New innovation of moisturizers containing non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents for atopic dermatitis

Atopic dermatitis is a chronic, relapsing and extremely pruritic eczematous disease which commonly affects children. The standard management consists of a combination of anti-inflammatory drugs in adjunctive with skin care management particular moisturizer application. A concern for the side effects associated with long term use of corticosteroids has also been considered. There has been an emerging interest in moisturizer containing non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents such as herbal extracts, vitamins, mineral and lipids. The in vitro and the in vivo studies of each agent were reviewed. The clinical study on the efficacy of moisturizers containing these agents were also demonstrated including the author's studies and clinicalexperience. These moisturizers might be considered as an alternative treatment in acute flare of mild to moderate atopic dermatitis.

Pharmacology of tetrandrine and its therapeutic use in digestive diseases

INTRODUCTIONTetrandrine (Tet) is a dibenzylisoquinoline alkaloid isolatedfrom Stephania tetrandra S. Moore, a Chinese herbalmedicine. In the past decade, lots of studies demonstrated that Tet has multiple bioactivities, It is promising to use Tet as an antifibrogenetic in liver or lung fibrosis with or without portal or pulmonary hypertension, as well as an immunomodulating and anticarcinoma drug.

Anti-inflammatory mechanism of rhein in treating asthma based on network pharmacology

OBJECTIVE:To predict the anti-inflammatory targets and related pathways of rhein in the treatment of asthma by using network pharmacology,and to further explore its potential mechanism in asthma.METHODS:The corresponding targets of rhein were obtained from the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform(TCMSP),and the rhein-target network was constructed with Cytoscape 3.7.1 software.The Genbank and Drugbank databases were used to collect and screen asthma targets,and the rhein-target-disease interaction network was constructed.A target protein-protein interaction(PPI)network was constructed using the STRING database to screen key targets.Finally,Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes(KEGG)enrichment analysis was used to identify biological processes and signaling pathways.The anti-asthmatic effects of rhein were tested in vitro,and the expression levels of proteins in the mitogen-activated protein kinase/nuclear factor kappa-B(MAPK/NF-κB)signaling pathway were assessed by western blot analysis.RESULTS:Altogether,83 targets of rhein were screened in the relevant databases,989 targets of asthma were obtained in the National Center for Biotechnology Information(NCBI)GENE Database.PPI network analysis and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis predicted that rhein could regulate the epidermal active growth factor receptor(EGFR),mitogen-activated protein kinase 14(MAPK14),tumour necrosis factor receptor superfamily member 1A(TNFRSF1A),receptor tyrosineprotein kinase erb B-2(ERBB2),and other signaling pathways.Furthermore,we selected the MAPK signaling pathway to determine the anti-inflammatory effects of rhein.Consistently,further in vitro experiments demonstrated that rhein was shown to inhibit HBE cells inflammation.CONCLUSION:The anti-inflammatory mechanism of rhein in the treatment of asthma may be related to EGFR,MAPK14,TNFRSF1A and ERBB2 as well as their signaling pathways.To prevent the exacerbation of asthma,instead of targeting a single pathway or a single target,all these targets and their signaling pathways should be controlled holistically.Rhein may alleviate the inflammation of asthma by inhibiting the MAPK/NF-κB pathway.

Growth inhibition and apoptosis induction Sulindac on Human gastric cancer cells

AIM: To evaluate the effects of sulindac in inducing growth inhibition and apoptosis of human gastric cancer cells in comparison with human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells. METHODS: The human gastric cancer cell lines MKN45 and MKN28 and human hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines HepG(2) and SMMC7721 were used for the study. Anti-proliferative effect was measured by MTT assay, and apoptosis was determined by Hoechst-33258 staining, electronography and DNA fragmentation. The protein of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and Bcl-2 were detected by Western dot blotting. RESULTS: Sulindac could initiate growth inhibition and apoptosis of MKN45, MKN28, HepG(2) and SMMC7721 cells in a dose-and time-dependent manner. Growth inhibitory activity and apoptosis were more sensitive in HepG(2) cells than in SMMC7721 cells, MKN45 and MKN28 cells. After 24 hours incubation with sulindac at 2mmol x L(-1) and 4mmol x L(-1), the level of COX-2 and Bcl-2 protein were lowered in MKN45, SMMC7721 and HepG(2) cells but not in MKN28 cells. CONCLUSION: Sulindac could inhibit the growth of gastric cancer cells and HCC cells effectively in vitro by apoptosis induction, which was associated with regression of COX-2 and Bcl-2 expression. The growth inhibition and apoptosis of HCC cells were greater than that of human gastric cancer cells. The different effects of apoptosis in gastric cancer cells may be related to the differentiation of the cells.

Diaphragm disease compared with cryptogenic multifocal ulcerous stenosing enteritis

As the use of drugs such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) increases,so too do gastrointestinal ulcers,bleeding,perforation and obstruction.Diaphragm disease of the small intestine is formed by submucosal fibrosis and destruction of lamina muscularis due to chronic ulceration,which corresponds to the most severe stage of NSAID enteropathy.It may lead to stricture of the small intestine.If such ulcerations and strictures in the small intestine are multiple,differential diagnosis is between diaphragm disease and cryptogenic multifocal ulcerous stenosing enteritis (CMUSE),because the gross findings of diaphragm disease are similar to those of CMUSE.We report a rare case of diaphragm disease caused by NSAID.It has been finally confirmed by capsule endoscopy and the origin of chronic obscure gastrointestinal bleeding was found to be multiple ulcers and strictures in the small intestine.After operation,we diagnosed the patient with diaphragm disease rather than CMUSE.

JTE-522-induced apoptosis in human gastric adenocarinoma cell line AGS cells by caspase activation accompanying cytochrome C release,membrane translocation of Bax and loss of mitochondrial membrane potential

AIM: To investigate the role of the mitochondrial pathway in JTE-522-induced apoptosis and to investigate the relationship between cytochrome C release, caspase activity and loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (Deltapsim). METHODS: Cell culture, cell counting, ELISA assay, TUNEL, flow cytometry, Western blot and fluorometric assay were employed to investigate the effect of JTE-522 on cell proliferation and apoptosis in AGS cells and related molecular mechanism. RESULTS: JTE-522 inhibited the growth of AGS cells and induced the apoptosis. Caspases 8 and 9 were activated during apoptosis as judged by the appearance of cleavage products from procaspase and the caspase activities to cleave specific fluorogenic substrates. To elucidate whether the activation of caspases 8 and 9 was required for the apoptosis induction, we examined the effect of caspase-specific inhibitors on apoptosis. The results showed that caspase inhibitors significantly inhibited the apoptosis induced by JTE-522. In addition, the membrane translocation of Bax and cytosolic release of cytochrome C accompanying with the decrease of the uptake of Rhodamin 123, were detected at an early stage of apoptosis. Furthermore, Bax translocation, cytochrome C release, and caspase 9 activation were blocked by Z-VAD.fmk and Z-IETD-CHO. CONCLUSION: The present data indicate a crucial association between activation of caspases 8, 9, cytochrome C release, membrane translocation of Bax, loss of Deltapsim and JTE-522-induced apoptosis in AGS cells.

Post-endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography complications:How can they be avoided?

Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography(ERCP) has a significant complication rate which can be lowered by adopting technical variations of proven beneficial effect and prophylactic maneuvers such as pancreatic stenting during ERCP or periprocedural non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug administration.However,adoption of these prophylactic maneuvers by endoscopists is not uniform.In this editorial we discuss the beneficial effects of the aforementioned maneuvers.

Therapeutic massage for knee osteoarthritis:a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Objective:To evaluate the effectiveness of therapeutic massage(tuina)for treating knee osteoarthritis(KOA).Methods:Six English and Chinese databases,including Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure(CNKI),Wanfang Academic Journal Full-text Database(Wanfang),Chongqing VIP Database(CQV1P),China Biology Medicine Disc(CBM),Cochrane Library and PubMed databases,were independently searched to identify appropriate randomized controlled trials(RCTs)studying therapeutic massage for KOA compared to oral non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs(NSAlDs)alone.The main outcome measures were total effectiveness and the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities osteoarthritis index(WOMAC)score.Results:A total of 8 RCTs were included and they were of average quality.The results showed that therapeutic massage was more effective than NSAlDs comparing total effectiveness[risk ratio(RR)=1.14,95%confidence interval(CI)(1.07,1.21),P<0.0001];compared with NSAlDs,therapeutic massage produced more significant improvements in pain[mean difference(MD)=-2.06,95%CI(-2.75,-1.36),P<0.00001],stiffness intensity[MD=-0.90,95%CI(-1.05,-0.75),P<0.00001]and joint function[MD=-12.48/95%CI(-13.91,-11.05),P<0.00001].Con elusion:Therapeutic massage was more effective than oral NSAlDs in treati ng KOA.In relieving pain and stiffness and improving the function of knee joint,therapeutic massage was superior to NSAIDs.