A Comprehensive Review of the Genus Pyrola Herbs in Traditional Uses, Phytochemistry and Pharmacological Activities

Pyrolae herba: A review on its botany, traditional uses, phytochemistry, pharmacology and quality control

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Pyrolae herba is the dried whole plant of Pyrola calliantha H. Andres or Pyrola decorata H. Andres (Pyrolaceae). Pyrolae herba has a long history of medicinal use in China. In ancient times, it was often used to treat pain in tendons and bones, swollen sore, cough, expectoration, bleeding, and other diseases. and was commonly used in ancient times to treat pain in the tendons and bones, swollen sore, cough, expectoration, bleeding and other diseases.

AIM OF THE REVIEW

This paper summarizes the botany, traditional uses, phytochemistry, pharmacology, quality control and toxicology of Pyrolae herba, with a view to providing reference for further development and research.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The relevant information on Pyrolae herba was collected from the scientific databases including PubMed, CNKI, ScienceDirect, Wiley, Springer, Web of Science, Google Scholar, Baidu Scholar, Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China and Flora Republicae Popularis Sinicae, etc. RESULTS: At present, more than 70 compounds have been identified from Pyrolae herba, including flavonoids, phenolic glycosides, quinones, terpenoids, volatile oils and other compounds. Pharmacological studies have shown that Pyrolae herba has a variety of pharmacological activities, such as anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-viral, anti-tumor, anti-oxidation, reducing blood lipids, protective on cardiovascular and cerebrovascular, promoting osteoblast proliferation, and so on. It is used clinically in modern times to treat rheumatic arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, bone hyperplasia, sciatica, cervical spondylosis, lumbar spondylosis, acute and chronic bronchitis, mammary gland hyperplasia, tumor, hypertension, coronary heart disease and bleeding diseases.

CONCLUSIONS

Pyrolae herba is rich in chemical constituents, diverse in pharmacological activities and abundant in resources, which is widely used in clinics from traditional to modern. However, there is a lack of research on the relationship between chemical constituents and pharmacodynamics of Pyrolae herba. In addition, the existing clinical applications suggest that Pyrolae herba has a certain therapeutic potential in the treatment of hemorrhagic diseases, but there is a lack of information on experimental studies. It is worthwhile to further investigate the Pyrolae herba in depth in the hope of making discoveries and breakthroughs.

Randialic acid B and tomentosolic acid block formyl peptide receptor 1 in human neutrophils and attenuate psoriasis-like inflammation in vivo

Psoriasis is a long-lasting inflammatory skin disease lacking proper cure. Dysregulated activation of neutrophils is a major pathogenic factor in psoriasis. Formyl peptide receptor 1 (FPR1) triggers neutrophil activation in response to bacteria- or mitochondria-derived N-formyl peptides, but its significance in neutrophilic psoriasis remains unknown. In this study, we discovered two derivatives of ursolic acid, 3β-hydroxyurs-12,18-dien-28-oic acid (randialic acid B, RAB) and 3β-hydroxyurs-12,19-dien-28-oic acid (tomentosolic acid, TA), as FPR1 inhibitors in human neutrophils with ability to suppress psoriatic symptoms in mice. Both RAB and TA, triterpenoids of traditional medicinal plant Ilex kaushue, selectively inhibited reactive oxygen species production, elastase release, and CD11b expression in human neutrophils activated by FPR1, but not non-FPR1 agonists. Importantly, RAB and TA inhibited the binding of N-formyl peptide to FPR1 in human neutrophils, neutrophil-like THP-1 cells, and hFPR1-transfected HEK293 cells, indicating FPR1 antagonism. Moreover, in assays induced by various concentrations of FPR1 agonist, both RAB and TA acted competitively for its binding to the FPR1 receptor. The FPR1-downstream signaling such as Ca2+ mobilisation and activation of Akt and MAPKs was also competitively inhibited. In addition, imiquimod-induced psoriasis-like symptoms, including epidermal hyperplasia, desquamation with scaling, neutrophil skin infiltration, and transepidermal water loss were significantly reduced by both RAB and TA. The results illustrate a possible role of human neutrophils FPR1 receptor in psoriasis-like inflammation. Accordingly, triterpenoids RAB and TA represent novel FPR1 antagonists and exhibit therapeutic potential for treating neutrophilic inflammatory skin diseases.