Phellinus baumii ethyl acetate extract alleviated collagen type II induced arthritis in DBA/1 mice

Bioassay-guided isolation and characterisation of α-glucosidase inhibitors from Sanghuangporus baumii

Bioassay-guided fractionation of the isopropanol extract of the medicinal mushroom Sanghuangporus baumii led to the isolation and characterisation of a new acorane-type sesquiterpenoid bauminene (1) and seven known compounds 2-8. The planar structure of 1 was elucidated on the basis of extensive spectroscopic analysis, including 1D, 2D NMR and HR-ESI-MS. The relative configuration of 1 was determined by a combination of ROESY experiment, density functional theory calculation of 13C NMR, and DP4+ probability analysis, while the absolute configuration of 1 was established by comparative electronic circular dichroism (ECD) spectra analysis. In the in vitro bioassay, compounds 1-8 exhibited potent to moderate α-glucosidase inhibitory activity with IC50 values ranging from 6.8 ± 0.68 to 221.4 ± 6.57 µM. The presences of these bioactive constituents in the sclerotia of S. baumii may be related to the use of the fungus as 'Sanghuang' for the adjuvant treatment of DM.

Molecular Cloning, Characterisation, and Heterologous Expression of Farnesyl Diphosphate Synthase from Sanghuangporus baumii

A farnesyl diphosphate synthase (FPS) cDNA and promoter region was cloned from Sanghuangporus baumii. The gene contains a 150-bp 5'-untranslated region (UTR), a 154-bp 3'-UTR, and a 1062-bp open reading frame (ORF) encoding a 354 amino acid polypeptide. The FPS-DNA includes three exons (nucleotides 1 -123, 184-321, and 505-1305) and two introns (nucleotides 124-183 and 322-504). The FPS protein has a molecular weight of 40.73 kDa, it is hydrophilic with a theoretical isoelectric point of 5.13, and the secondary and three-dimensional structure were analysed. There is a transcription start site at nucleotides 1318-1368 of the promoter, which includes typical eukaryotic promoter elements (TATA Box, CAAT Box, ARBE, AT-rich element, G-box, MBS, Sp1, LTR). FPS was expressed in Escherichia coli BL21, and the recombinant protein (63.41 kDa) was subjected to dodecyl sulphate, sodium salt-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). FPS transcription was measured during different developmental stages, and expression in 11 and 13 days mycelia was upregulated 49.3-fold and 125.4-fold, respectively, compared with 9 days mycelia controls. Through analysing, S. baumii triterpenoid content was correlated with the transcription level of FPS during different development stages, and the triterpenoid content peaked at day 15 (7.21 mg/g).

Cultivated Fruit Body of Phellinus baumii: A Potentially Sustainable Antidiabetic Resource

Previous studies have been reported that the fruit body of wild Phellinus baumii alleviates diabetes, and antioxidants are beneficial to diabetes by protecting the β-cell from damage due to oxidative stress. Large-scale cultivation of P. baumii fruit body has been successful in the past decade. This paper aimed to investigate whether the fruit body of the cultivated P. baumii has the same analogical effects as the wild. The cultivated P. baumii fruit body was extracted by 80% of ethanol extracts, and different fractions were obtained with the successive use of petroleum ether, ethyl acetate (EtOAc), n-butanol (n-BuOH), and water, which yielded 15.98 ± 1.56, 1.74 ± 0.34, 3.31 ± 0.41, 4.12 ± 0.37, and 1.38 ± 0.26% extract recovery, respectively. Results show that the EtOAc fraction exhibits the highest inhibitory effect on α-glucosidase activity (IC50 = 49.05 ± 3.14 μg mL-1), which is an order of magnitude higher than the positive control (acarbose, IC50 = 645.73 ± 7.86 μg mL-1). It was mainly composed of phenolic compounds with a purity of 79.45% and characterized by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry as osmudacetone, hispidin, davallialactone, 2,5-bis(4,7-dihydroxy-8-methyl-2-oxo-2H-chromen-3-yl)cyclohexa-2,5-diene-1,4-dione, hypholomin B, and inoscavin A. Furthermore, the EtOAc fraction increased the glucose consumption of insulin-resistant HepG2 cells at a concentration range of 25-100 μg mL-1. The EtOAc fraction also demonstrated antioxidant activities by scavenging 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl, 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)diammonium salt, and hydroxyl radicals. In conclusion, the EtOAc fraction of the cultivated P. baumii fruit body exerted effective antidiabetic effects, possibly due to the high content of selective phenolic compounds. Hence, the cultivated fruit body of P. baumii can be a sustainable resource for treating diabetes, and our work also shed some light on its future utilization.

Molecular cloning, characterization, and heterologous expression of an acetyl-CoA acetyl transferase gene from Sanghuangporus baumii

Acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase synthase gene (AACT) cDNA, DNA and promoter were cloned from Sanghuangporus baumii. The gene ORF (1260 bp) encoded 419 amino acids. The AACT DNA includes five exons (1-84 bp, 140-513 bp, 570-1027 bp, 1090-1282 bp, 1344-1494 bp) and four introns (85-139 bp, 514-569 bp, 1028-1089 bp, 1283-1343 bp). The molecular weight of AACT protein is 43.40 kDa, it is hydrophilic with a theoretical isoelectric point of 8.96. Furthermore, The region of the transcription start site is 1997-2047 bp of AACT promoter, and it contained promoter elements (TATA Boxs, CAAT Boxs, CAAT-box, ABRE, G-Boxs, Sp1, MSA-like, LTR). AACT recombinant protein (43.40 KDa + Tag protein 22.68 KDa) was subjected in SDS-PAGE. AACT the transcription levels of in different development stages were investigated. The expression of AACT in primordia (2.4-fold) and 15 d mycelia (2.3- fold) were significantly higher than 9 d mycelia (contral). The expression level of the AACT downstream genes and triterpenoids content were determined at different developmental stages. Triterpenoid content reached its peak on day 15(7.21 mg/g).

The treatment of rheumatoid arthritis using Chinese medicinal plants: From pharmacology to potential molecular mechanisms

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a common worldwide public health problem. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) achieved some results to some extent in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Especially in China, TCM formulas are used in the clinic because of their advantages. Some of these TCM formulas have been used for thousands of years in ancient China, they pays much attention to strengthening healthy qi, cleaning heat, and wet, activating blood, etc. So TCM in anti-RA drug is considered as a simple and effective method. In addition, TCM are also traditionally used as extracts and many Chinese herbs which are considered to be effective for RA. With the advancement of technologies and research methods, researchers have devoted themselves to exploring new therapeutic materials from troves of TCM. The components of TCM are identified and purified, which include alkaloids, coumarins, flavonoids, saponins and so on. However, little or no review works are found in the research literature on the anti-RA drugs from TCM. The present review aims to provide systematically reorganized information on the ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry and pharmacology of TCM used traditionally against RA. The information recorded in this review will provide new directions for researchers in the future.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Relevant scientific literatures were collected from Chinese traditional books and Chinese Pharmacopoeia. Several important pharmacology data, clinical observations, animal experiments on effects of anti-RA drugs from TCM and their mechanisms were extracted from a library and electric search (Pubmed, PubChem Compound, Science Direct, Spring Link, Elsevier, Web of Science, CNKI, Wan Fang, Bai du, The Plant List, etc.). We collected information published between 2002 and 2015 on Chinese medicine in the treatment of RA. Information was also acquired from local classic herbal literature, conference papers, government reports, and PhD and MSc dissertations.

RESULTS

This review mainly introduces the current research on anti-RA TCM formulas, extracts and compounds from TCM, pharmacological data and potential mechanisms (inhibit osteoclast proliferation, suppress fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLSs) growth, decrease the expression of inflammatory cytokines, blocking signal pathways, etc.).

CONCLUSIONS

TCM, as a multi-component and multi-target approach, which is a perfect match with the holistic concept of systems biology, is applicable in the treatment of RA. The synergistic connections of Chinese herbs and mechanisms of related active compounds on RA increase the trust for TCM. TCM as alternative remedies for RA not only has an important position in the world market, but also has an irreplaceable role in the treatment of RA in future.