Novel SNP markers on ginsenosides biosynthesis functional gene for authentication of ginseng herbs and commercial products

Panax ginseng and Panax quinquefolius have similar bioactive components and morphological characteristics, but they are known to have different medicinal values, high-sensitive and accurate method is expected to identify the sources of ginseng products and evaluate the quality, but with a huge challenge. Our established UHPLC-TOF/MS method coupled with orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis(OPLS-DA) model based on 18 ginsenosides was applied to discriminate the sources of raw medicinal materials in ginseng products, and nested PCR strategy was used to discover 6 novel single nucleotide polymorphism(SNP)sites in functional dammarenediol synthase(DS) gene for genetic authentication of P. ginseng and P. quinquefolius for the first time.OPLS-DA model could identify the sources of raw ginseng materials are real or not. SNP markers were applied to identify ginseng fresh samples as well as commercial products, and proved to be successful. This established molecular method can tell exact source information of adulterants, and it was highly sensitive and specific even when total DNA amount was only 0.1 ng and the adulteration was as low as 1%. Therefore, this study made an attempt at the exploration of new type SNP marker for variety authentication and function regulation at the same time, and the combination of chemical and molecular discrimination methods provided the comprehensive evaluation and authentication for the sources of ginseng herbs and products.

Full synthesis and bioactivity evaluation of Tn-RC-529 derivative conjugates as self-adjuvanting cancer vaccines

A facile and efficient strategy was established for the construction of RC-529 and its derivatives.Four conjugates of RC-529 derivatives with Tn antigen were synthesized and all elicited strong and T celldependent immune responses in mice without requiring external adjuvants.In addition,all antisera induced by these conjugates could specifically recognize,bind to and kill Tn-overexpressing cancer cells.Thus,RC-529 shows promise as a useful platform for the development of new vaccine carriers with self-adjuvanting properties for the treatment of cancer.Moreover,preliminary structure-activity relationship analysis provides convincing support for further optimization of,and additional investigation into RC-529.

3, 4-seco-Labdane diterpenoids from the leaves of Callicarpa nudiflora with anti-inflammatory effects

Four new 3,4-seco-labdane diterpenoids,nudiflopenes J-M,were isolated from the leaves of Callicarpa nudiflora along with six known compounds.The structures of these diterpenoids were determined by comprehensive spectroscopic analysis.All the isolated compounds were evaluated for their inhibitory effects on NO production in LPS-stimulated RPMs and RAW264.7 cells.The results suggest that nudiflopenes J-M and other four known compounds showed significant inhibitory effects against NO production comparable to the positive control dexamethasone.

Exploring the catalytic function and active sites of a novel C-glycosyltransferase from Anemarrhena asphodeloides

Anemarrhena asphodeloides is an immensely popular medicinal herb in China,which contains an abundant of mangiferin.As an important bioactive xanthone C-glycoside,mangiferin possesses a variety of pharmacological activities and is derived from the cyclization reaction of a benzophenone C-glycoside(maclurin).Biosyntheti-cally,C-glycosyltransferases are critical for the formation of benzophenone C-glycosides.However,the benzo-phenone C-glycosyltransferases from Anemarrhena asphodeloides have not been discovered.Herein,a promiscuous C-glycosyltransferase(AaCGT)was identified from Anemarrhena asphodeloides.It was able to catalyze efficiently mono-C-glycosylation of benzophenone,together with di-C-glycosylation of dihydrochalcone.It also exhibited the weak O-glycosylation or potent S-glycosylation capacities toward 12 other types of flavonoid scaffolds and a simple aromatic compound with–SH group.Homology modeling and mutagenesis experiments revealed that the glycosylation reaction of AaCGT was initiated by the conserved residue H23 as the catalytic base.Three critical residues H356,W359 and D380 were involved in the recognition of sugar donor through hydrogen-bonding interactions.In particular,the double mutant of F94W/L378M led to an unexpected enzy-matic conversion of mono-C-to di-C-glycosylation.This study highlights the important value of AaCGT as a potential biocatalyst for efficiently synthesizing high-value C-glycosides.

Two cardenolide glycosides from the seed fairs of Asclepias curassavica and their cytotoxic activities

Two cardenolide glycosides,corotoxigenin 3-0-[β-D-glucopyranosyl-(l→4)-6-deoxy-β-D-glucopyranoside](1)and coroglaucigenin 3-0-[β-D-glucopyranosyl-(l→4)-6-deoxy-β-D-glucopyranoside](2),were isolated from the seed fairs of Asclepias curassavica.The structures of 1-2 were determined based on the combination of the analysis of their MS,NMR spectroscopic data and acid hydrolysis.The inhibitory effects of compounds 1 and 2 on human colorectal carcinoma cells(HCT116),non-small cell lung carcinoma cells(A549)and hepatic cancer cells(SMMC-7721)were evaluated.The results showed that both compounds 1 and 2 significantly inhibited the viability,proliferation,and migration of A549,HCT116 and SMMC-7721 cells,suggesting that compounds 1 and 2 can be applied in the treatment of lung,colon and liver cancers in clinical practice.This study may not only provide a scientific basis for clarifying the active ingredients in A.curassavica,but also help to understand its antitumor activity,which can promote the application of A.curassavica in clinical treatment of various cancers.

Natural products as LSD1 inhibitors for cancer therapy

Natural products generally fall into the biologically relevant chemical space and always possess novel biological activities, thus making them a rich source of lead compounds for new drug discovery. With the recent technological advances, natural product-based drug discovery is now reaching a new era. Natural products have also shown promise in epigenetic drug discovery, some of them have advanced into clinical trials or are presently being used in clinic. The histone lysine specific demethylase1(LSD1), an important class of histone demethylases, has fundamental roles in the development of various pathological conditions. Targeting LSD1 has been recognized as a promising therapeutic option for cancer treatment. Notably, some natural products with different chemotypes including protoberberine alkaloids, flavones, polyphenols, and cyclic peptides have shown effectiveness against LSD1. These natural products provide novel scaffolds for developing new LSD1 inhibitors. In this review, we mainly discuss the identification of natural LSD1 inhibitors, analysis of the co-crystal structures of LSD1/natural product complex, antitumor activity and their modes of action. We also briefly discuss the challenges faced in this field. We believe this review will provide a landscape of natural LSD1 inhibitors.

Small-molecule MDM2/X inhibitors and PROTAC degraders for cancer therapy:advances and perspectives

Blocking the MDM2/X-P53 protein-protein interaction has been widely recognized as an attractive therapeutic strategy for the treatment of cancers.Numerous small-molecule MDM2 inhibitors have been reported since the release of the structure of the MDM2-P53 interaction in 1996,SAR405838,NVP-CGM097,MK-8242,RG7112,RG7388,DS-3032 b,and AMG232 currently undergo clinical evaluation for cancer therapy.This review is intended to provide a comprehensive and updated overview of MDM2 inhibitors and proteolysis targeting chimera(PROTAC)degraders with a particular focus on how these inhibitors or degraders are identified from starting points,strategies employed,structure-activity relationship(SAR)studies,binding modes or co-crystal structures,biochemical data,mechanistic studies,and preclinical/clinical studies.Moreover,we briefly discuss the challenges of designing MDM2/X inhibitors for cancer therapy such as dual MDM2/X inhibition,acquired resistance and toxicity of P53 activation as well as future directions.

Fully synthetic Tn-based three-component cancer vaccine using covalently linked TLR4 ligand MPLA and iNKT cell agonist KRN-7000 as built-in adjuvant effectively protects mice from tumor development

We present a new strategy for self-adjuvanting vaccine development that has different types of covalently-linked immunostimulants as the carrier molecule.Using Tn antigen as the model,a three-component vaccine(MPLA-Tn-KRN7000)containing the TLR4 ligand MPLA and the iNKT cell agonist KRN7000 was designed and synthesized.This expands fully synthetic self-adjuvanting vaccine studies that use a single carrier to one with two different types of carriers.The corresponding two-component conjugate vaccines Tn-MPLA,Tn-KRN7000 and Tn-CRM197 were also synthesized,as controls.The immunological evaluation found that MPLA-Tn-KRN7000 elicits robust Tn-specific and T cell-dependent immunity.The antibodies specifically recognized,bound to and exhibited complement-dependent cytotoxicity against Tn-positive cancer cells.In addition,MPLA-Tn-KRN7000 increased the survival rate and survival time of tumor-challenged mice,and surviving mice reject further tumor attacks without any additional treatment.Compared to the glycoprotein vaccine Tn-CRM197,the two-component conjugate vaccines,Tn-MPLA and Tn-KRN7000,and the physical mixture of Tn-MPLA and Tn-KRN7000,MPLA-Tn-KRN7000 showed the most effect at combating tumor cells both in vitro and in vivo.The comparison of immunological studies in wild-type and TLR4 knockout mice,along with the test of binding affinity to CD1d protein suggests that the covalently linked MPLA-KRN7000 immunostimulant induces a synergistic activation of TLR4 and iNKT cell that improves the immunogenicity of Tn.This work demonstrates that MPLA-Tn-KRN7000 has the potential to be a vaccine candidate and provides a new direction for fully synthetic vaccine design.

Non-covalent glycosylated gold nanoparticles/peptides nanovaccine as potential cancer vaccines

Herein,we firstly developed a non-covalent glycosylated gold nanoparticles/peptides nanovaccine which is assembled byβ-cyclodextrin(β-CD)based host-guest recognitions.This nanovaccine can generate significant titers of antibodies and improve the therapeutic effect against melanoma,suggesting the immunogenicity of peptide antigens can be improved by loading with this carrier.The novel vaccine carrier provides a platform for the transport of various antigens especially T cell-independent antigens.

miR-7/TGF-β2 axis sustains acidic tumor microenvironment-induced lung cancer metastasis

Acidosis,regardless of hypoxia involvement,is recognized as a chronic and harsh tumor microenvironment(TME)that educates malignant cells to thrive and metastasize.Although overwhelming evidence supports an acidic environment as a driver or ubiquitous hallmark of cancer progression,the unrevealed core mechanisms underlying the direct effect of acidification on tumorigenesis have hindered the discovery of novel therapeutic targets and clinical therapy.Here,chemical-induced and transgenic mouse models for colon,liver and lung cancer were established,respectively.miR-7 and TGF-β2 expressions were examined in clinical tissues(n=184).RNA-seq,miRNA-seq,proteomics,biosynthesis analyses and functional studies were performed to validate the mechanisms involved in the acidic TME-induced lung cancer metastasis.Our data show that lung cancer is sensitive to the increased acidification of TME,and acidic TME-induced lung cancer metastasis via inhibition of miR-7-5 p.TGF-β2 is a direct target of miR-7-5 p.The reduced expression of miR-7-5 p subsequently increases the expression of TGF-β2 which enhances the metastatic potential of the lung cancer.Indeed,overexpression of miR-7-5 p reduces the acidic p H-enhanced lung cancer metastasis.Furthermore,the human lung tumor samples also show a reduced miR-7-5 p expression but an elevated level of activated TGF-β2;the expressions of both miR-7-5 p and TGF-β2 are correlated with patients’survival.We are the first to identify the role of the miR-7/TGF-β2 axis in acidic p H-enhanced lung cancer metastasis.Our study not only delineates how acidification directly affects tumorigenesis,but also suggests miR-7 is a novel reliable biomarker for acidic TME and a novel therapeutic target for non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC)treatment.Our study opens an avenue to explore the p H-sensitive subcellular components as novel therapeutic targets for cancer treatment.

IKKβ mediates homeostatic function in inflammation via competitively phosphorylating AMPK and IκBα

Inhibitor of nuclear factor kappa-B kinase subunit beta(IKKβ)is one of important kinases in inflammation to phosphorylate inhibitor of nuclear factor kappa-B(IκBα)and then activate nuclear factor kappa-B(NF-κB).Inhibition of IKKβhas been a therapeutic strategy for inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.Here we report that IKKβis constitutively activated in healthy donors and healthy Ikkβ^(C46A)(cysteine 46 mutated to alanine)knock-in mice although they possess intensive IKKβ-IκBα-NF-κB signaling activation.These indicate that IKKβactivation probably plays homeostatic role instead of causing inflammation.Compared to IkkβWTlittermates,lipopolysaccharides(LPS)could induce high mortality rate in Ikkβ^(C46A) mice which is correlated to breaking the homeostasis by intensively activating p-IκBα-NF-κB signaling and inhibiting phosphorylation of 5’adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase(p-AMPK)expression.We then demonstrated that IKKβkinase domain(KD)phosphorylates AMPKa1 via interacting with residues Thr183,Ser184,and Thr388,while IKKβhelix-loop-helix motifs is essential to phosphorylate IκBαaccording to the previous reports.Kinase assay further demonstrated that IKKβsimultaneously catalyzes phosphorylation of AMPK and IκBαto mediate homeostasis.Accordingly,activation of AMPK rather than inhibition of IKKβcould substantially rescue LPS-induced mortality in Ikkβ^(C46A) mice by rebuilding the homeostasis.We conclude that IKKβactivates AMPK to restrict inflammation and IKKβmediates homeostatic function in inflammation via competitively phosphorylating AMPK and IκBα.

MUC1 vaccines usingβ-cyclodextrin grafted chitosan(CS-g-CD)as carrier via host-guest interaction elicit robust immune responses

We construct MUC1 vaccines usingβ-cyclodextrin grafted chitosan(CS-g-CD)as carrier via host-guest interaction.These vaccines based on non-covalent assembling can provoke robust immune responses,including high level of specific antibodies and cytokines.The induced antibodies can specifically recognize tumor cells and mediate cytotoxicity against tumor cells.These results indicate that CS-g-CD with strong immunostimulatory activities can be a straightforward platform for peptide-based vaccine construction.