Synergistic effects of three traditional herbs green tea,mulberry leaf and corn silk on glucose uptake level of L6 myoblasts and the hypoglycemic mechanism

Background:Green tea,mulberry leaf and corn silk are traditional herbs used in the prevention and treatment of diabetes in China for a long time,but their synergistic hypoglycemic effects and mechanisms remain unclear.Methods:The effective components of green tea,mulberry leaf and corn silk were extracted and enriched.Mixture design of experiments was used to study the influences of different combinations on the cell viability and glucose uptake level of L6 myoblasts,so as to determine the optimal synergistic hypoglycemic combination.The possible hypoglycemic mechanism of the optimal synergistic combination was explored by cytotoxicity assay,glucose uptake assay,and western blot.Results:Three polyphenol enrichment fractions of the herbs,30%ethanol elution fraction of green tea(GT),50%ethanol elution fraction of mulberry leaf(ML)and 60%ethanol elution fraction of corn silk(CS)were obtained.The antioxidant activities of GT-30%,ML-50%and CS-60%were superior to those of crude extracts,and showed strong potential inα-amylase andα-glucosidase inhibition activities.The optimal synergistic combination of crude extracts G7(crude extract of green tea:crude extract of mulberry leaf:crude extract of corn silk=1:5:3),polyphenol enrichment fractions R3(GT-30%:ML-50%:CS-60%=1:7:1)and monomers X2(epigallocatechin gallate:morusin:formononetin=3:1:2)were selected,respectively.G7,R3,and X2 showed promoting effects on the cell viability and glucose uptake of L6 myoblasts within the detected concentration range.In addition,G7,R3,and X2 could increase the expression levels of p-PI3K/PI3K and p-Akt/Akt in L6 myoblasts,and promote the translocation of Glut4,but G7 and R3 showed more significant effects.Conclusion:The synergistic hypoglycemic effects of green tea,mulberry leaf and corn silk had the characteristics of multiple-components and multiple-targets with p-PI3K/PI3K,p-Akt/Akt and the translocation of Glut4 signal pathways involved.The three traditional herbs might have the potential to be combined used for the prevention and treatment of diabetes based on the synergistic hypoglycemic effects.

Efficacy and Safety of Chinese Herbal Medicines Combined with Chemical Drugs for Alzheimer's Disease:A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Objective:To evaluate the efficacy and safety of Chinese herbal medicines(CHMs)combined with chemical drugs for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease(AD).Materials and Methods:Databases were searched to retrieve randomized controlled trials(RCTs)of CHMs combined with tacrine,galantamine,rivastigmine,donepezil,or memantine,following strict inclusion and exclusion criteria.Only research papers published in English,Chinese,and Japanese were considered.The primary outcome was the mini-mental state examination(MMSE)score and the secondary outcomes were AD assessment scale cognitive subscale(ADAS-Cog)score and safety evaluation.Meta-analysis was carried out using Rev Man 5.3 and subgroup analysis was conducted to identify the sources of heterogeneity.Results:A total of 15 RCTs with 1386 participants were included in this study.Only donepezil was used in the retrieved literature.Meta-analyses showed that the combination of CHMs with donepezil led to significant improvement in the MMSE score(Z=9.45;P<0.00001;weighted mean difference[WMD]=2.68,95%confidence interval[CI]:2.12-3.24)and a significant decrease in the ADAS-Cog score(Z=5.53;P<0.00001;WMD=-3.79;95%CI:-5.13--2.44).Safety evaluation demonstrated that these combination treatments relieved adverse events such as insomnia(risk ratio[RR]=0.20,95%CI:0.06-0.68;P=0.01)and hive(RR=0.10;95%CI:0.01-0.73;P=0.02).Conclusions:The combination of CHMs with a chemical drug like donepezil led to significant improvements in patient cognition as well as a better safety profile when compared to the application of a chemical drug alone.

Liguzinediol protects against apoptosis induced by doxorubicin in H9C2 cells

OBJECTIVE Liguzinediol is a derivative of the natural active ingredient ligustrazine,and we found that liguzinediol has significant positive inotropic effects,which are stronger than that of TMP.Besides,it does not lead to arrhythmia,hypotension and other side effects.This study aims to investigate the anti-apoptotic effects of liguzinediolon H9C2 cells.METHODS Apoptotic H9C2 cells induced by DOX were observed by electron microscope and FCM analysis.The protein expressions of Bax,Bcl-2,caspases 3 and NF-κB were detected by Western blotting.RESULTS Apoptotic H9C2 cells induced by DOX were observed,but without apoptotic bodies in liguzinediol group.Declined peak of H9C2 cell apoptosis was seen in liguzinediol group by FCM analysis.And downregulation of Bax,caspases 3,NF-κB and upregulation of Bcl-2 were found by Western blotting.CONCLUSION Liguzinediol protected cardiomyocytes against apoptosis through downregulation of Bax and caspases 3 and upregulation of Bcl-2.Liguzinediol can inhibited cardiomyocyte apoptosis through the NF-κB signal pathway.

The efficacy and safety of Shuxuening injection combined with western medicine in vascular dementia treatment:a meta-analysis

Background:To systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of the Chinese patent medicine Shuxuening injection combined with western medicine in vascular dementia treatment.Methods:Randomized controlled trials of the Chinese patent medicine Shuxuening injection in vascular dementia treatment is searched in the databases of CNKI,Wanfang,VIP,CBM,PubMed,The Cochrane Library,Embase and Web of Science from the establishment time to December 2020.After screen the literature,extract the data and evaluate the bias risk of studies included;tRevMan5.3 was used for met-analysis.Results:Nine randomized controlled trials including 932 patients were included.The results of meta-analysis included:(1)the total effective rate(RR=1.27,95%CI(1.18,1.36),P<0.00001);(2)MMSE score(MD=4.78,95%CI(1.75,7.80),P=0.002);(3)ADL score(MD=8.87,95%CI(6.70,11.05),P<0.00001);(4)NIHSS score(MD=−6.60,95%CI(−7.04,−6.16).P<0.00001).The results of meta-analysis of the test group are better than those in the control group.Conclusion:The Chinese patent medicine Shuxuening injection combined with conventional western medicine has showed some advantages in the total effective rate,MMSE score,ADL score,NIHSS score than conventional western medicine without more side effects in vascular dementia treatment.More randomized,double-blind,large sample clinical studies are needed to confirm the above conclusions.

Evaluation on Hot/Cold Drug Property of Acaí(Euterpe oleracea Mart.) by Cytological Study Methods

Objective: To determine the hot/cold of South American A?aí(Euterpe oleracea Mart.). Materials and Methods: 3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide(MTT) assay was performed to compare the influence of A?aí and phellodendron bark(Cortex Phellodendri Chinensis) on the growth and proliferation of HepG2 and Hep3 B cell strains. The morphological changes of the two cell strains treated with A?aí and C. Phellodendri were observed using an inverted phase contrast microscope. Trypan blue dye exclusion assay was used to compare and analyze the toxicity effects of A?aí. The content of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide(NADH) and the ratio of NADH/NAD+ of the treated cells were detected using a spectrophotometer to determine the influence of A?aí to the energy metabolism of the two cell strains. Results: Within the range of measured concentrations, both A?aí and C. Phellodendri displayed separately the stronger inhibitory effects on cell growth, proliferation, and energy metabolism of the two cell strains. By MTT assay, A?aí showed significant(P < 0.05) or highly significant(P < 0.01) inhibitory effects on cell proliferation within the concentration range of 0.25–40 μg/mL, which was similar to the effects of C. Phellodendri. From the results of microscopic examination, the morphological of lower cell density, attenuated granularity, and more outstretched cells in irregular polygonal shape could be observed in the cells treated with A?aí, which was also similar to that of C. Phellodendri. In trypan blue staining assay, all concentrations of A?aí showed negligible toxicity effects, exactly as that of C. Phellodendri. A?aí showed a highly significant effect of decreasing the content of intracellular NADH as well as the ratio of NADH/NAD+(P < 0.05 and P < 0.01, respectively). Conclusion: The effect of A?aí on HepG2 and Hep3 B strains just as C. Phellodendri can reduce energy metabolism and inhibit the growth and proliferation. All performance characteristics of two cell strains treated with A?aí belong to that characteristic of cold property drug. From the study results, we can deduce that the drug property of A?aí is cold.