Activation of Nrf2/HO-1 by Peptide YD1 Attenuates Inflammatory Symptoms through Suppression of TLR4/MYyD88/NF-κB Signaling Cascade

In this study, we investigate the immunomodulatory effects of a novel antimicrobial peptide, YD1, isolated from Kimchi, in both in vitro and in vivo models. We establish that YD1 exerts its anti-inflammatory effects via up-regulation of the Nrf2 pathway, resulting in the production of HO-1, which suppresses activation of the NF-κB pathway, including the subsequent proinflammatory cytokines IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α. We also found that YD1 robustly suppresses nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE₂) production by down-regulating the expression of the upstream genes, iNOS and COX-2, acting as a strong antioxidant. Collectively, YD1 exhibits vigorous anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activity, presenting it as an interesting potential therapeutic agent.     

女性护理液抗炎止痒作用的实验研究

女性护理液为中药苦参醇提液加三氯羟基二苯醚复配而成，根据药理方法学以实验动物建立模型，观察护理液的抗炎、止痒作用。结果，单独使用三氯羟基二苯醚，有较好的抗菌消炎作用，但是止痒作用不明显。以苦参醇提液和三氯羟基二苯醚复配，其抗炎、止痒作用均接近地塞米松磷酸钠注射液。     

卤虫有效抗炎部位的研究

以药理实验为指导,利用溶剂法、大孔吸附树脂吸附法、硅胶柱层析法及高效液相色谱法提取分离卤虫的有效抗炎部位,对卤虫的抗炎作用进行初步的研究。通过急性炎症———二甲苯致小鼠耳廓肿胀反应。结果表明,利用本方法提取分离的卤虫有效抗炎部位,具有明显的抗急性炎症作用,对炎症的抑制率最高可达80.70%,与对照品相比P<0.001(t值检验)。     

Anti-inflammatory effects and mechanisms of usnic acid

The anti-inflammatory effect and mechanism of Usnic acid (UA) were explored on lipopoly-saccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW264.7 cell line.The effects of UA on pro-inflammatory cytokines including tumor necrosis factor-alfa (TNF-α),interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β),pro-inflammatory mediators such as nitric oxide (NO),inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) were studied by sandwich ELISA,real-time PCR and western blot analyses.Similarly,the effect of UA on anti-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-10 (IL-10) and anti-inflammatory mediator heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) were also studied following the same methods.Furthermore,nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) was assayed by immunocytochemistry.The results showed that UA has anti-inflammatory effect by down-regulatinng iNOS,COX-2,IL-1β,IL-6 and TNF-α,COX-2 gene expression through the suppression of NF-κB activation and increasing anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 and anti-inflammatory mediator HO-1 production.     

Terazosin Stimulates Pgk1 to Remedy Gastrointestinal Disorders

Gastrointestinal disease is the most common health concern that occurs due to environmental, infectious, immunological, psychological, and genetic stress. Among them, the most frequent diseases are gastric ulcer (GU) and ulcerative colitis (UC). DSS-induced UC and ethanol-stimulated GU models resemble the pathophysiology of human gastrointestinal disease. The current study was designed to explore the anti-oxidation, anti-inflammation, anti-cell death properties of terazosin, an α-adrenergic receptor antagonist, in vivo and in vitro. Our results indicate that terazosin dramatically activates Pgk1, and upregulates glycose metabolism, evidenced by the enhanced ATP production and higher LDH enzymatic activity. Also, terazosin significantly enhances p-AKT expression and inhibits NF-κB p65 activation through abrogating the phosphorylation of IKBα, as well as lowers Caspase-1 and GSDMD expression. The findings in this study demonstrate that terazosin exhibits anti-inflammatory effects by downregulating NF-κB-GSDMD signal pathway, along with enhancing glycolysis for gastrointestinal disease treatment. Meanwhile, we also find terazosin ameliorates ethanol-induced gastric mucosal damage in mice. Collectively, as a clinical drug, terazosin should be translated into therapeutics for gastrointestinal disease soon.     

Novel redox nanomedicine improves gene expression of polyion complex vector

Abstract

Gene therapy has generated worldwide attention as a new medical technology. While non-viral gene vectors are promising candidates as gene carriers, they have several issues such as toxicity and low transfection efficiency. We have hypothesized that the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) affects gene expression in polyplex supported gene delivery systems. The effect of ROS on the gene expression of polyplex was evaluated using a nitroxide radical-containing nanoparticle (RNP) as an ROS scavenger. When polyethyleneimine (PEI)/pGL3 or PEI alone was added to the HeLa cells, ROS levels increased significantly. In contrast, when (PEI)/pGL3 or PEI was added with RNP, the ROS levels were suppressed. The luciferase expression was increased by the treatment with RNP in a dose-dependent manner and the cellular uptake of pDNA was also increased. Inflammatory cytokines play an important role in ROS generation in vivo. In particular, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α caused intracellular ROS generation in HeLa cells and decreased gene expression. RNP treatment suppressed ROS production even in the presence of TNF-α and increased gene expression. This anti-inflammatory property of RNP suggests that it may be used as an effective adjuvant for non-viral gene delivery systems.     

色满酮类化合物的合成及其抗炎活性研究

设计合成了4种色满酮类化合物,并利用熔点、红外光谱、核磁共振氢谱等手段确定了其结构。采用二甲苯致小鼠耳肿胀法,测定了该化合物的抗炎活性,实验结果表明在200mg／kg剂量下所合成的3个目标化合物6-[2-（4-吗啉基）乙氧基]色满酮、6-[（喹啉-2-基）甲氧基]色满酮、7-[2-（4-吗啉基）乙氧基]色满酮对二甲苯所致小鼠耳肿胀具有显著的抑制作用。     

Neuroprotective and Anti-Inflammatory Effects of Evernic Acid in an MPTP-Induced Parkinson’s Disease Model

Oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, and neuroinflammation are strongly associated with the pathogenesis of Parkinson’s disease (PD), which suggests that anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory compounds might provide an alternative treatment for PD. Here, we evaluated the neuroprotective effects of evernic aid (EA), which was screened from a lichen library provided by the Korean Lichen Research Institute at Sunchon National University. EA is a secondary metabolite generated by lichens, including Ramalina, Evernia, and Hypogymnia, and several studies have described its anticancer, antifungal, and antimicrobial effects. However, the neuroprotective effects of EA have not been studied. We found that EA protected primary cultured neurons against 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridium (MPP⁺)-induced cell death, mitochondrial dysfunction, and oxidative stress, and effectively reduced MPP⁺-induced astroglial activation by inhibiting the NF-κB pathway. In vivo, EA ameliorated MPTP-induced motor dysfunction, dopaminergic neuronal loss, and neuroinflammation in the nigrostriatal pathway in C57BL/6 mice. Taken together, our findings demonstrate that EA has neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory effects in PD models and suggest that EA is a potential therapeutic candidate for PD.