“Baihui”(DU20)-penetrating “Qubin”(GB7) acupuncture on blood–brain barrier integrity in rat intracerebral hemorrhage models via the RhoA/ROCK Ⅱ/MLC 2 signaling pathway

Background: Blocking the Rho A/ROCK Ⅱ/MLC 2(Ras homolog gene family member A/Rho kinase Ⅱ/myosin light chain 2) signaling pathway can initiate neuroprotective mechanisms against neurological diseases such as stroke, cerebral ischemia, and subarachnoid hemorrhage. Nevertheless, it is not clear whether and how disrupting the Rho A/ROCK Ⅱ/MLC 2 signaling pathway changes the pathogenic processes of the blood–brain barrier(BBB) after intracerebral hemorrhage(ICH). The present investigation included the injection of rat caudal vein blood into the basal ganglia area to replicate the pathophysiological conditions caused by ICH. Methods: Scalp acupuncture(SA) therapy was performed on rats with ICH at the acupuncture point “Baihui”-penetrating “Qubin,” and the ROCK selective inhibitor fasudil was used as a positive control to evaluate the inhibitory effect of acupuncture on the Rho A/ROCK Ⅱ/MLC 2 signaling pathway. Post-assessments included neurological deficits, brain edema, Evans blue extravasation, Western blot, quantitative polymerase chain reaction, and transmission electron microscope imaging. Results: We found that ROCK Ⅱ acts as a promoter of the Rho A/ROCK Ⅱ/MLC 2 signaling pathway, and its expression increased at 6 h after ICH, peaked at 3 days, and then decreased at 7 days after ICH, but was still higher than the preintervention level. According to some experimental results, although 3 days is the peak, 7 days is the best time point for acupuncture treatment. Starting from 6 h after ICH, the neurovascular structure and endothelial cell morphology around the hematoma began to change. Based on the changes in the promoter ROCK Ⅱ, a 7-day time point was selected as the breakthrough point for treating ICH model rats in the main experiment. The results of this experiment showed that both SA at “Baihui”-penetrating “Qubin” and treatment with fasudil could improve the expression of endothelial-related proteins by inhibiting the Rho A/ROCK Ⅱ/MLC 2 signaling pathway and reduce neurological dysfunction, brain edema, and BBB permeability in rats. Conclusion: This study found that these experimental data indicated that SA at “Baihui”-penetrating “Qubin” could preserve BBB integrity and neurological function recovery after ICH by inhibiting Rho A/ROCK Ⅱ/MLC 2 signaling pathway activation and by regulating endothelial cell–related proteins.

针药结合对糖尿病胃轻瘫大鼠胃窦RhoA/ROCK/MLC信号通路的影响

目的:观察针刺结合益气健脾中药复方对糖尿病胃轻瘫(DGP)大鼠胃肠动力的影响,探讨其可能的作用机制。方法:SD大鼠随机分为空白组、模型组、针刺组、中药组、针药组和西药组,除空白组外采用链脲佐菌素(STZ)尾静脉注射及高糖高脂不规则喂养法建立糖尿病胃轻瘫模型。成模后针刺组每日给予三阴交、足三里穴针刺30 min治疗,中药组每日给予益气健脾中药复方5 g/kg灌胃,针药组先给予益气健脾中药复方5 g/kg灌胃再行针刺(操作同针刺组),西药组每日给予多潘立酮3.15×10^(-3) g/kg灌胃,模型组和空白组每日给予生理盐水10 mL/kg灌胃1次,所有治疗持续4周。治疗过程中记录大鼠一般情况,4周后记录血糖、体质量,酚红灌胃法检测胃排空率及小肠推进率,免疫组化法测定胃窦组织中Ras同源物基因组成员A(RhoA)、Rho蛋白相关卷曲螺旋激酶2(ROCK2)阳性表达,Western blot法测定胃窦组织中磷酸化肌球蛋白磷酸酶靶亚单位1(p-MYPT1)、磷酸化肌球蛋白轻链(p-MLC)蛋白的表达。结果:与空白组比较,模型组大鼠一般情况较差,胃排空率、小肠推进率和RhoA、ROCK2蛋白表达显著降低(P<0.01);与模型组比较,各治疗组大鼠一般情况明显好转,胃排空率、小肠推进率和RhoA、ROCK2、p-MYPT1、p-MLC蛋白表达水平显著升高(P<0.05或P<0.01),针药结合组改善最明显。结论:针刺和中药均可有效促进胃排空,增加小肠推进率,改善胃肠动力,其作用机制可能与上调RhoA/ROCK/MLC信号通路有关,且针药结合疗效更显著。

Research progress of RhoA/ROCK pathway in diabetes-related diseases

RhoA is a small GTPase protein.Its downstream effector protein Rho kinase(ROCK)regulates a variety of cell functions,including cell growth,gene expression and cytoskeleton recombination.Studies have demonstrated that this pathway plays an important pathophysiological role in diabetic nephropathy and other complications,hypertension,stroke,tumor,osteoarthritis,acute lung injury and other diseases.The occurrence and development of diabetes-related disease is closely related to the activation or up-regulation of RhoA/ROCK pathway.As a key target of drug development,ROCK inhibitors have been widely concerned by scholars.This article reviews the relationship between RhoA/ROCK pathway and diabetesrelated disease,and offers a new and effective strategy for the prevention and treatment of this series of diseases.

Research progreess on relevant diseases of RhoA/ROCK signaling pathway

RhoA (Ras homolog gene family member A) belongs to the Rho subfamily of GTPases. ROCK (Rho—associated coiled—coil forming protein kinase) is downstream of the active RhoA and affects the generation and secretion of cellular element, which will result in relevant biologic effects. The RhoA/ROCK signaling pathway consists of these serious reactions. Therefore, the activation and inhibition of this pathway are closely related to the occurrence and development of many diseases. The research on the molecular mechanism of these diseases may be instructive and helpful to the clinical treatmen and prognosis of diseases. Recent studies of these typical diseases related to RhoA/ROCK signaling pathway are viewed in this article.

Mertk Reduces Blood-Spinal Cord Barrier Permeability Through the Rhoa/Rock1/P-MLC Pathway After Spinal Cord Injury

Disruption of the blood-spinal cord barrier(BSCB)is a critical event in the secondary injury following spinal cord injury(SCI).Mertk has been reported to play an important role in regulating inflammation and cytoskeletal dynamics.However,the specific involvement of Mertk in BSCB remains elusive.Here,we demonstrated a distinct role of Mertk in the repair of BSCB.Mertk expression is decreased in endothelial cells following SCI.Overexpression of Mertk upregulated tight junction proteins(TJs),reducing BSCB permeability and subsequently inhibiting inflammation and apoptosis.Ultimately,this led to enhanced neural regeneration and functional recovery.Further experiments revealed that the RhoA/Rock1/P-MLC pathway plays a key role in the effects of Mertk.These findings highlight the role of Mertk in promoting SCI recovery through its ability to mitigate BSCB permeability and may provide potential targets for SCI repair.

RhoA/ROCK信号通路对血管平滑肌收缩的调节作用及研究进展

血管平滑肌的异常收缩是引起许多疾病的重要因素,如高血压,脑血管痉挛等,对于平滑肌收缩调节机制的研究为治疗这些疾病带来新的思路和方向。研究表明小GTP结合蛋白RhoA及其下游信号分子ROCK在平滑肌收缩调节,尤其是钙敏化调节机制中起到关键作用。RhoA/ROCK通路通过抑制MLCP活性而增强MLC的磷酸化水平,从而调节平滑肌收缩,此外,它还参与调节其它细胞的多种细胞功能,如应力纤维的生成,细胞分裂及迁移等。本综述主要介绍RhoA/ROCK通路在血管平滑肌收缩功能的调节机制及研究进展。

Moxibustion pretreatment inhibits RhoA/ROCK signaling to prevent lung inflammation in asthmatic rats

Objective:To determine whether pretreatment moxibustion prevents asthma by down-regulating the lung RhoA/ROCK pathway in rats with bronchial asthma and benignly mediating the lung inflammatory response.Methods:Twenty Sprague Dawley(SD)rats were randomly divided into normal control group(C),asthma model group(M),suspended moxibustion 40 min+asthma group(SM40),and suspended moxibustion 10 min+asthma group(SM10).Ovalbumin was used as a sensitizer.The two moxibustion groups completed moxibustion treatment lasted 40 min or 10 min respectively 30 min before modeling onset,and was repeated five times in each modeling cycle,for a total of 15 times.Samples were harvested on day 30.Results:Lung impairment was significant in the M group,whereas pretreatment with SM10 and SM40 dramatically attenuated the injury.After modeling,mRNA expression of RhoA and ROCK2 in the lung tissue was significantly higher than that in C group(both P<0.001),resulting in significant increase in protein levels of IL-17 A(P<0.001).Significant decrease in RhoA and ROCK2 mRNA expression was seen in the SM10(P<0.001,P<0.01)and SM40(both P<0.001)groups compared to that with M rats.The differential trend in the SM40 group was more evident than that in the SM10 group.Regarding IL-10 or IL-17 A protein concentration,an upregulation or down-regulation was observed in both SM10(P<0.05,P<0.01)and SM40 groups(both P<0.001)compared to that with the M group.Conclusions:Moxibustion pretreatment significantly prevented pulmonary inflammation in asthmatic rats,potentially via inhibition of the RhoA/ROCK pathway.The efficacty of moxibustion appeared to be significantly associated with the duration of intervention with moxibustion.

Inhibition of neurite outgrowth using commercial myelin associated glycoprotein-Fc in neuro-2a cells

Myelin-associated glycoprotein（MAG） inhibits the growth of neurites from nerve cells. Extraction and purification of MAG require complex operations; therefore, we attempted to determine whether commercially available MAG-Fc can replace endogenous MAG for research purposes. Immunofluorescence using specific antibodies against MAG, Nogo receptor（NgR） and paired immunoglobulin-like receptor B（PirB） was used to determine whether MAG-Fc can be endocytosed by neuro-2a cells. In addition, neurite outgrowth of neuro-2a cells treated with different doses of MAG-Fc was evaluated. Enzyme linked immunosorbent assays were used to measure RhoA activity. Western blot assays were conducted to assess Rho-associated protein kinase（ROCK） phosphorylation. Neuro-2a cells expressed NgR and PirB, and MAG-Fc could be endocytosed by binding to NgR and PirB. This activated intracellular signaling pathways to increase RhoA activity and ROCK phosphorylation, ultimately inhibiting neurite outgrowth. These findings not only verify that MAG-Fc can inhibit the growth of neural neurites by activating RhoA signaling pathways, similarly to endogenous MAG, but also clearly demonstrate that commercial MAG-Fc is suitable for experimental studies of neurite outgrowth.

夹脊电针对急性脊髓损伤大鼠脊髓组织微环境Rho-ROCK Ⅱ通路相关因子的影响

目的:观察夹脊电针对脊髓损伤大鼠神经细胞轴突再生相关抑制因子重组人Ras同源物基因家族成员A(RhoA)、Rho蛋白激酶Ⅱ(ROCKⅡ)、肌球蛋白轻链(MLC)蛋白的影响,探讨夹脊电针治疗急性脊髓损伤(ASCI)的作用机制。方法:雌性Wistar大鼠随机分为假手术组、模型组、夹脊电针组、抑制剂组,每组12只。采用脊髓打击法制备大鼠ASCI模型。夹脊电针组于模型制备成功后3h进行夹脊电针治疗,每日1次,每次30 min,连续治疗14d、28d;抑制剂组于造模成功后立即给予腹腔注射盐酸法舒地尔(10mg/kg),每日1次,连续治疗14d、28d。采用BBB评分法评估大鼠后肢运动功能变化,免疫组化法检测各组大鼠脊髓组织中RhoA、ROCKⅡ、MLC蛋白的表达情况。结果:BBB评分结果显示:与假手术组比较,造模后14d、28d模型组大鼠运动功能评分显著降低(P<0.05);与模型组比较,造模后14d、28d夹脊电针组、抑制剂组大鼠运动功能评分均显著升高(P<0.05);夹脊电针组、抑制剂组造模后28d大鼠肢体运动功能评分较造模后14d显著升高(P<0.05)。免疫组化结果显示:与假手术组比较,造模后14d、28d模型组大鼠脊髓组织RhoA、ROCKⅡ、MLC阳性细胞数增加(P<0.05);与模型组相比,造模后14d、28d夹脊电针组、抑制剂组大鼠脊髓组织RhoA、ROCKⅡ、MLC阳性细胞数显著降低(P<0.05);夹脊电针组、抑制剂组造模后28d大鼠脊髓组织RhoA、ROCKⅡ、MLC阳性细胞数较造模后14d显著降低(P<0.05)。结论:夹脊电针能够显著改善ASCI大鼠肢体运动功能,其作用机制可能与抑制大鼠脊髓损伤组织微环境Rho-ROCKⅡ信号通路RhoA、ROCKⅡ、MLC抑制因子表达有关。

Effects of Bunao-Fuyuan decoction serum on proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells in atherosclerotic

Atherosclerosis(AS)is a chronic inflammatory disease,the main causes of which include abnormal lipid metabolism,endothelial injury,physical and chemical injury,hemodynamic injury,genetic factors and so on.These causes can lead to inflammatory injury of blood vessels and local dysfunction.Bunao-Fuyuan decoction(BNFY)is a traditional Chinese medicine compound that can treat cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases,but its effect on AS is still unknown.The aim of this study was to investigate the effect and mechanism of BNFY in proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells(VSMCs)on AS.At first,the expression ofα-SMA protein in ox-LDL-induced VSMCs,which was detected by immunofluorescence staining and western blot.CCK-8 technique and cloning technique were used to detect the cell proliferation of ox-LDL-induced VSMCs after adding BNFY.Meanwhile,the expression of proliferating protein Ki67 was detected by immunofluorescence staining.Western blot was also used to detect the expression of proliferation-related proteins CDK2,CyclinE1 and P27.Flow cytometry was used to detect the effect of BNFY on cell cycle.The effects of BNFY on proliferation and migration of cells were detected by cell scratch test and Transwell.Western blot was used to detect the expression of adhesion factors ICAM1,VCAM1,muc1,VE-cadherin and RHOA/ROCK-related proteins in cells.We found that the expression of AS markerα-SMA protein increased significantly and cells shriveled and a few floated on the medium after induction of ox-LDL on VSCMs.The proliferation rate of ox-LDL VSMCs decreased significantly after adding different doses of BNFY,and BNFY can inhibit cell cycle.Meanwhile,we also found that cell invasion and migration rate were significantly inhibited and related cell adhesion factors ICAM1,VCAM1,muc1 and VE-cadherin were inhibited too by BNFY.Finally,we found that BNFY inhibited the expression of RHOA,ROCK1,ROCK2,p-MLC proteins in the RHOA/ROCK signaling pathway.Therefore,we can summarize that BNFY may inhibit the proliferation and migration of atherosclerotic vascular smooth muscle cells by inhibiting the activity of RHOA/ROCK signaling pathway.