Liaoning University of Traditional Chinese Medicine

About: Liaoning University of Traditional Chinese Medicine is a education organization based out in Shenyang, China. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Randomized controlled trial & Acupuncture. The organization has 2040 authors who have published 1326 publications receiving 14664 citations.

Osthole Reverses Beta-Amyloid Peptide Cytotoxicity on Neural Cells by Enhancing Cyclic AMP Response Element-Binding Protein Phosphorylation

Abstract: Accumulation of β-amyloid peptide (Aβ) in the brain plays an important role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Previous studies have demonstrated the neuroprotective role of osthole against oxygen and glucose deprivation in cortical neurons. However, the effects of osthole on Aβ-induced neurotoxicity in neural cells have rarely been reported. The current study was designed to investigate the protective effects of osthole on a cell model of AD insulted by exogenous Aβ25-35 and the potential mechanism(s). In this study, 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, immunofluorescence analysis, apoptosis assay, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) techniques were used in primary cortical neurons and SH-SY5Y cells. Our data showed that osthole reduced intracellular Aβ levels in neural cells, which was associated with decreased BACE1 protein; osthole reversed exogenous Aβ25-35-induced cell viability loss, apoptosis, and synapsin-1 reduction, which was related to the reestablishment of phosphorylation of cyclic AMP response element-binding protein (CREB). The collective evidence indicates that osthole possesses the ability to protect cortical neurons and SH-SY5Y cells against Aβ injury, and the underlying mechanism may be attributed to the enhancement of CREB phosphorylation.

Advanced glycation end products induce oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction in SH-SY5Y cells.

Abstract: This study aimed to investigate the direct effects of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) on the mitochondrial structure and function of SH-SY5Y cells and the possible molecular mechanism(s) underlying mitochondria dysfunction by AGEs. SH-SY5Y cells were cultured in 400 μg/ml of AGE-bovine serum albumin (BSA) for 24 h, and changes in the mitochondrial function of SH-SY5Y cells were analysed as follows. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) were detected using 2′,7′-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate molecular probes. Mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm) was determined by flow cytometry using fluorescent probes. The expression of cytochrome c (Cyt c) protein level was assessed by Western blotting. Mitochondrial structures were observed by transmission electron microscopy. Our results showed that AGE-BSA induced an increase in ROS levels, a decrease in mitochondrial ΔΨm, and the release of Cyt c from mitochondria in SH-SY5Y cells. The mitochondria of SH-SY5Y cells showed remarkable swelling and vacuolisation, but these changes were recovered after pretreatment with neutralising anti-receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE) antibody. Our results suggested that AGE-BSA induced mitochondrial dysfunction in SH-SY5Y cells through RAGE pathways. Thus, AGEs are potential mechanistic links between diabetes mellitus and Alzheimer’s disease.

Scutellarin Prevents Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) and Hyperlipidemia via PI3K/AKT-Dependent Activation of Nuclear Factor (Erythroid-Derived 2)-Like 2 (Nrf2) in Rats.

Abstract: BACKGROUND Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a condition characterized by excessive fat accumulation in the form of triglycerides. The incidence of NAFLD and hyperlipidemia, with their associated risks of end-stage liver and cardiovascular diseases, is increasing rapidly. This study aimed to investigate the effects of scutellarin on the experimental NAFLD in high-fat diet fed and chronic stress rats, and its possible mechanism. MATERIAL AND METHODS Sprague-Dawley rats were fed with high-fat diet and subjected to chronic stress for 12 weeks, and administered orally with scutellarin for 4 weeks (n=8), and then blood and livers were harvested for analyzing. Enzyme activity assay, immunofluorescence, Western blot, and quantitative RT-PCR were performed to analyze the factors of the oxidant/antioxidant system and pathway. RESULTS After the high-fat diet and chronic stress administration for 12 weeks, serum and liver lipid metabolism of treatment groups with the different doses of SCU effectively improved and the degree of oxidative damage reduced. Using Western blot assay and immunofluorescence (IF) staining assay, Nrf2, HO-1, and PI3K, and AKT proteins significantly increased after SCU treatment for 4 weeks (P 0.05). These results indicate that SCU protects against NAFLD in rats via attenuation of oxidative stress. CONCLUSIONS The antioxidant effects of SCU on NAFLD are possibly dependent on PI3K/AKT activation with subsequent Nrf2 nuclear translocation, which increases expression of HO-1 and NQO1. We therefore suggest that breviscapine may be a potentially useful therapeutic strategy for NAFLD and hyperlipidemia.

Influence of valproic acid concentration and polymorphism of UGT1A4*3, UGT2B7 -161C > T and UGT2B7*2 on serum concentration of lamotrigine in Chinese epileptic children

Abstract: To investigate the impact of valproic acid (VPA) and genetic polymorphism of the major metabolizing enzyme (UGT1A4, UGT2B7) of lamotrigine (LTG) and VPA on LTG concentration in Chinese epileptic children. Three single nucleotide polymorphisms (UGT1A4*3, UGT2B7 -161C > T and UGT2B7*2) were analyzed by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism or direct DNA sequencing. The concentrations of LTG and VPA were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and fluorescence polarization immunoassay, respectively. The adjusted concentration of LTG was defined as the concentration-to-dose-ratio (CDRLTG). Data analysis was performed using IBM SPSS Statistics 21.0. A total of 56 patients treated with LTG as monotherapy and 158 patients treated with LTG plus VPA were included in this study. In the polytherapy group, LTG concentration showed a good linear relationship with gender, age, daily LTG dose, VPA concentration, and UGT1A4*3 polymorphism, but had no relationship with the polymorphism of UGT2B7 -161C > T or UGT2B7*2. Moreover, LTG concentration and CDRLTG for the UGT1A4*3 were higher compared to UGT1A4*1 (LTG: 7.24 ± 3.51 vs 5.26 ± 3.27 μg/mL, p = 0.001; CDRLTG: 2.75 ± 1.02 vs 2.14 ± 0.96 μg/mL per mg/kg, p < 0.001, respectively). In the monotherapy group, there was no statistical difference between UGT1A4*3 and UGT1A4*1 in LTG concentration or CDRLTG. The patients in the polytherapy group were divided into two subgroups according to VPA concentration (lower/higher: 10–50/50–125 μg/mL). CDRLTG values of the patients carrying the UGT1A4*3 genotype were higher compared to UGT1A4*1*1 (2.86 ± 1.03 vs 2.22 ± 0.94 μg/mL per mg/kg, p = 0.001) only when the VPA concentration was higher. UGT1A4*3 polymorphism had an effect on LTG concentration only with VPA co-administration, and the effect was remarkable when VPA concentration was higher.

Multivalent hydrazide-functionalized magnetic nanoparticles for glycopeptide enrichment and identification

Abstract: Among the common approaches for global glycopeptide enrichment, hydrazide chemistry is well recognized. However, conventional hydrazide-functionalized products are composed of a single layer of hydrazide functional groups. Due to the limited specific surface area of such a structure, the loading amount of hydrazide groups immobilized on these materials is restricted. Therefore, these materials can only provide a limited reaction rate with glycopeptides in complex protein samples, which is exacerbated by the microheterogeneities of glycosylation. Here, we introduce a new functionalized magnetic nanoparticle coating with hydrazide-modified non-crosslinked polymer chains. The multivalent hydrazide-functionalized particles were synthesized by the surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (SI-ATRP) technique. The density of the hydrazide groups on the surface of these nanoparticles was three-fold higher than that of conventional single-layered materials. The new particles enabled the highly sensitive and selective enrichment of glycopeptides from a digestion mixture of fetuin, even from a background mixture of non-glycosylated protein that was 100-fold more abundant. The recovery ratio of glycopeptides was determined to be 77.8%, and the glycopeptide binding capacity of the materials was determined to be 25 μg mg−1. Finally, the novel multivalent hydrazide-functionalized particles were applied in the enrichment of N-linked glycopeptides from mouse liver tissues, which resulted in the assignment of 511 unique glycopeptides belonging to 372 different glycoproteins. The results further demonstrated the potential of the multivalent particles for glycopeptide enrichment in complex proteomics samples.