Herbs and management of hypertension:Claims,criticism,and challenges

Hypertension(HTN)is one of the most common chronic diseases affecting over 30%of the adult population globally,with a growing incidence rate.This article aims to identify the commonly used herbs for HTN treatment and examine their claims,criticisms,and challenges.It further aims to provide useful recommendations regarding the use of herbs for HTN treatment.HTN complications,such as coronary heart disease,stroke,peripheral vascular disease,vision impairment,and renal failure can result in morbidity and mortality.The high cost of conventional medications,which sometimes may not even be available or easily accessible with their unfavorable side effects as well as taking more than one pill per day,has led hypertensive patients,particularly those in rural areas,to explore alternative treatments such as herbal therapies.It is crucial to determine the different modes of action,doses,safety,and efficacy of herbal remedies used in combination with conventional medications to improve treatment adherence and enhance patient outcomes.

Cell-Based Biological Markers for Blood-Enriching Chinese Herbs: Erythropoietin Production in HepG2 Cells and Nitric Oxide Release in Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells (HUVECs)

Chinese tonifying herbs, which are classified into four functional categories (namely, Yang, Qi, Yin, Blood) are commonly used for restoring normal body function and the prevention of diseases. To explore cell-based biological markers for Blood-enriching Chinese herbs, we investigate the effect of 11 commonly used Blood-enriching herbs on erythropoietin (EPO) production in HepG2 cells. Herbs for nourishing Yin were tested for determining the specificity of Blood-enriching herbs in inducing EPO production. In addition, the effects of Blood-enriching herbs on nitric oxide (NO) production in both HepG2 cells and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were also investigated. The results indicated that methanolic extracts of Blood-enriching herbs (but not Yin-nourishing herbs) showed characteristic pharmacological activity in inducing EPO production in HepG2 cells and NO release in HUVECs. The experimental findings, therefore, support the use of cell-based EPO production and NO release as biological markers for Blood-enriching Chinese tonifying herbs.

Traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions and herbs for the treatment of hypothyroidism:a narrative review

The increasing prevalence of hypothyroidism,which can cause endocrine dysfunction,abnormal neurological function,and cardiovascular and cerebrovascular injuries,poses serious health problems.Thyroid hormone supplementation constitutes the current main therapeutic method for hypothyroidism,yet it has many limitations and risks and is not suitable for everyone.Therefore,it is necessary to seek alternative and complementary treatment methods.It has been proven in practice that traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)possesses multi-channel comprehensive characteristics for the treatment of hypothyroidism and has more advantages than single thyroid hormone supplementation.Through a comprehensive examination of existing literature about TCM efficacy in addressing hypothyroidism,we have meticulously consolidated the most recent research findings on prescriptions and herbal substances employed in the treatment of this condition.Furthermore,we have explicated their respective functions in the management of hypothyroidism,thereby offering valuable perspectives and recommendations for the prospective utilization of natural remedies in its treatment.

Topology and Semantic Information Fusion Classification Network Based on Hyperspectral Images of Chinese Herbs

Most methods for classifying hyperspectral data only consider the local spatial relation-ship among samples,ignoring the important non-local topological relationship.However,the non-local topological relationship is better at representing the structure of hyperspectral data.This paper proposes a deep learning model called Topology and semantic information fusion classification network(TSFnet)that incorporates a topology structure and semantic information transmis-sion network to accurately classify traditional Chinese medicine in hyperspectral images.TSFnet uses a convolutional neural network(CNN)to extract features and a graph convolution network(GCN)to capture potential topological relationships among different types of Chinese herbal medicines.The results show that TSFnet outperforms other state-of-the-art deep learning classification algorithms in two different scenarios of herbal medicine datasets.Additionally,the proposed TSFnet model is lightweight and can be easily deployed for mobile herbal medicine classification.

A Multilayer Network Constructed for Herb and Prescription Efficacy Analysis

Chinese Medicine(CM)has been widely used as an important avenue for disease prevention and treatment in China especially in the form of CM prescriptions combining sets of herbs to address patients’symptoms and syndromes.However,the selection and compatibility of herbs are complex and abstract due to intrinsic relationships between herbal properties and their overall functions.Network analysis is applied to demonstrate the complex relationships between individual herbal efficacy and the overall function of CM prescriptions.To illustrate their connections and correlations,prescription function(PF),prescription herb(PH),and herbal efficacy(HE)intranetworks are proposed based on CM theory to identify relationships between herbs and prescriptions.These three networks are then connected by PF-PH and PH-HE interlayer networks adopting herb dosage to form a multidimensional heterogeneous network,a Prescription-Herb-Function Network(PHFN).The network is applied to 112 classic prescriptions from Treatise on Exogenous Febrile and Miscellaneous Diseases to illustrate the application of PHFN.The PHFN is constructed including 146 functions in PF intra network,89 herbs in the PH intra network,and 163 herbal efficacies in the HE intra network.The results show that herb pairs with synergistic actions have stronger relevance,such as licorice-cassia twig,licorice-Chinese date,fresh ginger-Chinese date,etc.The integration of dosage to the network helps to indicate the main herbs for cluster analysis and automatic formulation.PHFN also reveals the internal relationships between the functions of prescriptions and composed herbal efficacies.

Chinese herbal medicine decreases incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma in diabetes mellitus patients with regular insulin management

BACKGROUND Type 2 diabetes mellitus(DM)is an independent risk factor for hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC),while insulin is a potent mitogen.Identifying a new therapeutic modality for preventing insulin users from developing HCC is a critical goal for researchers.AIM To investigate whether regular herbal medicine use can decrease HCC risk in DM patients with regular insulin control.METHODS We used data acquired from the Taiwan,Chinaese National Health Insurance research database between 2000 and 2017.We identified patients with DM who were prescribed insulin for>3 months.The herb user group was further defined as patients prescribed herbal medication for DM for>3 months per annum during RESULTS We initially enrolled 657144 DM patients with regular insulin use from 2000 to 2017.Among these,46849 patients had used a herbal treatment for DM,and 140547 patients were included as the matched control group.The baseline variables were similar between the herb users and nonusers.DM patients with regular herb use had a 12%decreased risk of HCC compared with the control group[adjusted hazard ratio(aHR)=0.88,95%CI=0.80–0.97].The cumulative incidence of HCC in the herb users was significantly lower than that of the nonusers.Patients with a herb use of>5 years cumulatively exhibited a protective effect against development of HCC(aHR=0.82,P<0.05).Of patients who developed HCC,herb users exhibited a longer survival time than nonusers(aHR=0.78,P=0.0001).Additionally,we report the top 10 herbs and formulas in prescriptions and summarize the potential pharmacological effects of the constituents.Our analysis indicated that Astragalus propinquus(Huang Qi)plus Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge(Dan Shen),and Astragalus propinquus(Huang Qi)plus Trichosanthes kirilowii Maxim.(Tian Hua Fen)were the most frequent combination of single herbs.Meanwhile,Ji Sheng Shen Qi Wan plus Dan Shen was the most frequent combination of herbs and formulas.CONCLUSION This large-scale retrospective cohort study reveals that herbal medicine may decrease HCC risk by 12%in DM patients with regular insulin use.

Exploring the mechanism of action of herb pair Pinellia Ternata-Magnolia Officinalis in the treatment of liver cancer based on network pharmacology and molecular docking

Background:Explore the anti-tumor mechanism of herb pair Pinellia ternate-Magnolia officinalis(BX-HP)in liver cancer through network pharmacology using molecular docking methods.Method:The active ingredients and corresponding targets of the herb pair Pinellia ternate-Magnolia officinalis were obtained from the HERB database.The relevant targets for liver cancer were obtained from GeneCards,DisGeNET,TTD,and Drugbank databases.Obtain common targets between herb pair Pinellia ternate-Magnolia officinalis and liver cancer through the Bioinformatics platform,establish a PPI network diagram using STRING software,and perform GO functional enrichment and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis on the DAVID platform.AutoDockTools 1.5.7 software and molecular dynamics simulation analysis are used to evaluate the binding of components to target proteins.HERB database,SwissTargetPrediction database,SwissADME database,UniProt database,GeneCards database,TTD database,DRUGBANK database,DisGeNET database,String,DAVID.Bioinformatics platform,PDB database,PubChem and TCMSP database.Result:A total of 22 active ingredients with a Probability>0.1 targets in Magnolia officinalis were screened,26 active ingredients with a Probability>0.1 targets in Pinellia ternata,ten vital active ingredients,corresponding to 979 and 803 targets with a Probability>0.1 targets,2536 liver cancer-related targets,and 279 targets in the herb pair Pinellia ternata-Magnolia officinalis.The GO functional enrichment analysis resulted in 1297 entries,namely 971 biological process entries,118 cell localization entries,and 208 molecular function entries.Three signaling pathways were annotated through the KEGG pathway.Based on molecular docking,ten vital active ingredients and five target proteins were validated to exhibit an excellent binding affinity.The above data indicates that combining the herb pair Pinellia ternata-Magnolia officinalis may treat liver cancer through specific targets and signaling pathways.Conclusion:Herb pair Pinellia ternata-Magnolia officinalis has a synergistic effect on treating liver cancer through multicomponent,multitarget,and multi-pathway approaches.This study provides a sufficient theoretical basis for subsequent research.

A Survey of the Pteridophyte Herbs of Hainan Island

There are almost 400 species(containing 8 varieties)of pteridophytes on Hainan Island,belonging to 43 families and 114 genera,one third of which are officinal.To understand the distribution of pteridophytes resources of Hainan Island,we conducted this survey mainly by photographing the habitat,plant morphology,sorus and specific traits of some pteridophytes.The results showed that nearly 32 families and 94 species were recorded.These pteridophyte herb resources play important roles in medical treatment of native Li nationality people.

Herbs祛斑系列治疗黄褐斑31例临床验证报告

目的 :研究中药植物萃取液加基质复配而成的系列产品 ,对治疗黄褐斑的疗效。 方法 :将 Herbs祛斑系列产品以不同剂型种类作用于体外。 结果 :治疗组治愈 6例 ,达 19.4% ;显效 14例 ,达 45 .2 % ,有效 5例 ,达 16 .1% ;总有效率为 80 .6 %。对照组治愈 4例 ,达 13.3% ;显效 10例 ,达 33.3% ;有效 10例 ,达 33.3% ;总有效率为 79.9%。 结论 :Herbs祛斑系列在体表能明显抑制酪氨酸酶活性 ,清除氧自由基 。

Effects of Integrated Chinese Herbs and Western Medicine on Swine Toxoplasmosis

[ Objective] To evaluate the efficacy of integrated Chinese herbs and western medicine on the treatment of swine toxoplasmosis, in order to increase cure rate and lower recurrence rate. [ Method] Pigs artificially infected by Toxoplasma gondii were treated with compound suffonamide and a self-designed Chinese herbs formula, and the quantities of toxoplasma in ascites were determined. Animal regression experiment was per- formed after mice were inoculated with pathological samples of the pigs infected with toxoplasma. After treatment with integrated Chinese herbs and western medicine, the clinical manifestations of pigs were observed and the level of circulating antigen （CAg） in sera was detected. Curative effect indexes of integrated Chinese herbs and western medicine-treated group were compared with that of Chinese herbs-treated group, western medi- cine-treated group and positive control group. [ Result] All the toxoplasma trophozoites were killed by integrated and westem medicine. Regression expedment results showed that toxoplasma appeared only in one mouse that was inoculated with brain of pig. The treated pigs had nonsignificant clinical symptoms; the peak of serum CAg was lower than that of the positive control group and CAg turned negative faster than that of Chinese herbs-treated group, westem medicine-treated group, and positive control group. [ Conclusion] The integrated Chinese herbs and western medicine has good effect on the treatment of swine toxoplasmosis.

Research on Stoichiometry of Early-spring Herbs Functional Group in the Subtropical Artificial Wetland

[Objective]The aim was to carry out stoichiometry on the early-spring herbs functional group in subtropical artificial wetland.[Method]UV-Vis spectrophotometer was used for the determination of nitrate-nitrogen,ammonium nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations.Potassium persulfate absorptiometry was used for the measurement of total N content,while the flame photometer was used to detect the potassium and sodium concentration in plants.All the nutrient determination of plant samples were repeated for four times.[Result]The four nutrient concentrations in almost all samples were in the normal range of natural plant nutrition concentrations;in early-spring herbs functional groups,different species showed diversity on the nutrient concentrations;plant height had no significant effect on the nutrient concentrations in plants;the nutrient concentrations of non-grass group plants were higher than that of grass group plants;the nutrient concentrations of the annual herb were higher than that of perennial herbs.[Conclusion]The study had provided basis for the understanding of the effects of changes in nutritional conditions on species diversity,community structure and succession of the system.

Preliminary Study of 12 Chinese Herbs as Feed Attractants on Turbot Juvenile(Scophthalmus maximus)

[Objective] The paper aims to study the attractive effects of 12 Chinese medicinal herbs on Scophthalmus maximus juvenile.[Method] We took 200 Scophthalmus maximus with the average body length of 3 cm,average weight of 1 g and 60 days of age as the research object,and 12 Chinese medicinal herbs as feed attractants were selected,including Cloves,Cinnamon,Star anise,Kaempferol,Mint,Coptis,Phellodendron,skullcap,Gardenia,Sophora flavescens,Mume,Myrobalan meat were selected.The amount added to the basic diet was 2‰..The times of turbot juveniles going into each inducing room and the times of turbot juveniles biting the feed ball were recorded by maze experiments.Inducing effects of the Chinese herbal medicines were analyzed.[Result] The results showed that the attractant effect of Mume,Gardenia,Scutellaria and kaempferol had the significantly inducing effect on Scophthalmus maximus juvenile.And 2‰ Gardenia,5‰ Matrine,5‰ Scutellaria and 2‰ Kaempferol have the best attractant effects.In compound experients,the attractive effect of mixture of 2‰ matrine and gardenia on Scophthalmus maximus was the best.[Conclusion] The attractive effect on Scophthalmus maximus has something to do with the kind and concentration of Chinese medicinal herbs.

Sensitivities of Vibrio vulnificus to Chinese Herbs and Effect of Medicinal Bath on Vibrio vulnificus

Vibrio vulnificus can cause rotten-skin disease in marine fish aquaculture, resulting in a large number of deaths. The occurrence of rotten-skin disease is becoming severer and severer, leading to serious economic losses. In this study, the sensitivities of V. vulnificus to the 18 kinds of herbs, such as stone calamus and Chinese rhubarb, were determined using the agar diffusion method （susceptibility paper）. The results showed that Chinese gall, dark plum, sea buckthorn and eucalyptus leaves have bacteriostatic and bactericidal effects, while sappan wood, Chi- nese rhubarb, pomegranate bark, mentha and clove have strong bacteriostatic ef- fects. The Chinese medicinal herb bath showed good control effect on V. vulnificus.

Advances in treatment of ulcerative colitis with herbs: From bench to bedside

Ulcerative colitis(UC), an idiopathic inflammatory disorder in the colon, has become a clinical challenge, owing to the increasing incidence and poor prognosis. The conventional treatments for UC including aminosalicylates, corticosteroids, and immunosuppressants, induce remission in only half of patients. Meanwhile, the treatments often come with serious side effects which can be life-threatening. Herbal medicine, one of the most common traditional Chinese medicine modalities, has been introduced for centuries into clinical treatment of many human diseases such as infections and functional disorders. Recently, the potential effectiveness of herbs has been suggested as the treatment of UC, as shown by a variety of clinical trials and experimental studies. The herbs reported in the literature include aloe vera gel, butyrate, tormentil extracts, wheat grass juice, and curcumin. In the review, bioactivity of the herbs and their involvement in UC treatment are discussed.

Anti-fungal and anti-bacterial activities of ethanol extracts of selected traditional Chinese medicinal herbs

Objective:To evaluate in ritro antimicrobial activities of selected 58 ethno-medicinal plant extracts with a view to assess their therapeutic potential.Methods:A total of 58 traditional Chinese medicinal plants were carefully selected based on the literature review and their traditional use.The antimicrobial activities of ethanol extracts of these medicinal plants were tested against fungi(Aspergillus funigaius),yeast(Candida albicans),gram-negative(Acirelobacter haumannii and Pseudornnruis aeruginosa)and gram-positive bacteria(Staphglococcus aureus).The activities were tested at three different concentrations of 1.00,0.10 and 0.01 mg/mL.The data was analysed using Gene data Screener program.Results:The measured antimicrobial activities indicated that out of the 58 plant extracts,15 extracts showed anti-fungal activity and 23 extracts exhibited anti-bacterial activity.Eight plant extracts have exhibited both anti-bacterial and anti-fungal activities.For instance,Eucommia ulmoides,Pohgonum cuspidcrtum,Poria cocas and Uncaria rhineophylla showed activity against both bacterial and fungal strains,indicating their broad spectrum of activity.Conclusions:The results revealed that the ethanol extracts of 30 plants out of the selected 58 possess significant antimicrobial activities.It is interesting to note that the findings from the current study are consistent with the traditional use.A clear correlation has also been found between the antimicrobial activity and the flavonoid content of the plant extracts which is in agreement with the literature.Hence.the results presented here can be used to guide the selection of potential plant species for the isolation and structure elucidation of novel antimicrobial compounds in order to establish the structure-activity relationship.This in turn is expected to lead the way to the discovery of novel antimicrobial agents for therapeutic use.

Essential oils and functional herbs for healthy aging

As total life expectancy increases, the prevalence of age-related diseases such as diabetes and Alzheimer's disease is also increasing. Many hypotheses about Alzheimer's disease have been developed, including cholinergic neuron damage, oxidative stress, and inflammation. Acetylcholine is a major neurotransmitter in the brain and cholinergic deficits leads to cognitive dysfunction and decline. Recent studies have linked diabetes as a risk factor in developing Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia. The incidence of patients with type II diabetes and increased levels and activity of α-amylase is higher in patients with dementia. It has been shown that aromatherapy with essential oils from the mint family can improve cognitive performance in Alzheimer's disease patients. Selected monoterpenoids from these essential oils are reported to inhibit acetylcholinesterase, both in vitro and in vivo. Terpenoids are small, fat-soluble organic molecules that can transfer across nasal mucosa if inhaled, or penetrate through the skin after topical application, enter into the blood and cross the blood-brain barrier. Recent evidence supports the idea that the common constituents of essential oils also inhibit α-amylase, a starch digestive enzyme that plays an important role in the control of diabetes. The mint family is a fragrant plant family that contains most of the culinary herbs found in the Mediterranean diet. The Mediterranean diet is considered to be one of the healthiest diets in the world, and is found to be beneficial not only for the heart but also for the brain. Herbs used in this diet are rich in antioxidants that can prevent oxidative damage caused by free radicals. However, our study shows that they also contain biologically active compounds with potent α-amylase and acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activities. Consumption of fresh herbs can help boost memory and reduce sugar levels in the body. The use of herbs as a functional food could lead to significant improvements in health. Cognitive stimulation with medical food and medical herbs could delay development of cognitive decline, and improve the quality of life of Alzheimer's disease patients. This effect can be enhanced if combined with aromatherapy, topically or by inhalation, and/or by ingestion. Terpenes and terpenoids, the primary constituents of these essential oils are small, lipid soluble organic molecules that can be absorbed through the skin or across nasal mucosa into the systemic blood circulation. Many terpenes can also cross the blood-brain barrier. Therefore, topical application or inhalation of essential oils will also produce a systemic effect.

Effective components of Chinese herbs reduce central nervous system function decline induced by iron overload

Abnormally increased levels of iron in the brain trigger cascade amplification in Alzheimer＇s dis- ease patients, resulting in neuronal death. This study investigated whether components extracted from the Chinese herbs epimedium herb, milkvetch root and kudzuvine root could relieve the abnormal expression of iron metabolism-related protein in Alzheimer＇s disease patients. An APPs,~JPSI^E9 double transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer＇s disease was used. The intragas- tric administration of compounds from epimedium herb, milkvetch root and kudzuvine root improved pathological alterations such as neuronal edema, increased the number of neurons, downregulated divalent metal transporter 1 expression, upregulated ferroportin 1 expression, and inhibited iron overload in the cerebral cortex of mice with Alzheimer＇s disease. These com- pounds reduced iron overload-induced impairment of the central nervous system, indicating a new strategy for developing novel drugs for the treatment of Alzheimer＇s disease.

Screening for anti-pancreatic lipase properties of 28 traditional Thai medicinal herbs

Objective:To screen the effect of 28 medicinal plants on inhibition of pancreatic lipase and evaluate the phytochemical contents of extracts.Methods:The ethanolic extracts of 28 traditional Thai herbal medicines were assayed for their in vitro activities against porcine pancreatic lipase using p-nitrophenyl butyrate as a substrate.Quantitative estimation of flavonoids,phenolics,and alkaloids was done.Results:Extracts from four herbs,Memecylon edule Roxb.,Garcinia vilersiana Pierre,Cryptolepis elegans Wall.and Phyllanthus chamaepeuce Ridl.,at a concentration of100 mg/m L,strongly inhibited porcine pancreatic lipase by 90.97%,92.04%,94.64%and95.38%,respectively.There was a significant positive correlation between phenolic content and inhibition activity.Inhibition activity was significantly correlated with flavonoid and with alkaloid contents.Conclusions:From this result,it could be concluded that herbs represent a rich of antipancreatic lipase compounds,in particular,Cryptolepis elegans Wall.and Phyllanthus chamaepeuce Ridl.It is suggested that the phytochemical compounds from these plants may be applied for the prevention and treatment of obesity or hyperlipidemia.

Effects of Chinese herbs on lactation of rat and performance of offspring

An experiment was conducted to study the effects of different Chinese herbs on lactation in the rat. Seventy-two Sprague Dawley female rats at gestation day 18 were assigned to 9 groups randomly, with 8 rats each. Control rats were offered basal diets until the end of the weaning period. Rats in the other 8 groups were administered diets supplemented with 1% Medulla tetmpanacis （MT）, Astragalus membranacens （AM）, Vaccaria segetalis （VS）, Leonurus heterophyllus sweet （LHS）, Radix rehmarmiae preparata （RRP）, Squama man/t/s （SM）, Schisandra chinensis （SC）, Ligustrum lucidum （LL）, respectively. After parturition, the litter size was culled to 8 pups per dam. Pup weight and milk yield were significantly higher in the VS, LHS, AM and SM groups than these in the control group during middle and late lactation （P〈0.05 or P〈0.01）. The weight and feed intake were not different in the dams fed either diet.

Effects of Chinese herbs on salivary fluid secretion by isolated and perfused rat submandibular glands

AIM： TO determine whether Chinese herbs （CHs） relieve xerostomia （dry mouth） by increasing salivary secretion. METHODS： The submandibular glands of Wistar rats were surgically isolated and perfused arterially with buffered salt solution. After control perfusion, recording started 5 min prior to the start of stimulation. After fluid secretion was induced by 0.2 μmol/L carbamylcholine （CCh） in the perfusate for 10 min, Chinese herb （CH） was added in the perfusion for 5 min. CCh was then overloaded at 0.2 μmol/L in the perfusion for 20 min. The volume of salivary fluid secretion was recorded by a computer-controlled balance system. RESULTS： Saliva secretion formed an initial ephemeral peak at 30 s followed by a gradual increase to a sustained level. CH alone induced no or little saliva in all types of CH selected. During perfusion with CH,overloading of CCh promoted fluid secretion in 1S of 20 CHs. This promotion was classified into four patterns, which were eventually related to the categories of CH： Overall sustained phase was continuously raised （Yin-nourishing, fluid production-promoting and heatclearing agents）; The sustained secretion rose to reach a maximum then decreased （Qi-enhancing agent）; Sustained secretion rose to reach the highest maximum and was then sustained with a slight decline （swelling-reducing, phlegm-resolving and pus-expelling agents）; Stimulation of salivary secretion without any added stimulants. Addition of CCh raised the fluid secretion to reach the highest maximum then sharply decreased to a lower sustained level （blood activating agent）. CONCLUSION： The present findings lead to the conclusion that various CHs have different promotional effects directly on the salivary gland.