Geniposide alleviates hypoxia-induced injury by down-regulation of lncRNA THRIL in rat cardiomyocytes derived H9c2 cells

Screening of prolyl hydroxylase 2 inhibitors based on quantitative strategy of peptides

Prolyl hydroxylase 2 (PHD2) is a key oxygen receptor regulating oxygen homeostasis in human body, and it is one of the important targets for drug research and development of hypoxia related diseases. In PHD2 enzymatic reaction, the structure of substrate (HIF-1α^556-574) and product (hydroxylated HIF-1α) peptide only differ from one oxygen atom (MW>2000), which makes it a great challenge to separate them accurately and efficiently. In this work, the direct separation and detection of HIF-1α and hydroxylated HIF-1α has been firstly reported based on micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC). Under optimized conditions, the intraday RSD of peak area and apparent electrophoretic mobility of hydroxylated HIF-1α were 1.87% and 0.81% respectively, and the interday RSD were 2.01% and 1.03% respectively. The LOD and LOQ of the MEKC method were 10 µM and 50 µM respectively, and the recoveries was 98.42-105.38%. Subsequently, the feasibility and accuracy of MEKC method to screen PHD2 inhibitors were confirmed by using roxadustat, and the IC₅₀ (10.36 µM) and inhibitor type (competitive) were consistent with literature. Finally, the method was used to screen the PHD2 inhibitory activity of five traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs). The present work not only overcomes the difficulties of direct quantitative detection of hydroxylated HIF-1α, but also provides technical support for exploring and discovering new drug leads for hypoxia-related diseases from complex matrix such as TCMs.

Phenols and terpenoids: natural products as inhibitors of NLRP3 inflammasome in cardiovascular diseases

Inflammatory infiltration has been implicated in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). The NLRP3 inflammasome is involved in the development of several types of CVDs, including myocardial infarction, myocardial ischemia-reperfusion damage, heart failure, atrial fibrillation, and hypertension. Inhibiting the activity of NLRP3 inflammasome can inhibit the progress of CVDs. However, there is no NLRP3 inflammasome inhibitor in clinic, and it is very important to find a safe and effective NLRP3 inhibitor. Phenols and terpenoids are naturally natural products that have many anti-inflammatory effects in CVDs by modulating the NLRP3 inflammatory pathway. Thus, 20 natural products from phenols and terpenoids for the treatment of cardiovascular disease based on the inhibition of NLRP3 inflammasome were summarized and screened. Docking results showed salvianolic acid B and ellagic acid in phenols, and oridonin and triptolide in terpenoids had a better binding activity with NLRP3, which can provide theoretical support for finding novel NLRP3 inflammasome inhibitors or lead compounds in the future.

Long non-coding RNA THRIL is upregulated in coronary heart disease and binds to microRNA-424 to upregulate TXNIP in mice

Cardiovascular disease, particularly coronary heart disease (CHD), is one of the diseases with the highest fatality. The close correlation between long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and the occurrence and development of myocardial injury has been highlighted recently. This article mainly focused on the regulation of THRIL on myocardial injury caused by CHD in mice. After establishment of a mouse model with CHD, a lncRNA microarray analysis was performed on mouse myocardial tissues to detect differentially expressed lncRNAs, followed by RT-qPCR validation. CHD was induced in mice by high-fat diet feeding and THRIL was silenced using si-THRIL. The results showed that treating CHD mice with si-THRIL attenuated myocardial damage by restoring LVEF, LVFS, and HDL-C levels, while lowering HMI, LVMI, TC, TG, LDL-C, CK-MB, and cTnI levels. Meanwhile, mechanistical studies using bioinformatics prediction, dual-luciferase and subcellular fractionation assays revealed that THRIL bound to microRNA (miR)-424, inhibited miR-424 interaction with TXNIP and promoted TXNIP expression in the myocardial tissues. The cardioprotective effects of si-THRIL on mice were attenuated when miR-424 was downregulated. Moreover, TXNIP exerted its effects on myocardial injury by mediating the p53 pathway. Taken together, this study demonstrated that THRIL inhibition alleviates myocardial injury in CHD possibly through the miR-424/TXNIP/p53 axis.

Traditional application and modern pharmacological research of Eucommia ulmoides Oliv

As a Traditional Chinese Medicine, Eucommia ulmoides Oliv. has been used for the treatment of various diseases since ancient times, involving lumbar pain, knee pain, osteoporosis, hepatoprotection, paralysis, intestinal haemorrhoids, vaginal bleeding, abortion, spermatorrhoea, foot fungus, anti-aging etc. With the developing discovery of E. ulmoides extracts and its active components in various pharmacological activities, E. ulmoides has gained more and more attention. Up to now, E. ulmoides has been revealed to show remarkable therapeutic effects on hypertension, hyperglycemia, diabetes, obesity, osteoporosis, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, sexual dysfunction. E. ulmoides has also been reported to possess antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective, anti-fatigue, anti-aging, anti-cancer and immunoregulation activities etc. Along these lines, this review summarizes the traditional application and modern pharmacological research of E. ulmoides, providing novel insights of E. ulmoides in the treatment of various diseases.

The Role of Long Non-coding RNAs in Sepsis-Induced Cardiac Dysfunction

Sepsis is a syndrome with life-threatening organ dysfunction induced by a dysregulated host response to infection. The heart is one of the most commonly involved organs during sepsis, and cardiac dysfunction, which is usually indicative of an extremely poor clinical outcome, is a leading cause of death in septic cases. Despite substantial improvements in the understanding of the mechanisms that contribute to the origin and responses to sepsis, the prognosis of sepsis-induced cardiac dysfunction (SICD) remains poor and its molecular pathophysiological changes are not well-characterized. The recently discovered group of mediators known as long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have presented novel insights and opportunities to explore the mechanisms and development of SICD and may provide new targets for diagnosis and therapeutic strategies. LncRNAs are RNA transcripts of more than 200 nucleotides with limited or no protein-coding potential. Evidence has rapidly accumulated from numerous studies on how lncRNAs function in associated regulatory circuits during SICD. This review outlines the direct evidence of the effect of lncRNAs on SICD based on clinical trials and animal studies. Furthermore, potential functional lncRNAs in SICD that have been identified in sepsis studies are summarized with a proven biological function in research on other cardiovascular diseases.

Long non-coding RNA THRIL inhibits miRNA-24-3p to upregulate neuropilin-1 to aggravate cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury through regulating the nuclear factor κB p65 signaling

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the role of the tumor necrosis factor and HNRNPL related immunoregulatory long non-coding RNA (THRIL) in cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury.

Methods: A rat middle cerebral artery occlusion/ischemia-reperfusion (MCAO/IR) model and an oxygen glucose deprivation/reoxygenation (OGD/R) cell model were constructed. THRIL was knocked down using siTHRIL. Neurological deficit score was detected based on the criteria of Zea-Longa. Brain region 2,3,5-Triphenyltetrazolium (TTC) staining and quantitative analysis of cerebral infarction volume, RT-qPCR, and fluorescence immunostaining were performed for assessing THRIL expression. MTT assay was used to detect the cell proliferation ability after transfection, TUNEL assay was applied to detect apoptosis, and western blot and ELISA detected related protein expression. A dual luciferase reporter system and RIP assay were used to confirm the target relationship.

Results: THRIL was upregulated in both in vitro and in vivo models of brain ischemia-reperfusion injury. Knockdown of THRIL attenuated OGD/R neuronal apoptosis and OGD/R-induced inflammation. THRIL targeted and regulated the expression of miR-24-3p/neuropilin-1 (NRP1) axis. THRIL silencing significantly improved the neurological functioning of rats in the MCAO/R model by miR-24-3p/NRP1/NF-κB p65 signaling pathway.

Conclusion: THRIL could aggravate cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury by competitively binding to miR-24-3p to promote the upregulation of NRP1 and further promoted the activation of the NF-κB p65 signaling pathway.

Geniposide in Gardenia jasminoides var. radicans Makino modulates blood pressure via inhibiting WNK pathway mediated by the estrogen receptors

Objectives

To investigate the effects of geniposide in an iridoid found in Gardenia jasminoides var. radicans Makino (GJRM) in spontaneous hypertensive rat (SHR) and explore the possible mechanisms.

Methods

In this study, we detected the content of geniposide in GJRM by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Then, we used acute diuretic experiments to determine whether geniposide has diuretic effect. Moreover, we carried out experiments on SHR to further study the mechanism of hypertension, while real-time PCR, Western blot and immunohistochemistry were used for the experiments in vivo test. Hypotonic model was used for in vitro test.

Key findings

Our data showed that the content of geniposide in the extract of GJRM is 27.54%. Meanwhile, 50 mg/kg geniposide showed the strongest effect on promoting urine volume. Further study indicated that the extract of GJRM and geniposide could significantly reduce blood pressure and promote the excretion of urine and Na+ in SHR. In addition, geniposide significantly inhibited the activation of the with-no-lysine kinase (WNK) signalling pathway and significantly increases the protein expressions of estrogen receptor α (ERα), estrogen receptor β (ERβ) and G protein-coupled receptor 30 (GPR30) in SHR. In hypotonic model, geniposide significantly inhibits the phosphorylation of NKCC and NCC and could be antagonistic to estrogen receptor antagonists.

Conclusions

Collectively, we would suggest that geniposide may potentially be utilized as an adjunct to existing thiazide and thiazide-like diuretics to control hypertension, mainly through inhibiting the activation of the WNK signalling pathway mediated by the estrogen receptor.

Up-regulation of long non-coding RNA THRIL in coronary heart disease: Prediction for disease risk, correlation with inflammation, coronary artery stenosis, and major adverse cardiovascular events

Objective

This study aimed to investigate the role of long non‐coding RNA (lncRNA) THRIL in coronary heart disease (CHD) patients.

Methods

A total of 420 patients who underwent coronary arteriography due to suspected symptoms of CHD were enrolled, in which 220 were diagnosed as CHD and 200 were set as control subjects. LncRNA THRIL in plasma samples of CHD patients and control subjects was detected by reverse transcription‐quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Gensini score and biochemical indexes were evaluated in CHD patients and control subjects. Plasma inflammatory cytokines were detected, and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) were recorded in CHD patients.

Results

Both before and after adjustment by age/gender, lncRNA THRIL was increased in CHD patients compared with control subjects (both P < .001), and it well predicted enhanced CHD risk by receiver operating characteristic curves. For coronary artery stenosis, it was positively correlated with Gensini score (P < .001, r = .430). For clinical characteristics, lncRNA THRIL was positively correlated with diabetes mellitus occurrence (P < .001) and fasting blood glucose (FBG) level (P = .029, r = .147). For inflammation, it was positively associated with CRP (P < .001, r = .374), TNF‐α (P < .001, r = .249), IL‐1β (P = .001, r = .222), IL‐8 (P < .001, r = .254), and IL‐17 (P = .011, r = .172), while negatively correlated with IL‐10 (P < .001, r = −.244). For prognosis, lncRNA THRIL was positively associated with MACE accumulating rate (P = .037) in CHD patients.

Conclusion

Long non‐coding RNA THRIL was increased in CHD patients and well predicted elevated CHD risk. Moreover, it was correlated with enhanced coronary stenosis, systematic inflammation, FBG level, and MACE risk in CHD patients.

Geniposide inhibits proliferation and induces apoptosis of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma cells by inactivating the HCP5/miR-27b-3p/MET axis

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is commonly treated with R-CHOP, but ~30 to 50% of the patients are poorly responsive to this strategy. Geniposide, an extract from the Gardenia jasminoides Ellis, plays antitumor roles in human gastric cancer, hepatocellular carcinoma, and oral squamous carcinoma. However, the effects of geniposide treatment on DLBCL cells, as well as its underlying mechanism, are still unknown. Here, we found that geniposide inhibited the proliferation of OCI-LY7 and OCI-LY3 cells in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, geniposide increased the percentage of apoptotic cells and upregulated the levels of cleaved PARP and cleaved caspase-3 in DLBCL cells. Interestingly, geniposide treatment significantly reduced the expression of the long noncoding RNA HLA complex P5 (lncRNA HCP5) in DLBCL cells. HCP5 expression was revealed to be upregulated in DLBCL tissues and cell lines. Moreover, HCP5 knockdown resulted in proliferation inhibition and apoptosis in OCI-LY7 and OCI-LY3 cells. miR-27b-3p was predicted as a potential target of HCP5 using the lnCAR web tool. Both HCP5 silencing and geniposide treatment increased the level of miR-27b-3p in DLBCL cells. Accordingly, a luciferase reporter assay identified miR-27b-3p as a direct target of HCP5. The expression of miR-27b-3p was upregulated and inversely correlated with the HCP5 level in DLBCL tissues. HCP5 knockdown reduced MET protein expression, which was subsequently rescued by miR-27b-3p silencing in DLBCL cells. Importantly, the restoration of MET partially reversed the geniposide-induced proliferation inhibition and apoptosis of DLBCL cells. In conclusion, geniposide inhibits the proliferation and induces the apoptosis of DLBCL cells at least partially by regulating the HCP5/miR-27b-3p/MET axis, indicating a potential strategy for DLBCL treatment.

Icariin alleviates hypoxia-induced damage in MC3T3-E1 cells by downregulating TALNEC2

Osteonecrosis is a harmful musculoskeletal disease. We aim to detect the effects of icariin (ICA) in MC3T3-E1 cell. MC3T3-E1 cell was pretreated with ICA and was subjected to hypoxia stimuli. The tumor-associated long noncoding RNA expressed on chromosome 2 (TALNEC2) overexpression or silencing vectors (pTALNEC2 or si-TALNEC2) was utilized for MC3T3-E1 cell transfection. Viability and apoptosis rate were individually tested by cell counting kit-8 and Annexin V-fluorescein isothiocyanate/propidium iodide kit untied with flow cytometry. The alkaline phosphatase activity (ALP) activity was tested through ALP assay. The quantitative reverse transcription PCR or Western blot was performed for elements detection at the RNA or protein level. Hypoxia treatment induced viability inhibition and CyclinD1 reduction, but elevation of p53 and p16. It also promoted apoptosis by increasing apoptotic cells, Bax, and cleaved-poly ADP-ribose polymerase but decreasing Bcl-2. Also, hypoxia stimuli restrained ALP activity, and osteopontin, osteocalcin, and Runt-related transcription factor 2 expression. Those effects caused by hypoxia stimuli were all reversed by ICA. TALNEC2 was downregulated by ICA, whose impacts were subsequently abolished by pTALNEC2. Silencing TALNEC2 displayed similar effects with ICA. But the apoptosis was not affected by si-TALNEC2. ICA blocked ste20-related proline/alanine-rich kinase/c-Jun N-terminal kinase (SPAK/JNK) but triggered phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin (PI3K/AKT/mTOR) pathway in MC3T3-E1 cell by suppressing TALNEC2. ICA relieved hypoxia-stimulated damage by restraining TALNEC2 through blocking SPAK/JNK and triggering PI3K/AKT/mTOR in the MC3T3-E1 cell.