Actinidia callosa var. callosa suppresses metastatic potential of human hepatoma cell SK-Hep1 by inhibiting matrix metalloproteinase-2 through PI3K/Akt and MAPK signaling pathways

BACKGROUND

Cancer cell metastasis involving multi-step procedures and cytophysiological property changes may make difficult in the clinical management and death rate increasing.

RESULTS

In this study, we first observed that ethyl acetate fraction of Actinidia callosa var. callosa (EAAC) carry out a dose-dependent inhibitory effect without cytotoxicity on the mobility and invasion of highly metastatic SK-Hep1 cells. To investigate the EAAC in cancer metastasis, SK-Hep1 cells were treated with EAAC at various concentrations and then subjected to gelatin zymography, casein zymography and western blot to study the impacts of EAAC on metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1/2 (TIMP-1/2), respectively. Our results showed that EAAC treatment may decrease the expressions of MMP-2 and enhance the expression of TIMP-1/2 in a concentration-dependent manner. EAAC also inhibited effect on the phosphorylation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase/serine/threonine protein kinase [or protein kinase B (PI3K/Akt)] and focal adhesion kinase (FAK).

CONCLUSIONS

These results indicate that EAAC inhibited SK-Hep1 cell of metastasis by reduced protein level of MMP-2 through the suppression of MAPK and FAK signaling pathway and of the activity of PI3K/Akt. These findings suggest that EAAC may be used as an antimetastatic agent.

Antioxidants, anti-inflammatory, and antidiabetic effects of the aqueous extracts from Glycine species and its bioactive compounds

BACKGROUND

The aim of this study was to examine the possible antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antidiabetic effects of the aqueous extracts from three Glycine species. In HPLC analysis, the chromatograms of three Glycine species were established. Flavonoid-related compounds might be important bioactive compounds in Glycine species.

RESULTS

The results showed that the aqueous extract of Glycine tabacina (AGTa) had the strongest antioxidant activity compared with the other Glycine species extracts. We also found that AGTa had higher contents of total polyphenol compounds and flavonoids than the other extracts. We also have investigated the anti-inflammatory effects of the three Glycine species using lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated mouse macrophage (RAW264.7) ex vivo. When RAW264.7 macrophages were treated with different concentrations of three Glycine species together with LPS, a significant concentration-dependent inhibition of NO production was detected. The aqueous extract of Glycine max (AGM) had the strongest anti-inflammatory activity in comparison with the other Glycine species extracts. Western blotting revealed that three Glycine species blocked protein expression of iNOS and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophages, significantly. The antidiabetic activities of the three Glycine species were studied in vitro using α-glucosidase and aldose reductase (AR) inhibitory methods. AGTa had the highest inhibitory activities on α-glucosidase and aldose reductase, with IC₅₀ of 188.1 and 126.42 μg/mL, respectively. The bioactive compounds, genistein and daidzein, had high inhibitory activities on antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, α-glucosidase and aldose reductase.

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggest that Glycine species might be a good resource for future development of antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antidiabetic heath foods.

Danhong Injection in the Treatment of Acute Coronary Syndrome: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

To systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of Danhong injection (DH) in treating acute coronary syndrome (ACS), randomized controlled trials (RCTs) regarding ACS treated by DH were searched in Chinese and English electronic databases from inception until June 2013. Two reviewers independently retrieved RCTs and extracted information. The Cochrane risk of bias method was used to assess the quality of the included studies, and a meta-analysis was conducted with Review Manager 5.2 software. About 26 RCTs with 2660 participants were included. The methodological quality was usually not high, and only one study used a randomized, double-blinded method. The meta-analysis indicated that on the basis of conventional therapy with Western medicine (WM), DH was more effective in increasing the total effective rate [RR = 1.24, 95%CI (1.17, 1.32), p < 0.00001]. Additionally, DH can decrease inflammatory cytokines, including high sensitive C-reactive protein (Hs-CRP) and interleukin-6 (IL-6), lower plasma viscosity, plasma endothelin-1 (ET-1) and brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), reduce the generation of myeloperoxidase (MPO), and decrease the number of T-wave inversion. There were no adverse drug reactions (ADR) reported in the experimental group, while one case occurred in the control group. Based on the systematic review, DH combined with WM was effective in the treatment of ACS. However, the safety of DH in the treatment of ACS should be further carefully interpreted by more large-scale and double-blind RCTs.

Anti-Oxidative and Anti-Inflammatory Effects of Lobelia chinensis In Vitro and In Vivo

Lobelia chinensis Lour (LcL) is a popular herb that has been widely used as folk medicine in China for the treatment of fever, lung cancer, and inflammation for hundreds of years. Recently, several studies have shown that the anti-inflammatory properties were correlated with the inhibition of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) from the NF-κB pathway. The aim of this study was to evaluate the anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory activities of L. chinensis. Both suppressive activities on LPS-induced nitric oxide production in RAW264.7 macrophages in vitro and the acute rat lung injury model in vivo were studied. The results showed that the methanol extract of LcL and its fractions within the range of 62.5–250 μg/mL did not induce cytotoxicity (p < 0.001). The ethyl acetate fraction of LcL showed better NO inhibition activity than other fractions. On the other hand, the Lc-EA (62.5, 125, 250 mg/kg) pretreated rats showed a decrease in the pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-β, IL-6) and inhibited iNOS, COX-2 expression through the NF-κB pathway. These results suggested that L. chinensis exhibited an anti-inflammatory effect through the NF-κB pathways.

Hepatoprotective effect of kaempferol against alcoholic liver injury in mice

Kaempferol is a biologically active component present in various plants. The hepatoprotective effect of kaempferol in drug-induced liver injury has been proven, while its effect against alcoholic liver injury (ALI) remains unclear. Hence, the present study aimed to evaluate the effect of kaempferol against ALI in mice. The experimental ALI mice model was developed and the mice were treated with different doses of kaempferol for 4 weeks. The liver functions were observed by monitoring the following parameters: Aspartate aminotransferase (AST/GOT) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT/GPT) levels in serum; histopathological studies of liver tissue; oxidative stress by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione (GSH); the lipid peroxidation status by malondialdehyde (MDA) and lipid accumulation by triglyceride (TG) level in serum; and the expression levels and activities of a key microsomal enzyme cytochrome 2E1 (CYP2E1), by both in vitro and in vivo methods. The ALI mice (untreated) showed clear symptoms of liver injury, such as significantly increased levels of oxidative stress, lipid peroxidation and excessive CYP2E1 expression and activity. The mice treated with different kaempferol dosages exhibited a significant decrease in the oxidative stress as well as lipid peroxidation, and increased anti-oxidative defense activity. The kaempferol treatment has significantly reduced the expression level and activity of hepatic CYP2E1, thus indicating that kaempferol could down regulate CYP2E1. These findings show the hepatoprotective properties of kaempferol against alcohol-induced liver injury by attenuating the activity and expression of CYP2E1 and by enhancing the protective role of anti-oxidative defense system.

Anti-Inflammatory Effects of Trilinolein from Panax notoginseng Through the Suppression of NF-κB and MAPK Expression and Proinflammatory Cytokine Expression

In this study, we have investigated the anti-inflammatory effects of trilinolein (TL) using a lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated mouse macrophage (RAW264.7) and carrageenan (Carr)-induced mouse paw edema model. When RAW264.7 macrophages were treated with different concentrations of TL together with LPS, a significant concentration-dependent inhibition of nitric oxide (NO), tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α), interleukin-1 (IL-1β), and IL-6 production was detected. Western blotting revealed that TL blocked the protein expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB), IκBα, and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs). In the anti-inflammatory test, TL decreased the paw edema at the 5th h after λ-Carr administration in paw edema. We also demonstrated TL significantly attenuated the malondialdehyde (MDA) level in the edema paw at the 5th h after Carr injection. TL decreased the NO and TNF-α levels on the serum level at the 5th h after Carr injection. Western blotting revealed that TL decreased Carr-induced iNOS and COX-2 expressions at the 5th h in the edema paw. The anti-inflammatory mechanisms of TL might be related to the decrease in the level of iNOS, COX-2, IκBα, and MAPK pathway through the suppression of TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6.