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Background and Purpose: Chuanxiong Qingnao Granles (CQG), has been used to treat migraine headache (MH) for many years. However, current investigation of CQG have primarily focused on clinical studies, and the potential mechanisms underlying of its effects on MH have not been fully elucidated. In the present study, we applied an integrated approach of transcriptomics and metabolomics to elucidate the therapeutic mechanisms of CQG in nitroglycerin (NTG)-induced MH injury., Methods and Results: Fifty rats were allocated into five random groups: control (Con), NTG, flunarizine (NTG + Flu) group, and two CQG groups (NTG + CQG-L and NTG + CQG-H). CQG notably reduced the duration of ear redness and the frequency of head scratching frequency in rats. It also lowered the levels of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), endothelin-1 (ET-1), calcitonin gene-related peptide type 1 receptor (CGPR1), and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and enhanced neuronal morphology following NTG-induced MH damage. Transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses pinpointed interleukin (IL)-17A, IL-13, and CC chemokine receptor type 3 (CCR3) as central CQG targets, glycerophospholipid metabolism as key metabolic pathway, and further experiments confirmed that CQG reduced the expression of IL-17A, IL-13, CCR3, and inhibited the expression of inflammatory cytokines by suppressing PI3K/Akt signaling pathway and glycerophospholipid metabolism, to attenuate neuroinflammation in MH rats., Conclusions: Taken together, CQG inhibited PI3K/Akt signaling pathway to reduced neuroinflammation, and modulated metabolic pathway of glycerophospholipid metabolism in MH. The findings of this study offer novel insights into the mechanisms underlying the therapeutic effects of CQG, highlighting its potential clinical application in treatment of MH., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.)

Dengzhan Shengmai (DZSM), a traditional Chinese medicine formulation, has been administered extensively to elderly individuals with cognitive impairment (CI). However, the underlying mechanisms by which Dengzhan Shengmai improves cognitive impairment remains unknown. This study aimed to elucidate the underlying mechanism of the effect of Dengzhan Shengmai on aging-associated cognitive impairment via a comprehensive combination of transcriptomics and microbiota assessment. Dengzhan Shengmai was orally administered to a D-galactose-induced aging mouse model, and evaluation with an open field task (OFT), Morris water maze (MWM), and histopathological staining was performed. Transcriptomics and 16S rDNA sequencing were applied to elucidate the mechanism of Dengzhan Shengmai in alleviating cognitive deficits, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and immunofluorescence were employed to verify the results. The results first confirmed the therapeutic effects of Dengzhan Shengmai against cognitive defects; specifically, Dengzhan Shengmai improved learning and impairment, suppressed neuro loss, and increased Nissl body morphology repair. Comprehensive integrated transcriptomics and microbiota analysis indicated that chemokine CXC motif receptor 4 (CXCR4) and its ligand CXC chemokine ligand 12 (CXCL12) were targets for improving cognitive impairments with Dengzhan Shengmai and also indirectly suppressed the intestinal flora composition. Furthermore, in vivo results confirmed that Dengzhan Shengmai suppressed the expression of CXC motif receptor 4, CXC chemokine ligand 12, and inflammatory cytokines. This suggested that Dengzhan Shengmai inhibited CXC chemokine ligand 12/CXC motif receptor 4 expression and modulated intestinal microbiome composition by influencing inflammatory factors. Thus, Dengzhan Shengmai improves aging-related cognitive impairment effects via decreased CXC chemokine ligand 12/CXC motif receptor 4 and inflammatory factor modulation to improve gut microbiota composition., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Hou, Xu, Cao, Tian, Wang, Zhu, Zhang and Yang.)

Mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) inhibitor as an attractive drug target with promising antitumor effects has been widely investigated. High quality clinical trial has been conducted in liver transplant (LT) recipients in Western countries. However, the pertinent studies in Eastern world are paucity. Therefore, we designed a clinical trial to test whether sirolimus can improve recurrence-free survival (RFS) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients beyond the Milan criteria after LT. This is an open-labeled, single-arm, prospective, multicenter, and real-world study aiming to evaluate the clinical outcomes of early switch to sirolimus-based regimens in HCC patients after LT. Patients with a histologically proven HCC and beyond the Milan criteria will be enrolled. The initial immunosuppressant regimens are center-specific for the first 4-6 weeks. The following regimens integrated sirolimus into the regimens as a combination therapy with reduced calcineurin inhibitors based on the condition of patients and centers. The study is planned for 4 years in total with a 2-year enrollment period and a 2-year follow-up. We predict that sirolimus conversion regimen will provide survival benefits for patients particular in the key indicator RFS as well as better quality of life. If the trial is conducted successfully, we will have a continued monitoring over a longer follow-up time to estimate indicator of overall survival. We hope that the outcome will provide better evidence for clinical decision-making and revising treatment guidelines based on Chinese population data. Trial register: Trial registered at http://www.chictr.org.cn: ChiCTR2100042869., Competing Interests: Competing interest No benefits in any form have been received or will be received from a commercial party related directly or indirectly to the subject of this article., (Copyright © 2021. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

This study examined the growth inhibitory effects of theasinensin A (from oolong tea) and black tea polyphenols, including theaflavin (TF-1), a mixture (TF-2) of theaflavin-3-gallate (TF-2a) and theaflavin-3'-gallate (TF-2b), and theaflavin-3,3'-digallate (TF-3) in human cancer cells. Theasinensin A, TF-1, and TF-2 displayed strong growth inhibitory effects against human histolytic lymphoma U937, with estimated IC50 values of 12 microM, but were less effective against human acute T cell leukemia Jurkat, whereas TF-3 and (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) had lower activities. The molecular mechanisms of tea polyphenol-induced apoptosis as determined by annexin V apoptosis assay, DNA fragmentation, and caspase activation were further investigated. Loss of membrane potential and reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation were also detected by flow cytometry. Treatment with tea polyphenols caused rapid induction of caspase-3, but not caspase-1, activity and stimulated proteolytic cleavage of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP). Pretreatment with a potent caspase-3 inhibitor, Z-Asp-Glu-Val-Asp-fluoromethyl ketone, inhibited theasinensin A induced DNA fragmentation. Furthermore, it was found that theasinensin A induced loss of mitochondrial transmembrane potential, elevation of ROS production, release of mitochondrial cytochrome c into the cytosol, and subsequent induction of caspase-9 activity. These results indicate that theasinensin A allows caspase-activated deoxyribonuclease to enter the nucleus and degrade chromosomal DNA and induces DFF-45 (DNA fragmentation factor) degradation. The results suggest that induction of apoptosis by theasinensin A may provide a pivotal mechanism for their cancer chemopreventive function.