Tou Nong powder obstructs ulcerative colitis through the regulation of NF-κB/NLRP3/Caspase-1/GSDMD inflammasome pyroptotic pathway

NLRP3 inflammasome and its role in autoimmune diseases: A promising therapeutic target

The NOD-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome is a protein complex that regulates innate immune responses by activating caspase-1 and the inflammatory cytokines IL-1β and IL-18. Numerous studies have highlighted its crucial role in the pathogenesis and development of inflammatory bowel disease, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, autoimmune thyroid diseases, and other autoimmune diseases. Therefore, investigating the underlying mechanisms of NLRP3 in disease and targeted drug therapies holds clinical significance. This review summarizes the structure, assembly, and activation mechanisms of the NLRP3 inflammasome, focusing on its role and involvement in various autoimmune diseases. This review also identifies studies where the involvement of the NLRP3 inflammasome in the disease mechanism within the same disease appears contradictory, as well as differences in NLRP3-related gene polymorphisms among different ethnic groups. Additionally, the latest therapeutic advances in targeting the NLRP3 inflammasome for autoimmune diseases are outlined, and novel clinical perspectives are discussed. Conclusively, this review provides a consolidated source of information on the NLRP3 inflammasome and may guide future research efforts that have the potential to positively impact patient outcomes.

Protective effect of San Huang Pill and its bioactive compounds against ulcerative colitis in Drosophila via modulation of JAK/STAT, apoptosis, Toll, and Nrf2/Keap1 pathways

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

San Huang Pill (SHP) is a prescription in Dunhuang Ancient Medical Prescription, which has the efficacy of heat-clearing and dampness-drying, and is a traditional formula for the treatment of gastrointestinal diseases. However, its efficacy and mechanism in treating ulcerative colitis (UC) are still unclear.

AIM OF THE STUDY

To investigate the protective effects of SHP and its bioactive compounds against Dextran Sulfate Sodium (DSS)-induced intestinal damage using the Drosophila melanogaster model, and to detect the molecular mechanism of SHP in the treatment of UC.

METHODS

Survival rate, locomotion, feeding, and excretion were used to explore the anti-inflammatory effects of SHP. The pharmacotoxicity of SHP was measured using developmental analysis. Intestinal integrity, intestinal length, intestinal acid-base homeostasis, and Tepan blue assay were used to analyze the protective effect of SHP against DSS-induced intestinal damage. The molecular mechanism of SHP was detected using DHE staining, immunofluorescence, real-time PCR, 16 S rRNA gene sequencing, and network pharmacology analysis. Survival rate, intestinal length, and integrity analysis were used to detect the protective effect of bioactive compounds of SHP against intestinal damage.

RESULTS

SHP supplementation significantly increased the survival rate, restored locomotion, increased metabolic rate, maintained intestinal morphological integrity and intestinal homeostasis, protected intestinal epithelial cells, and alleviated intestinal oxidative damage in adult flies under DSS stimulation. Besides, administration of SHP had no toxic effect on flies. Moreover, SHP supplementation remarkably decreased the expression levels of genes related to JAK/STAT, apoptosis, and Toll signaling pathways, increased the gene expressions of the Nrf2/Keap1 pathway, and also reduced the relative abundance of harmful bacteria in DSS-treated flies. Additionally, the ingredients in SHP (palmatine, berberine, baicalein, wogonin, rhein, and aloeemodin) had protection against DSS-induced intestinal injury, such as prolonging survival rate, increasing intestinal length, and maintaining intestinal barrier integrity.

CONCLUSION

SHP had a strong anti-inflammatory function, and remarkably alleviated DSS-induced intestinal morphological damage and intestinal homeostatic imbalance in adult flies by regulating JAK/STAT, apoptosis, Toll and Nrf2/Keap1 signaling pathways, and also gut microbial homeostasis. This suggests that SHP may be a potential complementary and alternative medicine herb therapy for UC, which provides a basis for modern pharmacodynamic evaluation of other prescriptions in Dunhuang ancient medical prescription.

Natural compounds target programmed cell death (PCD) signaling mechanism to treat ulcerative colitis: a review

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a nonspecific inflammatory bowel disease characterized by abdominal pain, bloody diarrhea, weight loss, and colon shortening. However, UC is difficult to cure due to its high drug resistance rate and easy recurrence. Moreover, long-term inflammation and increased disease severity can lead to the development of colon cancer in some patients. Programmed cell death (PCD) is a gene-regulated cell death process that includes apoptosis, autophagy, necroptosis, ferroptosis, and pyroptosis. PCD plays a crucial role in maintaining body homeostasis and the development of organs and tissues. Abnormal PCD signaling is observed in the pathological process of UC, such as activating the apoptosis signaling pathway to promote the progression of UC. Targeting PCD may be a therapeutic strategy, and natural compounds have shown great potential in modulating key targets of PCD to treat UC. For instance, baicalin can regulate cell apoptosis to alleviate inflammatory infiltration and pathological damage. This review focuses on the specific expression of PCD and its interaction with multiple signaling pathways, such as NF-κB, Nrf2, MAPK, JAK/STAT, PI3K/AKT, NLRP3, GPX4, Bcl-2, etc., to elucidate the role of natural compounds in targeting PCD for the treatment of UC. This review used (ulcerative colitis) (programmed cell death) and (natural products) as keywords to search the related studies in PubMed and the Web of Science, and CNKI database of the past 10 years. This work retrieved 72 studies (65 from the past 5 years and 7 from the past 10 years), which aims to provide new treatment strategies for UC patients and serves as a foundation for the development of new drugs.

Role of the NLRP3 inflammasome in gynecological disease

The NLR family pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome is involved in the innate immune system and is a three-part macromolecular complex comprising the NLRP3 protein, apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a CARD (ASC) and the cysteine protease pro-caspase-1. When the NLRP3 inflammasome is activated, it can produce interleukin (IL)- 1β and IL-18 and eventually lead to inflammatory cell pyroptosis. Related studies have demonstrated that the NLRP3 inflammasome can induce an immune response and is related to the occurrence and development of gynecological diseases, such as endometriosis, polycystic ovary syndrome and breast cancer. NLRP3 inflammasome inhibitors are beneficial for maintaining cellular homeostasis and tissue health and have been found effective in targeting some gynecological diseases. However, excessive inhibitor concentrations have been found to cause adverse effects. Therefore, proper control of NLRP3 inflammasome activity is critical. This paper summarizes the structure and function of the NLRP3 inflammasome and highlights the therapeutic potential of targeting it in gynecological diseases, such as endometriosis, polycystic ovary syndrome and breast cancer The application of NLRP3 inflammasome inhibitors is also discussed.