Effect of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction on the Behavior of Zebrafish with Alzheimer's Disease

[Objectives]To study the effect of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction on the behavior of zebrafish with Alzheimer's disease caused by AlCl 3.[Methods]Each portion of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction was prepared according to the proportion of Coptis chinensis∶Phellodendron chinense Rupr.∶Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi∶Gardenia jasminoides Ellis=63 g∶42 g∶42 g∶63 g.After that,each portion of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction was soaked in 6.3 L water for 30 min and boiled twice at 100℃.The extracts were combined twice and filtered,then concentrated to 308 g/L and put into refrigerator for later use.Before training,zebrafishes were put into T-maze to adapt for 2 d,and then behavioral training was carried out for 7 d.After video recording,the behavior of zebrafish was analyzed by Smart 3.0,and qualified zebrafishes were selected for follow-up experiments.Then 60 successfully trained zebrafishes were randomly divided into control group,model group,positive group,low-dose group,medium-dose group and high-dose group of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction.Except for the control group,all the other groups were exposed to 100μg/L AlCl 3 for 7 d.After that,video was recorded,and behavioral analysis was carried out with behavioral record and analysis software Smart 3.0.And then the zebrafishes in the other four groups except the model group were treated with Huperzine A(4μg/L)and Huanglian Jiedu Decoction(154,308,616 mg/L)for 6 d,respectively.After that,it was recorded and the behavior of each group was analyzed.[Results]There was a significant difference in the time spent in the left area and the percentage of time in the left area between the control group and the model group(P<0.001).The time spent in the left area and the percentage of time in the left area in the model group and positive group,low,medium and high dose groups of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction decreased significantly(P<0.05,P<0.01,P<0.001).The swimming distance in the left area and the percentage of swimming distance in the left area in the model group were significantly higher than those in the control group(P<0.001).There was a significant difference in swimming distance between model group and positive group,low,medium and high dose groups of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction(P<0.01,P<0.001).In the percentage of swimming distance in the left area,there was a significant difference between the model group and the low and high dose groups of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction(P<0.01,P<0.001).[Conclusions]Huanglian Jiedu Decoction can improve the behavior of zebrafish with Alzheimer's disease.

Cerebroprotective effect of Huanglian Jiedu decoction on amyloid protein precursor/presenilin-1 double transgenic mice

Huanglian Jiedu decoction （HLJDD） has been shown to improve cerebral blood flow, and reduce lipid peroxidation damage to the brain and its energy metabolism. The present study was designed to observe the cerebroprotective effect of HL.JDD on an Alzheimer＇s disease rodent model, presenilin-1/amyloid protein precursor double transgenic mice. HLJDD reduced serum interleukin-6 and interleukin-113 levels, decreased [3-amyloid precursor protein gene and senile plaque expression, resisted oxidation, and reduced free radical-induced injury, thereby improving the learning and memory of these mice. Moreover, HLJDD at 433 mg/kg per day exhibited better effects compared with that at 865 or 216 mg/kg per day, and donepezil hydrochloride at 30 mg/kg per day. Thus, these results suggest that HLJDD may have protective effects against Alzheimer＇s disease.

Effect of Huanglian Jiedu decoction on cogni⁃tive dysfunction of zebrafish with Alzheimer disease

OBJECTIVE To investigate the effects of Huanglian Jiedu decoction on cognitive dysfunction of zebrafish with Alzheimer disease.METHODS 126 g of coptis chinensis,84 g of phellorescent phellorescent chinensis,84 g of scutellaria chinensis and 126 g of gardenia chinensis were immersed in 10,8 and 8 times of water for 30 min,and then extracted at 100℃for 2,1.5 and 1.5 h,respectively.The three extracts were coarse filtered and concentrated into 308 g·L-1 and stored in refrigerator for later use.200 zebrafish were selected for behavioral train⁃ing in T-shaped tank for seven days.After that,the behavioral record analysis software Smart 3.0 was used to conduct behavioral analysis.Qualified zebrafish were selected as the blank group.Except for the blank group,zebrafish in the other 5 groups were exposed to AlCl3100μg·L-1 aquaculture water for modeling,and exposed for 6 d.The behavioral record analysis software Smart 3.0 was used to conduct behavioral analysis,and Select the successfully modeled zebraf⁃ish.After that,huperzine A(4μg·L-1)and Huan⁃glian Jiedu decoction of low,medium and high doses(154,308 and 616 mg·L-1)were adminis⁃tered respectively,and exposed for six days.Then,the behavior analysis was conducted again through the behavioral record analysis soft⁃ware Smart 3.0 to select qualified zebrafish.After the training,the brain and gut of zebrafish in each group were collected,and the expression changes of N-cadherin,p-P38/p38MAPK and p-Tau in the brain were detected by Western blot⁃ting and qPCR to show the effect of Huanglian Jiedu decoction on cognitive dysfunction of Zebrafish with Alzheimer disease.RESULTS Western blotting and qPCR results showed that the contents of N-cadherin increased(P<0.05),and the contents of p-P38/p38MAPK and p-Tau decreased(P<0.05)compared with the model group,indicating that Huanglian Jiadu decoction had an effect on the cognitive dysfunction of zebrafish with Alzheimer disease.CONCLU⁃SION Huanglian Jiedu decoction can alleviate cognitive dysfunction of zebrafish model with Alzheimer disease to a certain extent.

Mechanisms of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction in treating coronary heart disease and type 2 diabetes mellitus based on network pharmacology

Objective:To explore the common mechanism of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction in treating coronary heart disease and type 2 diabetes by network pharmacology.Methods:All chemical components and targets of the four drugs in Huanglian Jiedu Decoction were retrieved through TCMSP,and the genes were standardized through Uniprot database.Acquire disease targets related to coronary heart disease and diabetes in OMIM and GeneCards databases.The network diagram of"drug-component-target-disease"is constructed by using the software of cytopscape 3.7.2,the PPI network diagram of protein interaction is constructed by using STRING database,and the network diagram of"drug-disease"core target is constructed by using the software of cytopscape 3.7.2.DAVID's online database platform was used to analyze GO biological process and KEGG pathway enrichment of common targets of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction in treating coronary heart disease and type 2 diabetes.Results:103 active ingredients of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction were retrieved,including 140 acting targets,5342 coronary heart disease targets,114 diabetes targets,and 14 common intersection targets of drugs and diseases,involving AR,PPARG,TNF,IL6,CCL2,VEGFA,PON1,etc.The GO biological process analysis results in 98 biological processes,10 cell components and 10 molecular functions.Among them are positive regulation of gene expression,positive regulation of nitric oxide biosynthesis process,Extracellular space,cytokine activity,steroid hormone receptor activity and other biological processes;The enrichment analysis of KEGG pathway yielded 20 signal pathways(P≤0.05).It mainly involves Malaria,cancer in cancer,HIF-1 signaling pathway,TNF signaling pathway,NOD-like receptor signaling pathway,PI3K-Akt signaling pathway,etc.Conclusion:Huanglian Jiedu Decoction"treats different diseases at the same time"coronary heart disease and type 2 diabetes have the characteristics of multiple components,multiple targets and multiple pathways,which provide theoretical basis for Huanglian Jiedu Decoction to treat coronary heart disease and type 2 diabetes in clinic,but the key targets and pathways of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction to treat diseases still need further experimental verification.

The active ingredients of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction in treating COVID- 19 based on network pharmacology, molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation

Objective:To explore the active ingredients of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction(HLJD)for the treatment of COVID-19 and to further verify the combination mode.Methods:The TCMSP database was used to search for HLJD active ingredients and targets.COVID-19 targets were collected from GeneCards,DisGeNET and OMIM databases.Material-active-ingredients-targets(gene)network and targets protein-protein interaction network were constructed using Cytoscape 3.8.0 and the STRING database.GO functional enrichment analysis and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis of core targets were performed using R software.Cytoscape 3.8.0 was used to build“compound-targets-pathways”to predict HLJD mechanisms,and active ingredients were used as ligands to molecularly dock with SARS-CoV-23CL hydrolase,Spike glycoprotein and ACE2.The binding energy was calculated by molecular dynamics simulations and molecular mechanics Poisson-Boltzmann surface area method,and intermolecular interactions and the contribution of each residue to the binding free energy were analyzed.Results:Four medicinal materials,66 compounds and 219 targets were identified.It is found that the Protein-Protein Interaction core network contained 35 HLJD key targets proteins for COVID-19 treatment.705 GO functional enrichment entries(P<0.05)were produced;while KEGG pathway enrichment analysis identified 142 pathways(P<0.05)involving the Tumor Necrosis Factor signaling pathway and Interleukin-17 signaling pathway,etc.The binding energies of Kihadanin A,Palmidin A,Obacunone and Hispidone are much smaller than those of the currently reported clinical drugs with anti-SARS-CoV-2 drugs.The results of the binding energy indicate that van der Waals force is the main driving force for enzyme-substrate combination,whereas the electrostatic interaction and non-polar solvents contribute less.Conclusion:The“multi-component-multi-targets-multi-pathway”synergy of HLJD,which binds to SARSCoV-23CL hydrolase,Spike glycoprotein and ACE2,can act on targets Heat Shock Protein 90 Alpha Family Class A Member 1,Adrenoceptor Beta 2,Checkpoint Kinase 1,Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor Gamma and Mitogen-activated protein kinase 14 to regulate multiple signal pathways,and it may have a therapeutic effect on COVID-19.

Network pharmacology and molecular docking analysis on molecular targets and mechanism prediction of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction in the treatment of COVID-19

Objective To investigate and predict the molecular targets and mechanism of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction(黄连解毒汤,HLJDD)in the treatment of Corona Virus Disease 2019(COV-ID-19)through network pharmacology and molecular docking analysis.Methods The chemical constituents and action targets of HLJDD were retrieved on Tradi-tional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform(TCMSP),SymMap v2,Encyclopedia of Traditional Chinese Medicine(ETCM),a High-throughput Ex-periment-and Reference-guided Database of Traditional Chinese Medicine(HERB),and Tra-ditional Chinese Medicine Integrated Database(TCMID).UniProt and GeneCards were used to query the target genes that corresponding to the active compounds,and then a compound-target network was constructed using Cytoscape 3.7.2.Gene Ontology(GO)database was used to annotate GO functions.Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG)was used to predict the possible mechanisms of active compounds.The Database for Annotation,Visu-alization and Integrated Discovery(DAVID)was used to analysis the tissue enrichment.The main active compounds in HLJDD are molecularly docked with their corresponding related targets.Results Seventy-six compounds were screened and 458 corresponding targets in the network were obtained.Gene annotation showed that the targets were involved mainly in 1953 biolo-gical processes.884 signaling pathways was enriched,involving signaling by interleukins,cy-tokine signaling in immune system,generic transcription pathway,and RNA polymerase II transcription.The targets mainly distributed in the lung,liver,and placenta,involving a vari-ety of immune cells,such as T cells and B cells.The molecular docking results showed that core compounds such as wogonin,berberine,and baicalein had high affinity with tumor nec-rosis factor(TNF),insulin(INS),and tumor protein 53(TP53).Conclusion The active compounds in HLJDD may have a therapeutic effect on COVID-19 through regulating multiple signal pathways by targeting genes such as vascular endothelial growth factor A(VEGFA),INS,interleukin-6(IL-6),TNF,caspase-3,TP53,and mitogen-activ-ated protein kinase 3(MAPK3).

Effect of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction on cardiac endoplasmic reticulum stress in spontaneously hypertensive rats

Huanglian Jiedu Decoction(HLJDD)is a quintessential prescription renowned for its heat-clearing and detoxifying properties.It is primarily prescribed to counteract the syndrome characterized by the excessive heat of the Sanjiao fire.Notably,the hyperactivity of liver fire is frequently linked with hypertension,where wind fire and wind toxicity emerge as pivotal pathogenic factors.This study aimed to investigate the impact of HLJDD on the endoplasmic reticulum in spontaneously hypertensive rats(SHR),further delving into the interplay between endoplasmic reticulum stress(ERS)and myocardial remodeling and damage.Fifty SHR rats were stratified randomly into five cohorts:model,low-dose HLJDD,medium-dose HLJDD,high-dose HLJDD,and captopril groups.For comparison,a set of Wistar-Kyoto(WKY)rats served as the baseline control group,with each group comprising 10 rats.While the model and control groups received equivalent volumes of normal saline via gavage,the other groups were administered the respective drug dosages through the same route daily for a span of 6 weeks.Upon the experiment’s conclusion,metrics such as the heart mass index(HWI)and left ventricular mass index(LVWI)were assessed.Cardiac tissue anomalies were identified using H&E staining,while ERS-related protein and mRNA expression levels were ascertained via Western blotting analysis and qPCR.Moreover,TUNEL staining was employed to detect cardiomyocyte apoptosis.The findings indicated that increasing HLJDD concentrations corresponded with escalated HWI and LVWI in rat hearts(P<0.05).There was a marked enhancement in myocardial structural integrity,accompanied by a notable reduction in collagen fibers.The mRNA and protein expressions of myocardial inositol-dependent enzyme 1α(IRE1α),X-box binding protein 1(XBP1),glycoregulatory protein 78(GRP78),and CCAAT enhancer binding protein homologous protein(CHOP)in the medium and high-dose groups saw significant declines(P<0.05).These effects mirrored those observed in the captopril group.The study underscored HLJDD’s efficacy in mitigating myocardial tissue damage in SHR.This therapeutic effect was potentially attributed to the downregulation of IRE1α,XBP1,GRP78,and CHOP,curbing excessive ERS,diminishing cardiomyocyte apoptosis,and thereby conferring cardioprotection.

Comparative study of the protective effect between Jiawei huanglian jiedu decoction and Huanglian jiedu decoction in septic rats

Background Sepsis is a complex pathophysiologic process, which is the leading cause of death in the world. Many studies have revealed that Chinese medicine has shown tremendous advantages on the treatment of sepsis. Our study aims to explore the effect of Huanglian jiedu decoction and Jiawei huanglian jiedu decoction on organ function in septic rats. Methods SD rats were randomly divided into 7 groups, sham-group, cecal ligation and puncture group （CLP, 18h/72h）, Jiawei huanglian jiedu decoction group （JW, 18h/72h）, Huanglian jiedu decoc-tion group （W, 18h/72h）. Except the Sham group, the rats in other groups received cecal ligation and puncture method to induce sepsis. CLP groups were intragastric administration with normal saline after CLP. Huanglian jiedu decoction and Jiawei huanglian jiedu decoction groups were intragastric administration with Huanglian jie-du decoction and Jiawei huanglian jiedu decoction in the same time points. Glutamic-pyruvic transaminase （ALT）, glutamic oxalacetic transaminase （AST）, total bilirubin （TBIL）, creatinine（Cr）, urea, creatine kinase-MB （CK-MB）, lactate dehydrogenase （LDH） were detected by biochemical analyzer. Brain natriuretic peptide （BNP）, surfactant protein A （SP-A）, chemotactic factor for monocyte-1 （MCP-1）, D-lactic acid （D-LAC）, complement 5a, mobility group box-1 protein B 1 （HMGB-1）, interleukin 6 （IL-6） were analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosor-bent assay （ELISA）. Total lung capacity （TLC） and function residual capacity （FRC） were measured by buxco re-search system. The wet to dry weight ratio （W/D） was tested. Moreover, changes in tissue pathology were evaluat-ed using hematoxylin and eosin （H＆E） staining and electron microscope. Results The level of AST/ALT in se-rum was decreased after treatment with Huanglian jiedu decoction and Jiawei huanglian jiedu decoction. More-over, the level of TLC and FRC was significantly increased, and the level of SP-A, W/D was significantly de-creased. In addition, the level of CK-MB, IL-6, HMGB-1 and MCP-1 in serum was decreased. Inflammation fac-tors were positively correlated with lung function, and the cardiac function was positively correlated with the or-gan function, the differences were statistically significant. In addition, the histological alterations of myocardium, lung and intestine were attenuated after treatment with Huanglian jiedu decoction and Jiawei huanglian jiedu de-coction. Conclusion Huanglian jiedu decoction and Jiawei huanglian jiedu decoction can inhibit the inflamma-tory infiltration of septic rats and improve organ function.

Effect of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction on vascular endothelium factor and expression of RhoA protein factor in young spontaneously hypertensive rats

To investigate the mechanism of effect of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction(HLJD) on vascular endothelium, we assessed the protective effect of HLJD on vascular endothelium in spontaneously hypertensive rats(SHR) and the expression of RhoA in thoracic aorta. A total of 40 SHR rats were randomly and evenly divided into model group(SHR group), positive group(captopril group), HLJD high-dose group, and HLJD low-dose group. Simultaneously, 10 Wistar Kyoto rats were used in the blank group. All groups were treated by gavage for 6 weeks. The changes of nitric oxide synthase(NOS), von Willebrand factor(vWF), endothelin(ET-1) and calmodulin(CAM) in rat serum were tested by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA) method. The expression of RhoA at the protein and mRNA levels in thoracic aorta was determined by Western blotting(WB) and quantitative real-time PCR, respectively. Compare with the blank group after 6 weeks, the levels of ET-l and VWF in serum of the model group were significantly increased(P<0.01), and the levels of NOS and CAM were significantly decreased(P<0.01). Conversely, the levels of ET-1 and vWF in the positive and HLJD groups were significantly decreased(P<0.01 or P<0.05), and the levels of NOS and CAM were significantly increased(P<0.01 or P<0.05) compared with the model group. The expression of Rho A at the mRNA and protein levels was decreased obviously(P<0.05) in HLJD high-dose group. The results shown that HLJD increased diastolic factor(CAM and NOS) in the vascular endothelial of rats, leading to reduced contraction factor(ET-1 and vWF). HLJD revealed the preventive function in the vascular endothelial dysfunction of the early stage hypertension through adjusting secretion of blood vessel endothelium(BVE) relaxing factor and improving vascular endothelial function. The mechanism might be associated with the inhibition of the activity of RhoA protein factor.

Bioanalysis and Pharmacokinetics of Eight Active Components from Huanglian Jiedu Decoction in Rat Plasma by LC-ESI-MS/MS Method

Objective To develop a sensitive and rapid liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry （LC-ESI-MS/MS） method for the simultaneous determination of wogonin, coptisine, berberine, palmatine, jatrorrhizine, phellodendrine, magnoflorine, and wogonoside in rat plasma and to evaluate the pharmacokinetic characteristics of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction （HJD）. Methods LC separation was performed on an Acquity HSS T3 column （100 mm × 2.1 mm, 1.8 μm） using gradient elution with the mobile phase consisting of acetonitrile and 0.1% formic acid water. The detection was accomplished by using positive electrospray ionization in multiple-reaction monitoring mode. Plasma samples were pretreated by protein precipitation. Results The method showed a good linearity over a wide concentration range （r^2 〉 0.99）. The lower limits of quantification were 0.20 ng/mL for coptisine and phellodendrine, 0.48 ng/mL for berberine, 0.10 ng/mL for jatrorrhizine, 0.32 ng/mL for magnoflorine, 0.30 ng/mL for palmatine, and 4.80 ng/mL for wogonin and wogonoside, respectively. The intra- and inter-day precision of the analytes was less than 12.11%, while the accuracy was between -14.46% and 4.86%. The mean recovery of all the analytes ranged from 93.10% to 110.91%. Conclusion This validated method offers thee advantages of high sensitivity. It is successfully applied to evaluating the pharmacokinetic properties of HJD.

Effect of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction (黄连解毒汤) on Glucose Transporter 4 Expression in Adipose and Skeletal Muscle Tissues of Insulin Resistant Rats

Objective： To investigate the effects of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction （黄连解毒汤, HLJDD） on glucose transporter 4 （GLUT4） protein expressions in insulin-resistant murine target tissues. Methods： The experimental male Wistar rats were established into insulin resistant models by injecting streptozotocin （STZ 30 mg/kg） via caudal vein and feeding them with high fat high caloric diet, and randomly divided into the model group, the aspirin group and the HLJDD group. Besides, a normal group was set up for control. Changes of body weight （BW）, levels of serum fasting blood glucose （FBG）, serum fasting insulin （FINS） and oral glucose tolerance test （OGTT） were routinely determined. The expression of GLUT4 protein in adipose and skeletal muscle tissues before and after insulin stimulation was determined with Western blot. Results： In the HLJDD group after treatment, BW and FBG got decreased, OGTT improved, and the expression and translocation of GLUT4 protein elevated obviously, either before or after insulin stimulation, as compared with those in the model group, showing significant differences respectively. Conclusion： The mechanism of improving insulin resistance by HLJDD is probably associated with its effect in elevating GLUT4 protein expression and translocation in adipose and skeletal muscle tissues of insulin resistant rats.

Exploring the potential mechanism of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction against sepsis based on network pharmacology

Background Huanglian Jiedu Decoction(HJD) is a typical traditional Chinese medicine which exhibits diverse curative effects against different kinds of diseases because of its multi-components and multi-targets. It has been widely used for the treatment of sepsis. However, the underlying molecular mechanism is still unclear.Methods Network pharmacology was applied to analyze the potential active ingredients and molecular mechanism of HJD in the treatment of sepsis.Results As a result, we totally found 102 active ingredients and 221 corresponding targets. Among them, 117 were hit by the 1 837 targets associated with sepsis. Our further analysis demonstrated 57 drug and disease intersection targets. Based on Gene Ontology(GO) enrichment analysis, 2176 biological process terms, 84 molecular function terms and 28 cellular component terms were acquired. By performing Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG) enrichment analysis, we acquired the dominating signaling pathways associated with sepsis. By constructing protein-protein interaction network of common targets, 11 hub genes were identified.Conclusions Taken together, our results indicated that HJD may protect against sepsis via a mechanism involving multiple targets and pathways.

Effect of clearing heat and detoxification method on macrophages polarization in patients with acute myocardial infarction and heat toxin syndrome after intervention

Objective:To evaluate the effect of heat-clearing and detoxifying method on the macrophages polarization in patients with acute myocardial infarction with heat toxin syndrome after intervention.Methods:Sixty patients with acute myocardial infarction and undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention with heat toxin syndrome were randomly divided into a control group and a test group with 30 cases each.The control group was given conventional treatment,and the test group was given Huanglian Jiedu Decoction,the representative of the method of clearing heat and detoxification,orally on the basis of the control group.The intervention time of both groups was 2 weeks.Comparing The Seattle Angina Pectoris Scale(SAQ)before and after treatment,creatine kinase(CK),creatine kinase MB isoenzyme(CKMB),high-sensitivity troponin I(hs-TnI),and Lipoprotein-associated phospholipaseA2(LPPLA_2)),the phenotype ratio of M1 and M2 macrophages,and observe the adverse reactions.Results:After treatment,the SAQ scores of the two groups of patients were improved,and the levels of CK,CK-MB,hs-TnI,and LP-PLA_2 decreased significantly.The scores of AS,AF,TS,and DP in the SAQ of the test group were all higher than those of the control group,and the hs-TnI and LP-PLA_2 were better than those of the control Group(P<0.05 or P<0.01).After treatment,the proportion of M1 type macrophages in the two groups of patients'macrophages decreased significantly(P<0.05 or P<0.01),the ratio of M2 type macrophages increased(P<0.05),and the M1/M2 ratio decreased.The ratio of M1/M2 in the test group of the control group was significantly lower than that of the control group(P<0.01).There were no obvious adverse reactions in both groups.Conclusions:The method of clearing heat and detoxifying has a definite effect on patients with acute myocardial infarction of heat toxin syndrome after interventional operation.It can reduce myocardial damage,improve myocardial function,and reduce inflammation.And it is safe for clinical treatment without any increasing risk of bleeding or other risk of cardiovascular events.