong particles into groups of different proportions to determine their inhibition ratios of TNF-alpha, IL-6 and NO released by LPS-induced RAW264. 7 cells. Pharmaeodynamic data and chemical information of HPLC fingerprints of each group were analyzed with the gray correlation method to get the anti-inflammatory effect of each chromatographic peak, and then fitted with BP neural network to establish the chromatography-efficacy relation.There were 25 peaks closely related to the anti-inflammatory activity. With the 25 peaks as input items, the 3-BP network was adopted to establish the neural network model for anti-inflammatory effect of Qizhi Weitong particles.With an error of less than 7%, the model could better fit with the complicated non-linear relation of the compound, and applied in studying the chromatography-efficacy relation. In this study on the chromatography-efficacy relation, a new method is established to evaluate the anti-inflammatory activity of Qizhi Weitong particles. It is of practical significance as an effective approach for controlling quality and exploring the material basis for efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine compounds.

To control the quality of Qizhiweitong granules with the all-time multi-wavelength fusion fingerprint quantification as the major technique.Agilent TC-C18 (4.6 mm x 250 mm, 5 microm) chromatographic column was adopted, with 0.02% formic acid water-acetonitrile as the mobile phase for linear gradient elution. The flow rate was 1 mL x min(-1), column temperature was 30 degrees C, and detector wavelength was 230, 254, 283 nm. Matlab was adopted for all-time multiple-wavelength fusion for data in dif format.A good relationship was shown for albiflorin in 56.5-452 mg x L(-1) (r = 0.999 8), paeoniflorin in 107-856 mg x L(-1) (r = 0.999 8), licorice glycoside in 73.4-687 mg x L(-1) (r = 0.999 8), naringin in 109-872 mg x L(-1) (r = 0.999 8), neohesperidin in 48.0-384 mg L(-1) (r = 0.999 8), and glycyrrhizic acid in 38.6-308 mg x L(-1) (r = 0.999 8), with recoveries of 0.999 8.The method is simple, accurate and highly reproducible, and can provide basis for quality control of Qizhiweitong granules.

To investigate the inhibitory effects of flavonoids of Polygoni Orientails Fructus on cell cycle and apoptosis of human hepatoma cell line SMMC-7721.MTT method was used to study the inhibitory rate and time-dose relationship of flavonoids on SMMC-7721. Flow cytometry PI staining and Annexin V-EGFP/PI double staining were used to measure the DNA concentration and apoptosis rate in SMMC-7721.Flavonoids of Polygoni Orientails Fructus had obvious inhibitory effect and with good linear relationship between time and dose. Flavonoids of Polygoni Orientails Fructus could regulate the G1/S transition in hepatoma cell, which could make the cell in S phase arrest, result in the accumulation of cells in S phase, blocked DNA synthesis and replication of cells, blocked tumor cells into the G2/M phase, so as to restrain the proliferation of tumor cells and induce the apoptosis of SMMC-7721 cells. And this inductive effect showed obvious time-dose-effect relationship.The flavonoids of Polygoni Orientails Fructus could inhibit the hepatoma cell line SMMC-7721 in vitro by inhibiting cell proliferation and inducing apoptosis of the cell in a time-dose dependence maner.

Aim of the study This study aimed to develop a specific HPLC–MS method for simultaneous quantification of four flavones of Glycyrrhiza in rat plasma after oral administration and to describe the pharmacokinetics of four flavones in rat plasma. Materials and methods A simple, sensitive and selective method for simultaneous determination of four flavones of Glycyrrhiza in rat plasma, i.e., liquiritin, isoliquiritin, liquiritigenin, and isoliquiritigenin, by high performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC–MS) with negative electrospray ionization mode, was developed and validated. The method was applied to investigate the pharmacokinetics of four flavones in rat plasma after oral administration of Glycyrrhiza flavones. Chromatographic separation was accomplished on an Agilent TC-C18 column (4.6 mm×250 mm, and 5 μm), with gradient elution by using a mixture of methanoic acid (A) and acetonitrile (B) as the mobile phase at a flow rate of 0.8 mL/min. Results The calibration curves for four flavones had good linearity higher than 0.997 in the measured range. Relative standard deviations (RSDs) of the intra- and inter-day precision at different levels were all less than 4.8%. The pharmacokinetic profile of four flavones in rat plasma was fitted with a two-compartment model detected by a simple, rapid and accurate HPLC–MS method. Time (h) to reach peak concentration (μg/mL) of liquiritin (2.69±0.04), isoliquiritin (10.16±0.02), liquiritigenin (2.83±0.02), and isoliquiritigenin (0.28±0.01) was 2.02±0.23, 1.97±0.20, 0.48±0.02, and 1.93±0.36, respectively. The distribution and elimination half-life (h) and area under the concentration–time curve (μg/mL–h) from t=0 to last time of liquiritin, isoliquiritin, liquiritigenin, and isoliquiritigenin were 1.02±0.48/2.27±0.53/16.97±0.43, 2.04±1.01/2.38±0.80/69.20±5.24, 0.35±0.10/4.26±0.16/14.83±0.11, and 1.18±0.32/3.04±0.22/2.10±0.09, respectively. Isoliquiritin presented the phenomenon of double peaks and the others appeared together in a single and plateau absorption phase. Isoliquiritigenin had the lowest oral bioavailability because of Cmax and AUC0−∞. Liquiritigenin had the fastest absorption and distribution rate and the lowest elimination rate according to Tmax, t1/2α, and t1/2β. Conclusions This paper first reported on identification and determination of four flavones of Glycyrrhiza in rat plasma and their respective pharmacokinetic characteristics. The results provided a meaningful basis for better understanding the absorption mechanism of Glycyrrhiza and evaluating the clinical application of this medicine.

To study the purification technology of TGP from Paeonia lactiflora by ethanol gradient combined with resin processing and determine the optimum technological conditions and parameters.Using orthogonal test design to investigate the effect of ethanol gradient treatment on the content of TGP. Moreover, from the static and dynamic adsorption nine types of macroporous adsorption resin were evaluated to select the best resin type and the optimum separation and purification conditions.The best technology of Paeonia lactiflora ethanol precipitation was concentration of 1 g crude drug/mL precipitated by 95% ethanol to 90% concentration and then frozen for 10 h. HPD300 resin was the optimal model for the separation and purification of TGP from Paeonia lactiflora, with 5BV of 50% ethanol eluenting and the ratio of herb to resin was 2:1 .This technology is suitable and advanced for industry production and it is simple and convenient, rapid, accurate, etc.