Indigo Naturalis(青黛)Comes from Blue,but It Excels Blue

Indigo naturalis(青黛)is also called“indigo flower,”“bright cyan,”and“cyan clam powder.”The alias“indigo flower”shows its complex progress about producing dyes.The alias“bright cyan”vividly displays the visual characteristics of indigo naturalis.Its another alias“cyan clam powder”implies its properties,flavors,and particular morphologic characteristics.The name of“indigo naturalis”emphasizes its wide use in ancient times to paint their eyebrows.Indigo naturalis,which comes from the Persian Kingdom,wins the favor and praise of customers in the respects of dye and cosmetics in both Eastern and Western Regions.It not only shows the infinite charm of dye culture in the Western Regions and provides a visual sensation for people,but also adds new color for Chinese medicine culture.

Systematic review on the adverse reactions of oral administration of Indigo Naturalis and its preparations

Objective:This article systematically analyses the effects of adverse drug events/adverse drug reactions(ADEs/ADRs)of oral Indigo Naturalis(Qingdai)preparations in order to provide references for its rational clinical application.Methods:All clinical studies reporting ADE/ADR related to the oral administration of Qingdai preparations were searched through electronic databases,including PubMed,the Cochrane Library,Embase,China National Knowledge Infrastructure(CNKI),China Biology Medicine disc(CBM),VIP Information Chinese Journal Service Platform(VIP),and Wanfang database,from inception to September 27,2020.Information were extracted from these literatures,including primary disease,type of adverse reactions,dose,treatment,outcomes and so on.Incidence of ADE/ADR was estimated,as well as distribution of primary diseases and victim organs and systems were analyzed.Results:A total of 682 articles were included,with 651 clinical population studies and 31 case reports.Among them,604 detailed ADR/AE involving 33459 patients using oral Qingdai preparations,and a total of 5061 cases were found to present adverse events,including 2827 cases of digestive system(abdominal pain,diarrhea,etc.),469 cases of blood system damage(thrombocytopenia,leukopenia,anemia,etc.),313 cases of liver damage(abnormal liver function,liver toxicity,elevated liver enzymes,etc.),327 cases of nervous system reactions(headache,dizziness,poor sleep,etc.)and 1186 cases of other systems and organs.Severe adverse events(SAEs)mainly were liver damage,and could be relived after symptomatic treatment.Conclusion:From the systematic information retrieval and analysis,it is found that oral Qingdai preparations application may clinically cause ADEs/ADRs in terms of gastrointestinal tract and liver damage.Therefore,when using oral Qingdai preparations,liver and stomach protection should be done.At the same time,pay close attention to various biochemical indicators and the patient's drug response during the treatment process,and,if necessary,deal with it in time so as not to deteriorate the condition.Moreover,active surveillance system should be conducted to monitor ADE/ADR,so as to establish a clearer causal relationship between the drug and the adverse event.

Study on the feasibility of Danggui Longhui pill in the treatment of COVID-19 based on network pharmacology

Background:To preliminary the feasibility and the potential mechanism of classic ancient prescription of Chinese medicine Danggui Longhui pill in the treatment of COVID-19 based on network pharmacology.Methods:The active constituents and acting targets of classic ancient prescription of Chinese medicine Danggui Longhui pill were collected and screen out by Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platformand Genecard databases.Cytoscape-v3.7.2 software and Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes databases were used to construct and analyze networks and protein-protein interaction network.The R programming language software combined with Bioconductor were used to analyze gene function(the gene oncology)and gene pathway(Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes)enrichment of the targets.Results:Seventy-three active constituents of classic ancient prescription of Chinese medicine classic ancient prescription of Chinese medicine Danggui Longhui pill played its effect on 48 targets through 83 signal pathway were effected,including advanced glycation end products/receptor for advanced glycation end products,interleukin-17,tumorecrosis factor,NOD-like receptor and cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction.Conclusion:Classic ancient prescription of Chinese medicine Danggui Longhui pill has certain feasibility in the treatment of COVID-19.To predict the potential mechanism of classic ancient prescription of Chinese medicine Danggui Longhui pill in the treatment of COVID-19 may be related to the regulate inflammation and immune system.

Exploration of the molecular mechanism of Indigo Naturalis in the treatment of myelodysplastic syndromes through integrated pharmacological study

Background:Oral administration of indigo naturalis(IN)is used as a complementary and alternative medicine(CAM)regimen for the treatment of myelodysplastic syndromes(MDS).However,its mechanism of action has not been fully elucidated and needs to be further explored.Methods:By searching the traditional Chinese medicine system and analyzing platforms(TCMSP),bioinformatics analysis tool for the molecular mechanism of traditional Chinese medicine(BATMAN-TCM),and Swiss Target Prediction network database,the main active components and potential targets of IN were obtained.Based on this,a component-target network was established by Cytoscape 3.6.1 software.Differentially expressed genes(DGEs)in MDS were obtained from three GEO(Gene Expression Omnibus)gene chips.Then,the protein-protein interaction(PPI)network of DGEs was constructed and analyzed by STRING database and Cytoscape 3.6.1 software.In addition,Gene Ontology(GO)and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG)biological enrichment analysis were carried out using REVIGO and KEGG Orthology Based Annotation System(KOBAS)on DGEs,respectively.Identification of IN-MDS compound targets was performed by matching potential targets of active components with disease-related targets.The results of KEGG pathway enrichment analysis were combined with compound targets to screen key targets.In the end,molecular docking was performed by SYBYL-X2.1 to verify the key targets.Results:Nine active components of IN and 439 potential targets of IN were identified by analyzing TCMSP,BATMAN-TCM,and Swiss Target Prediction network databases.Three MDS disease-related gene microarray chips were obtained from the GEO databases:GSE4619,GSE19429,and GSE58831.Through this analysis,87 DEGs were finally obtained using the Venn diagram.A PPI network of DEGs was then constructed,in which 18 genes were upregulated and 69 genes were downregulated.After the GO enrichment results were de-redundant,the representative GO terms were obtained by using REVIGO semantic similarity measuremen.The KEGG biological pathway analysis using the KOBAS indicated that the Hippo signaling pathway is important in MDS.The Hippo signaling pathway involves four genes:AREG,LEF1,SMAD7,and TCF4.By matching and mapping DEGs with potential targets,six IN-MDS compound targets were obtained:PDE4B,PLAUR,ELANE,NR3C1,AREG,and LEF1.We found that AREG and LEF1 are consistent with the genes involved in the Hippo signaling pathway.Through molecular docking simulation,we found that the indican binds best to AREG and LEF1.Conclusion:Based on the integrated pharmacology model,the material basis of the efficacy and biological molecular mechanism of IN in the treatment of MDS was systematically studied,which provided a novel indication of the CAM regimen for the improvement of MDS management.

Efficacy of active ingredients in Qingdai(Indigo Naturalis)on ulcerative colitis:a network pharmacology-based evaluation

OBJECTIVE:To elucidate the protective effect of Qingdai(Indigo Naturalis,QD)on ulcerative colitis(UC)by means of in silico and in vivo approaches.METHODS:A systems pharmacology analysis was performed to predict the active components of QD whereas the putative biological targets of QD against UC were obtained through target fishing,network cons-truction and enrichment analyses.Meanwhile,we examined the ameliorative effect of QD in a mouse model of dextran sulfate sodium(DSS)-induced colitis.During the 10-day experiment,the control and diseased mice were given with oral gavages of QD(1.3 g raw herbs·kg^(-1)·d^(-1))or 5-aminosalicylic acid(5-ASA,100 mg·kg^(-1)·d^(-1))every day.The underlying pharma-cological mechanisms of QD in UC were determined using polymerase chain reaction tests,histological staining,enzyme-linked immunoassays,and Western blotting analysis.RESULTS:Searching from various network pharmacology databases,29 compounds were identified in QD.According to the screening criteria suggested by TCMSP(i.e.OB≥30%and DL≥0.18),nine of them were considered the active ingredients that contribute to the ameliorative effects of QD on different mouse models of colitis.Most importantly,the protective effect of QD on DSS-induced colitis was significantly associated with modulations of the expression levels of glycogen synthase kinase 3-β(Gsk3-β)and forkhead box p3(Foxp3),which are widely considered as important regulators of excessive inflammatory responses.CONCLUSIONS:The results of this study provide solid scientific evidence for the use of QD or its core active components in the clinical management of UC.

Safety and efficacy of Compound Huangdai Tablets combined with all-trans retinoic acid for treatment of acute promyelocytic leukemia:Clinical evidence and potential mechanisms

Objective:To evaluate the safety and efficacy of Compound Huangdai Tablets(Realgar-Indigo Naturalis formula,RIF)combined with all-trans retinoic acid(ATRA)to treat acute promyelocytic leukemia(APL).Methods:This study was registered in PROSPERO(CRD42018108118).The relevant literatures on RIF treatment of APL were systematically searched in the following databases:China National Knowledge Infrastructure,Wanfang,VIP Medical Information System,Chinese Biomedical Database,EMBASE,Cochrane Library,and PubMed.The quality of the included studies was evaluated and Review Manager 5.3 software and Stata 13.0 software were used to perform the Meta-analysis.In addition,this study used the method of network pharmacology to conduct a preliminary exploration of the mechanism of RIF on APL.Results:The study included 12 studies involving 775 APL patients.The Meta-analysis showed that there was no significant difference(P>0.05)between the RIF group and the arsenic trioxide(ATO)group for primary outcomes,secondary outcomes apart from liver dysfunction.The incidence of liver dysfunction(P=0.006)in the RIF group were significantly lower than those in the ATO group.In addition,the cost of maintenance therapy in the RIF group was significantly lower(P<0.05)than the ATO group.Besides,the active ingredients in RIF mainly act on targets proteins such as ACHE,NCOA2,RXRA,and then play a role in the treatment of APL through regulating multiple molecular mechanisms,such as TP53 regulates transcription of cell cycle genes,nuclear receptor transcription pathway.Conclusion:There was no significant difference in efficacy of oral RIF combined with ATRA compared with intravenous ATO combined with ATRA for the treatment of APL.The oral RIF exposed patients to less risk,offered more convenience and had lower prices.RIF can treat APL by multi-target and multipathway interventions that inducing apoptosis of APL cells and inhibiting the proliferation of APL cells,and so on.Therefore,oral RIF in the treatment of APL is worthy of further research and development.