Role of ROS/JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway in di-n-butyl phthalate-induced testosterone synthesis inhibition and antagonism of lycopene

Maternal exposure to dibutyl phthalate (DBP) impairs angiogenesis and AR signalling pathway through suppression of TGFB1I1 in hypospadias offspring

Early exposure to dibutyl phthalate (DBP) can cause hypospadias in newborn foetuses. However, the underlying molecular mechanism is not well defined. Aberrant angiogenesis is associated with various dysplasias including urogenital deficits. In vivo and in vitro angiogenesis assays showed reduced angiogenesis in the hypospadias group and DBP exposed group. RNA-sequencing analysis of DBP-treated HUVECs revealed decreased expression of transforming growth factor beta 1-induced transcript 1 (TGFB1I1) and a significantly enriched angiogenesis-associated pathway. Further experiments revealed that decreased TGFB1I1 expression was associated with disrupted tube formation and migration, which resulted in decreased angiogenesis. Functional assays revealed that the overexpression of TGFB1I1 promoted tube formation and migration of HUVECs in the DBP-treated group. Moreover, we showed that the transcription factor AR was regulated by TGFB1I1 through inhibiting its translocation from the cytoplasm to the nucleus. Together, our results identified TGFB1I1 as a component of aberrant angiogenesis in hypospadias rats and its interaction with AR might be a potential target for hypospadias development.

Molecular networking-guided isolation strategy of a new C-glycosyl flavone rotamer from Stellaria alsine and evaluation of anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities

INTRODUCTION

Stellaria alsine has traditionally been used as both a famine relief food and an alternative medicine in East Asia. Modern pharmacological studies have revealed that S. alsine has various biological effects such as anticancer, anti-hepatoma, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidative effects. However, the anti-inflammatory properties of chemical constituents derived from this plant have not been studied well.

OBJECTIVES

To identify potential therapeutic candidate for treating inflammatory diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

METHODS

The distribution of chemical compounds was investigated by Global Natural Product Social (GNPS)-based molecular networking (MN) analysis using UPLC-Orbitrap tandem mass spectrometry. The anti-inflammatory and antioxidative effects of S. alsine extracts and fractions were evaluated by measuring interleukin (IL)-8 and reactive oxygen species (ROS) productions.

RESULTS

The active EA layer of S. alsine showed the highest percentage of major compounds by feature-based molecular networking. The top candidate structures of EA fraction were rapidly annotated as flavone C- or O-glycosides via an advanced analysis tool, Network Annotation Propagation (NAP). With the GNPS molecular networking-guided isolation strategy, a new C-glycosyl flavone rotamer (1) was isolated. The structures of the major (1a) and minor (1b) rotational isomers were determined by extensive NMR analysis and MS/MS fragmentation. Finally, the anti-inflammatory activity of 1 was predicted by molecular docking simulations with IL-8 protein.

CONCLUSION

These results suggested that the compound 1 is a potential therapeutic candidate for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).