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Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) has attracted lots of attention in preventing the clearance of plasma low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL‐C). PCSK9 inhibitors are developed to primarily reduce the cardiovascular risk by lowering LDL‐C level. Recently, a number of pleiotropic extrahepatic functions of PCSK9 beyond the regulation of cholesterol metabolism, particularly its effects on central nervous system (CNS) diseases have been increasingly identified. Emerging clinical evidence have revealed that PCSK9 may play a significant role in neurocognition, depression, Alzheimer's disease, and stroke. The focus of this review is to elucidate the functions of PCSK9 and highlight the effects of PCSK9 in CNS diseases, with the aim of identifying the potential risks that may arise from low PCSK9 level (variant or inhibitor) in the clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ethnopharmacological relevance Pulmonary fibrosis (PF) is a chronic, debilitating and often lethal lung disorder. Despite the molecular mechanisms of PF are gradually clear with numerous researchers’ efforts, few effective drugs have been developed to reverse human PF or even halt the chronic progression to respiratory failure. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), the main component of the medical practice used for more than 5000 years especially in China, often exerts wider action spectrum than previously attempted options in treating human diseases. Recent data have shown the anti-fibrotic benefits of the active ingredients from TCM in this field, which may represent an attractive source of the drug discovery against PF. Aim of the review This review summarizes the pre-clinical and clinical evidence on the benefits of TCM and their active ingredients, and provides a comprehensive information and reliable basis for the exploration of new treatment strategies of botanical drugs in the therapy of PF. Methods The literature information was obtained from the scientific databases on ethnobotany and ethno medicines (up to Aug 2016), mainly from the Pubmed, Web of Science and CNKI databases, and was to identify the experimental studies on the anti-fibrotic role of the active agents from TCM and the involved mechanisms. The search keywords for such work included: “lung fibrosis” or “pulmonary fibrosis”, and “traditional Chinese medicine”, “extract” or “herb”. Results A number of studies have shown that the active agents of single herbs and TCM formulas, particularly the flavonoids, glycosides and alkaloids, exhibit potential benefits against PF, the mechanisms of which appear to involve the regulation of inflammation, oxidant stress, and pro-fibrotic signaling pathways, etc . Besides, the processing methods for discovering TCM in treating PF were prospectively discussed. Conclusion These research work have shown the therapeutic benefits of TCM in the treatment of PF. However, more continued researches should be undertaken to clarify the unconfirmed chemical composition and regulatory mechanisms, conduct standard clinical trials, and evaluate the possible side effects. The insights provided in present review will be needed for further exploration of botanical drugs in the development of PF therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective This study was to explore the antifibrotic effect and the possible mechanism of total polysaccharides of Y upingfeng ( YPF- P) on bleomycin ( BLM)-induced pulmonary fibrosis in rats. Methods Pulmonary fibrosis was induced in Sprague- Dawley rats by BLM (5 mg/kg), killed 14 and 28 days after BLM administration by abdominal aorta exsanguination and removed the lungs. Lung coefficient was counted at the same time. Besides, H&E and Masson's trichrome staining for histopathological changes of lung tissues were observed. Additionally, western blotting and immunohistochemical staining techniques were used to detect expression of transforming growth factor-β1 ( TGF-β1), type I collagen ( Col- I) and α-smooth muscle actin (α- SMA). Finally, the levels of Col- I and hydroxyproline ( HYP) in lung tissues were also utilized. Key findings YPF- P alleviated the increase of lung coefficient induced by BLM instillation in pulmonary fibrosis rat, pathologic changes and collagen distribution were obviously ameliorated, while the increase of α- SMA-positive cells and TGF-β1 expression was prevented after YPF- P treatment. Moreover, the contents of HYP and Col- I were decreased in YPF- P group. Conclusions YPF- P had antifibrotic effect in experiment, which may reduce the synthesis and promote the deposition of Col- I via suppressing the increase of TGF-β1-mediated activation of myofibroblasts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• COVID-19 has led to serious death and lacks treatment strategies. • Lianhua Qingwen is a commonly used Chinese patent medicine to treat viral infection. • Lianhua Qingwen has antiviral, anti-inflammatory and immunoregulatory activities. • Lianhua Qingwen combined with conventional treatment obviously improved COVID-19. • Lianhua Qingwen can be a complementary strategy for treating COVID-19. An outbreak of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) which was infected by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is still spreading and has led to unprecedented health emergency over the world. Though no specific drug has been developed so far, emerging agents have been confirmed effective or potentially beneficial to restrain it. Lianhua Qingwen (LHQW) is a commonly used Chinese medical preparation to treat viral influenza, including in the fight against SARS in 2002–2003 in China. Recent data also showed that LHQW played a vigorous role in COVID-19 treatment. This review will elucidate the pre-clinical and clinical evidence of LHQW in lung protection and antiviral activities, and provide timely data delivery for the exploration of effective treatment strategies in the therapy of COVID-19. The research data were obtained from the academic databases (up to August 8, 2020) including Pubmed, CNKI and Web of Science, on ethnobotany and ethno medicines. The search keywords for screening the literature information were "virus", "COVID-19", or "SARS-CoV-2", and "Lianhua Qingwen". The documents were filtered and summarized for final evaluation. The collected evidence demonstrated that LHQW exhibited benefits against COVID-19. Impressively, LHQW in conjunction with conventional treatment could significantly improve COVID-19 patients as a synergetic strategy. The mechanisms were mainly involved the antiviral activity, and regulation of inflammation response as well as immune function. Although the data were far from adequate, the latest advances had shown the benefits of LHQW in COVID-19, especially in combination with other antiviral drugs. This review provides comprehensive evidence of LHQW as a complementary strategy for treating COVID-19. Nevertheless, imperious researches should be conducted to clarify the unconfirmed effects, regulatory mechanisms and adverse reactions of LHQW in treating COVID-19 by means of well designed randomized controlled trials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: (‐)‐Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) exhibits multiple biological activities, but unfortunately with poor stability. Poly(butyl‐2‐cyanoacrylate) (PBCA) nanoparticles have been widely elaborated for nearly 50 years. However, PBCA‐based nanowires (PNWs) were reported scarcely. Here, EGCG‐encapsulated PNWs (EGCG@PNWs) were successfully constructed. Employing PNWs as a delivery material, 2.0 mg EGCG into oil phase as optimum allocation was encapsulated in PNWs, forming EGCG@PNWs with the particle sizes of about 200 nm in diameter and 4 μm in length, encapsulation efficiency of about 93.96 ± 3.01%, and the zeta potential more than −30 mV. Further, the slower EGCG release from EGCG@PNWs (Oil) in 95% ethanol fatty simulant exhibited higher antioxidant activity than that of 50% ethanol. The antibacterial activities against E. coli and S. aureus and the growth inhibition effects on non‐small‐cell lung cancer (NSCLC) were also enhanced. Results revealed that EGCG@PNWs can be used as dietary supplements to enhance antioxidant, antibacterial and anti‐NSCLC effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Half of the world's population is Helicobacter pylori carrier. Updated guidelines and consensus have been issued across regions with the main aim of reducing social transmission and increasing H. pylori eradication rate. Although alternative therapies including traditional Chinese medicine and probiotics have also been used to improve H. pylori eradication rate in clinical practice, current mainstream treatment is still dependent on triple and quadruple therapies that includes antibacterial agents (e.g., amoxicillin and furazolidone) and proton pump inhibitor. Researches also assessed the eradication rate of optimized high‐dose dual therapy in treating H. pylori infection. With the increase of antibiotic resistance rate, the treatment strategies for H. pylori infection are constantly adjusted and improved. Besides, low medication compliance is another key influencing factor for H. pylori treatment failure. Emerging studies indicate that pharmacists' intervention and new pharmaceutical care methods can enhance patient medication compliance, reduce adverse drug reactions, and improve H. pylori eradication rate. The purpose of this review is to summarize the advances in treating H. pylori infection and highlight the necessity of developing novel strategies to cope with the increasing challenges and to achieve personalized medication. Also, this review attaches great importance to pharmacists in optimizing H. pylori treatment outcomes as a routine part of therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is still spread and has made a severe public health threat around the world. To improve disease progression, emerging Chinese herbal compounds were used in clinical practice and some agents have proven beneficial in treating COVID-19. Here, the relevant literature from basic researches to clinical application were identified and comprehensively assessed. A variety of Chinese herbal compounds have been reported to be effective in improving symptoms and outcomes in patients with COVID-19, particularly together with routine treatment strategy. The pharmacological activities were mainly attributed to the relief of clinical symptoms, inhibition of cytokine storm, and improvement of organ function. Besides, the development of novel antiviral drugs from medicinal herbs were further discussed. The updated laboratory and clinical studies provided the evidence of Chinese herbal compounds such as Lianhua Qingwen prescription, Shufeng Jiedu prescription, and Qingfei Paidu Tang for the relief of COVID-19. However, both of the randomized controlled trials and real world researches need to be done for supporting the evidence including the efficacy and safety in fighting COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To evaluate the efficacy and economics of different proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) combined with bismuth quadruple regimens for Helicobacter pylori (Hp) eradication, a retrospective analysis method was used to collect Hp-positive patients who were treated with a bismuth-containing quadruple regimen (PPIs + amoxicillin + furazolidone + colloid pectin bismuth) from the outpatient department of gastroenterology in our hospital from January to June 2017. A total of 1410 patients were included in the study and divided into four groups according to different PPIs: group A (pantoprazole sodium enteric-coated capsules, 352 cases), group B (esomeprazole magnesium enteric-coated tablets, 462 cases), group C (pantoprazole sodium enteric-coated tablets, 392 cases) and group D (rabeprazole sodium enteric-coated tablets, 204 cases). The eradication rate of Hp and cost-saving in each group were then compared. There were no significant differences of gender (P = 0.526) and age (P = 0.366) between each Hp treatment regimen. The eradication rates of groups A, B, C and D were 91.48%, 89.83%, 86.73% and 90.69%, respectively. No statistical differences of Hp eradication rates were observed between each group yet (P > 0.05). However, the cost of group A was the lowest. In the present study, the Hp eradication rates between different PPIs regimens were similar in treating Hp infection. Nevertheless, the point in favor of pantoprazole capsules is the slightly higher Hp eradication rate and lower drug cost than other PPIs, which provides a significant evidence for the clinical medication decision in treating Hp infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a complex biological program during which cells loss epithelial phenotype and acquire mesenchymal features. EMT is thought to be involved in the pathogenesis of various fibrotic diseases including pulmonary fibrosis (PF). Recent studies suggest that endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress is associated with EMT in the progression of PF. However, the exact mechanism is unclear. Here, we developed a PF model with bleomycin (BLM) administration in rats and conducted several simulation experiments in alveolar epithelial cell (AECs) RLE-6TN to unravel the role of inositol-requiring protein 1 (IRE1) – X-box-binding protein 1 (XBP1) signal pathway in ER stress-induced EMT in PF. First, we observed that ER stress was occurred in type II AECs accompanied by EMT in BLM-induced PF. Then we explored the role of IRE1-XBP1-snail pathway in transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1/tunicamycin (TM)-induced EMT. When TGF-β1/TM was treated on AECs, IRE1 and XBP1 were overexpressed, meanwhile, snail expression was upregulated accompanied with EMT. However, when IRE1 or XBP1 was knockdown, TGF-β1/TM-induced EMT were blocked while the expression of snail was inhibited. Then we silenced snail and found that TGF-β1/TM-induced EMT were also suppressed, but it had no effect on the up-regulated expression of IRE1 and XBP1. Thus, we concluded that IRE1-XBP1 pathway promotes EMT via mediating snail expression in PF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • The anti-fibrosis therapeutic EGCG was firstly wrapped in PBCA-NPs via water-initiated system of self-polymerization. • EGCG/PBCA-NPs possess excellent stability in gastric fluid and pH-triggered release in intestine. • EGCG/PBCA-NPs via gastrointestinal administration remarkably enhanced EGCG bioactivity and bioavailability. • EGCG/PBCA-NPs had an improvement in histopathology accompanied with inhibited α-SMA in fibroblasts induced by silica. • EGCG/PBCA-NPs via gastrointestinal administration exhibited a significant anti-fibrosis efficacy in silicosis rats. Silicosis is the most serious occupational pulmonary fibrosis caused by excessive inhalation of silica particles, whereas viable therapeutic choices are constrained. Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) presents massive health benefits, but unfortunately with stability absence. Here, encapsulation of EGCG in poly(n -butylcyanoacrylate) nanoparticles (EGCG/PBCA-NPs) were fabricated by self-polymerization for gastrointestinal delivery in silicosis fibrosis treatment. The obtained nano-enabled delivery of EGCG was produced using a medical adhesive approved by FDA as carrier, and presented spherical particles with approximate diameter of 160 nm, a narrow PDI value of 0.2, Zeta potential value of 30 mV as well as a high EGCG incorporation (90 %) and loading efficiency (20 %). In evaluating the protect effects of nano-formulations, EGCG/PBCA-NPs shown excellent stability in gastric fluid with pH-triggered release in intestine and strong EGCG gastrointestinal retention against degradation. After daily gastrointestinal administration, EGCG/PBCA-NPs exhibited the superior anti-fibrosis efficacy in silicosis model rats induced by silica, involving lung index decline, hydroxyproline content decrease, histological improvement, collagen accumulation reduction and α-SMA down-regulation in comparison with naked EGCG. These results strongly demonstrated that PBCA-based NPs may be a promising nano-enabled delivery carrier for enhancing the gastrointestinal stability and anti-fibrotic effects of EGCG. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]