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Jiang J, Zhou X, Chen H, Wang X, Ruan Y, Liu X, Ma J. 18β-Glycyrrhetinic acid protects against deoxynivalenol-induced liver injury via modulating ferritinophagy and mitochondrial quality control. J Hazard Mater 2024; 471:134319. [PMID: 38657511 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.134319] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2024] [Revised: 04/02/2024] [Accepted: 04/14/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
Deoxynivalenol (DON), a widespread mycotoxin, represents a substantial public health hazard due to its propensity to contaminate agricultural produce, leading to both acute and chronic health issues in humans and animals upon consumption. The role of ferroptosis in DON-induced hepatic damage remains largely unexplored. This study investigates the impact of 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid (GA), a prominent constituent of glycyrrhiza, on DON hepatotoxicity and elucidates the underlying mechanisms. Our results indicate that GA effectively attenuates liver injury inflicted by DON. This was achieved by inhibiting nuclear receptor coactivator 4 (NCOA4)-mediated ferritinophagy and ferroptosis, as well as by adjusting mitochondrial quality control (MQC). Specifically, GA curtails ferritinophagy by diminishing NCOA4 expression without affecting the autophagic flux. At a molecular level, GA binds to and stabilizes programmed cell death protein 4 (PDCD4), thereby inhibiting its ubiquitination and subsequent degradation. This stabilization of PDCD4 leads to the downregulation of NCOA4 via the JNK-Jun-NCOA4 axis. Knockdown of PDCD4 weakened GA's protective action against DON exposure. Furthermore, GA improved mitochondrial function and limited excessive mitophagy and mitochondrial division induced by DON. Disrupting GA's modulation of MQC nullified its anti-ferroptosis effects. Overall, GA offers protection against DON-induced ferroptosis by blocking ferritinophagy and managing MQC. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPLICATION: Food contamination from mycotoxins, is a problem for agricultural and food industries worldwide. Deoxynivalenol (DON), the most common mycotoxins in cereal commodities. A survey in 2023 showed that the positivity rate for DON contamination in food reached more than 70% globally. DON can damage the health of humans whether exposed to high doses for short periods of time or low doses for long periods of time. We have discovered 18β-Glycyrrhetinic acid (GA), a prominent constituent of glycyrrhiza. Liver damage caused by low-dose DON can be successfully treated with GA. This study will support the means of DON control, including antidotes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junze Jiang
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, PR China
| | - Xintong Zhou
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, PR China
| | - Hao Chen
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, PR China
| | - Xin Wang
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, PR China
| | - Yongbao Ruan
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, PR China
| | - Xiaohui Liu
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, PR China
| | - Jun Ma
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, PR China; Heilongjiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Pathogenic Mechanism for Animal Disease and Comparative Medicine, Harbin 150030, PR China.
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Wei J, Zhang J, Hu F, Zhang W, Wu Y, Liu B, Lu Y, Li L, Han L, Lu C. Anti-psoriasis effect of 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid by breaking CCL20/CCR6 axis through its vital active group targeting GUSB/ATF2 signaling. Phytomedicine 2024; 128:155524. [PMID: 38552435 DOI: 10.1016/j.phymed.2024.155524] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2023] [Revised: 02/02/2024] [Accepted: 03/07/2024] [Indexed: 05/01/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Psoriasis is an immune-mediated chronic inflammatory skin disease. Current research suggests that the long-term persistence and recurrence of psoriasis are closely related to the feedback loop formed between keratinocytes and immune cells, especially in Th 17 or DC cells expressing CCR6. CCL20 is the ligand of CCR6. Therefore, drugs that block the expression of CCL20 or CCR6 may have a certain therapeutic effect on psoriasis. Glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) is the main active ingredient of the plant drug licorice and is often used to treat autoimmune diseases, including psoriasis. However, its mechanism of action is still unclear. METHODS Psoriasis like skin lesion model was established by continuously applying imiquimod on the back skin of normal mice and CCR6-/- mice for 7 days. The therapeutic and preventive effects of glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) on the model were observed and compared. The severity of skin injury is estimated through clinical PASI scores and histopathological examination. qRT-PCR and multiple cytoline assay were explored to detect the expression levels of cytokines in animal dorsal skin lesions and keratinocyte line HaCaT cells, respectively. The dermis and epidermis of the mouse back were separated for the detection of CCL20 expression. Transcription factor assay was applied to screen, and luciferase activity assay to validate transcription factors regulated by GA. Technology of surface plasmon laser resonance with LC-MS (SPR-MS), molecular docking, and enzyme activity assay were used to identified the target proteins for GA. Finally, we synthesized different derivatives of 18beta-GA and compared their effects, as well as glycyrrhetinic acid (GL), on the skin lesion of imiquimod-induced mice to evaluate the active groups of 18beta-GA. RESULTS 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) improved IMQ-induced psoriatic lesions, and could specifically reduce the chemokine CCL20 level of the epidermis in lesion area, especially in therapeutic administration manner. The process was mainly regulated by transcription factor ATF2 in the keratinocytes. In addition, GUSB was identified as the primary target of 18βGA. Our findings indicated that the subject on molecular target research of glycyrrhizin should be glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) instead of glycyrrhizic acid (GL), because GL showed little activity in vitro or in vivo. Apart from that, α, β, -unsaturated carbonyl in C11/12 positions was crucial or unchangeable to its activity of 18βGA, while proper modification of C3 or C30 position of 18βGA may vastly increase its activity. CONCLUSION Our research indicates that 18βGA exerted its anti-psoriasis effect mainly by suppressing ATF2 and downstream molecule CCL20 predominately through α, β, -unsaturated carbonyl at C11/12 position binding to GUSB in the keratinocytes, and then broke the feedback loop between keratinocytes and CCR6-expressing immune cells. GA has more advantages than GL in the external treatment of psoriasis. A highlight of this study is to investigate the influence of special active groups on the pharmacological action of a natural product, inspired by the molecular docking result.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianan Wei
- Research Team of Molecular and Systems Biology of Chinese medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510120, China; Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Joint Lab on Chinese Medicine and Immune Disease Research, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510120, China
| | - Junhong Zhang
- The Second Clinical School of Medicine, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510120, China
| | - Fengju Hu
- The Second Clinical School of Medicine, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510120, China
| | - Wenjuan Zhang
- The Second Clinical School of Medicine, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510120, China
| | - Yunshan Wu
- Laboratory of Chinese Medicine Quality Standard, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510120, China
| | - Bo Liu
- Laboratory of Chinese Medicine Quality Standard, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510120, China
| | - Yue Lu
- Research Team of Molecular and Systems Biology of Chinese medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510120, China
| | - Li Li
- Research Team of Molecular and Systems Biology of Chinese medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510120, China
| | - Ling Han
- Research Team of Molecular and Systems Biology of Chinese medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510120, China; State Key laboratory of Dampness Syndrome of Chinese Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510120, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Clinical Research on Traditional Chinese Medicine Syndrome, Guangzhou 510120, China; Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Joint Lab on Chinese Medicine and Immune Disease Research, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510120, China.
| | - Chuanjian Lu
- State Key laboratory of Dampness Syndrome of Chinese Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510120, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Clinical Research on Traditional Chinese Medicine Syndrome, Guangzhou 510120, China; Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Joint Lab on Chinese Medicine and Immune Disease Research, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510120, China.
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Zou B, Zhang S, Li F, Weng F, Zhao J, Jin J, Yan D, Xu X, Chen G, Liu C, Yao C, Li Y, Qiu F. Gancao decoction attenuates hepatic necroptosis via activating caspase 8 in cholestatic liver injury. J Ethnopharmacol 2024; 326:117909. [PMID: 38350503 DOI: 10.1016/j.jep.2024.117909] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2023] [Revised: 01/25/2024] [Accepted: 02/09/2024] [Indexed: 02/15/2024]
Abstract
ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE Gancao Decoction (GCD) is widely used to treat cholestatic liver injury. However, it is unclear whether is related to prevent hepatocellular necroptosis. AIM OF THE STUDY The purpose of this study is to clarify the therapeutic effects of GCD against hepatocellular necroptosis induced by cholestasis and its active components. MATERIALS AND METHODS We induced cholestasis model in wild type mice by ligating the bile ducts or in Nlrp3-/- mice by intragastrical administering Alpha-naphthylisothiocyanate (ANIT). Serum biochemical indices, liver pathological changes and hepatic bile acids (BAs) were measured to evaluate GCD's hepatoprotective effects. Necroptosis was assessed by expression of hallmarkers in mice liver. Moreover, the potential anti-necroptotic effect of components from GCD were investigated and confirmed in ANIT-induced cholestasis mice and in primary hepatocytes from WT mouse stimulated with Tumor Necrosis Factor alpha (TNF-α) and cycloheximide (CHX). RESULTS GCD dose-dependently alleviated hepatic necrosis, reduced serum aminotranferase activity in both BDL and ANIT-induced cholestasis models. More importantly, the expression of hallmarkers of necroptosis, including MLKL, RIPK1 and RIPK3 phosphorylation (p- MLKL, p-RIPK1, p-RIPK3) were reduced upon GCD treatment. Glycyrrhetinic acid (GA), the main bioactive metabolite of GCD, effectively protected against ANIT-induced cholestasis, with decreased expression of p-MLKL, p-RIPK1 and p-RIPK3. Meanwhile, the expression of Fas-associated death domain protein (FADD), long isoform of cellular FLICE-like inhibitory protein (cFLIPL) and cleaved caspase 8 were upregulated upon GA treatment. Moreover, GA significantly increased the expression of active caspase 8, and reduced that of p-MLKL in TNF-α/CHX induced hepatocytes necroptosis. CONCLUSIONS GCD substantially inhibits necroptosis in cholestatic liver injury. GA is the main bioactive component responsible for the anti-necroptotic effects, which correlates with upregulation of c-FLIPL and active caspase 8.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bin Zou
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Shuang Zhang
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Fengling Li
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Fengyi Weng
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Jing Zhao
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Jingyi Jin
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Dongming Yan
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Xiaoqing Xu
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Gaofeng Chen
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Clinical Medicine, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Chenghai Liu
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Clinical Medicine, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Chengzeng Yao
- Cardiology Deparment, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China.
| | - Yue Li
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China.
| | - Furong Qiu
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China.
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De Rubis G, Paudel KR, Yeung S, Mohamad S, Sudhakar S, Singh SK, Gupta G, Hansbro PM, Chellappan DK, Oliver BGG, Dua K. 18-β-glycyrrhetinic acid-loaded polymeric nanoparticles attenuate cigarette smoke-induced markers of impaired antiviral response in vitro. Pathol Res Pract 2024; 257:155295. [PMID: 38603841 DOI: 10.1016/j.prp.2024.155295] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2024] [Revised: 04/02/2024] [Accepted: 04/08/2024] [Indexed: 04/13/2024]
Abstract
Tobacco smoking is a leading cause of preventable mortality, and it is the major contributor to diseases such as COPD and lung cancer. Cigarette smoke compromises the pulmonary antiviral immune response, increasing susceptibility to viral infections. There is currently no therapy that specifically addresses the problem of impaired antiviral response in cigarette smokers and COPD patients, highlighting the necessity to develop novel treatment strategies. 18-β-glycyrrhetinic acid (18-β-gly) is a phytoceutical derived from licorice with promising anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antiviral activities whose clinical application is hampered by poor solubility. This study explores the therapeutic potential of an advanced drug delivery system encapsulating 18-β-gly in poly lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) nanoparticles in addressing the impaired antiviral immunity observed in smokers and COPD patients. Exposure of BCi-NS1.1 human bronchial epithelial cells to cigarette smoke extract (CSE) resulted in reduced expression of critical antiviral chemokines (IP-10, I-TAC, MIP-1α/1β), mimicking what happens in smokers and COPD patients. Treatment with 18-β-gly-PLGA nanoparticles partially restored the expression of these chemokines, demonstrating promising therapeutic impact. The nanoparticles increased IP-10, I-TAC, and MIP-1α/1β levels, exhibiting potential in attenuating the negative effects of cigarette smoke on the antiviral response. This study provides a novel approach to address the impaired antiviral immune response in vulnerable populations, offering a foundation for further investigations and potential therapeutic interventions. Further studies, including a comprehensive in vitro characterization and in vivo testing, are warranted to validate the therapeutic efficacy of 18-β-gly-PLGA nanoparticles in respiratory disorders associated with compromised antiviral immunity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriele De Rubis
- Discipline of Pharmacy, Graduate School of Health, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2007, Australia; Faculty of Health, Australian Research Centre in Complementary and Integrative Medicine, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, Australia
| | - Keshav Raj Paudel
- Centre for Inflammation, Centenary Institute and University of Technology Sydney, Faculty of Science, School of Life Sciences, Sydney 2007, Australia
| | - Stewart Yeung
- Discipline of Pharmacy, Graduate School of Health, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2007, Australia; Faculty of Health, Australian Research Centre in Complementary and Integrative Medicine, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, Australia
| | - Siddiq Mohamad
- Department of Life Sciences, School of Pharmacy, International Medical University, Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur 57000, Malaysia
| | - Swathi Sudhakar
- Department of Applied Mechanics and Biomedical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology-Madras, Chennai, Tamil Nadu 600036, India
| | - Sachin Kumar Singh
- Faculty of Health, Australian Research Centre in Complementary and Integrative Medicine, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, Australia; School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Lovely Professional University, Phagwara, Punjab 144411, India
| | - Gaurav Gupta
- Centre for Global Health Research, Saveetha Medical College, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Saveetha University, India; School of Pharmacy, Graphic Era Hill University, Dehradun 248007, India; School of Pharmacy, Suresh Gyan Vihar University, Mahal Road, Jagatpura, Jaipur, India
| | - Philip Michael Hansbro
- Centre for Inflammation, Centenary Institute and University of Technology Sydney, Faculty of Science, School of Life Sciences, Sydney 2007, Australia
| | - Dinesh Kumar Chellappan
- Department of Life Sciences, School of Pharmacy, International Medical University, Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur 57000, Malaysia
| | - Brian Gregory George Oliver
- School of Life Science, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, NSW 2007, Australia; Woolcock Institute of Medical Research, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Kamal Dua
- Discipline of Pharmacy, Graduate School of Health, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2007, Australia; Faculty of Health, Australian Research Centre in Complementary and Integrative Medicine, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, Australia.
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Kong J, Xiang Q, Ge W, Wang Y, Xu F, Shi G. Network pharmacology mechanisms and experimental verification of licorice in the treatment of ulcerative colitis. J Ethnopharmacol 2024; 324:117691. [PMID: 38176667 DOI: 10.1016/j.jep.2023.117691] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2023] [Revised: 12/10/2023] [Accepted: 12/29/2023] [Indexed: 01/06/2024]
Abstract
ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE Licorice is widely used in the treatment of ulcerative colitis (UC) and has good antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, but its specific active ingredients and mechanisms of action are still unknown. THE PURPOSE OF THE STUDY To elucidate the specific molecular mechanisms of licorice in the treatment of UC and to experimentally verify its activity. METHODS Through network pharmacology, the active ingredients of licorice and the molecular targets of UC were identified. A traditional Chinese medicine (TCM)-components-target-disease network diagram was established, and the binding energies of the active ingredient and targets of licorice were verified by molecular docking. A BALB/c mice model of UC was established by treatment with 3% dextran sulfate sodium (DSS). The effect of licorice on colon tissue injury was histologically assessed. The expression of IL-6 and IL-17 in colon tissue was detected by immunohistochemistry (IHC). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was used to observe morphological changes in mitochondria in the colon. Caco2 cells were treated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) for 24 h to establish the cell inflammatory damage model, and cells were exposed to different concentrations of drug-containing serum of Licorice (DCSL) for 24 h. In cells treated with the drug, the contents of oxidation markers were measured and ELISA was used to determine the levels of inflammatory factors in the cells. TEM was used to observe morphological changes in mitochondria. ZO-1 and occludin were detected by Western blotting. DCSL effects on autophagy were evaluated by treating cells with DCSL and autophagy inhibitor for 24 h after LPS injection. Small interfering ribonucleic acid (si-RNA) was used to silence Nrf2 gene expression in Caco2 cells to observe the effects of DCSL on autophagy through the Nrf2/PINK1 pathway. Nrf2, PINK1, HO-1, Parkin, P62, and LC3 were detected by Western blotting. RESULTS Ninety-one active ingredients and 339 action targets and 792 UC disease targets were identified, 99 of which were overlapping targets. Molecular docking was used to analyze the binding energies of liquiritin, liquiritigenin, glycyrrhizic acid, and glycyrrhetinic acid to the targets, with glycyrrhetinic acid having the strongest binding energy. In the UC mouse model, licorice improved colon histopathological changes, reduced levels of IL-6 and IL-17 and repaired mitochondrial damage. In the LPS-induced inflammation model of Caco2 cells, DCSL decreased MDA, IL-1β, Il-6, and TNF-α levels and increased those of Superoxide Dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX), and IL-10, and improved the morphological changes of mitochondria. Increased expression of Nrf2, PINK1, Parkin, HO-1, ZO-1, occludin, P62, and LC3 promoted autophagy and reduced inflammation levels. CONCLUSION Licorice improves UC, which may be related to the activation of the Nrf2/PINK1 signaling pathway that regulates autophagy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinrong Kong
- School of Pharmacy, Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei City, Anhui Province, China; Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Chinese Medicinal Formula, Hefei City, Anhui Province, China
| | - Qingzhen Xiang
- School of Pharmacy, Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei City, Anhui Province, China; Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Chinese Medicinal Formula, Hefei City, Anhui Province, China
| | - Wanyue Ge
- School of Pharmacy, Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei City, Anhui Province, China; Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Chinese Medicinal Formula, Hefei City, Anhui Province, China
| | - Yunlai Wang
- School of Pharmacy, Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei City, Anhui Province, China; Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Chinese Medicinal Formula, Hefei City, Anhui Province, China
| | - Fan Xu
- School of Pharmacy, Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei City, Anhui Province, China; Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Chinese Medicinal Formula, Hefei City, Anhui Province, China.
| | - Gaoxiang Shi
- School of Pharmacy, Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei City, Anhui Province, China; Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Chinese Medicinal Formula, Hefei City, Anhui Province, China.
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Li X, Liang X, Gu X, Zou M, Cao W, Liu C, Wang X. Ursodeoxycholic acid and 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid alleviate ethinylestradiol-induced cholestasis via downregulating RORγt and CXCR3 signaling pathway in iNKT cells. Toxicol In Vitro 2024; 96:105782. [PMID: 38244730 DOI: 10.1016/j.tiv.2024.105782] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2023] [Revised: 11/04/2023] [Accepted: 01/15/2024] [Indexed: 01/22/2024]
Abstract
Estrogen-induced intrahepatic cholestasis (IHC) is a mild but potentially serious risk and urges for new therapeutic targets and effective treatment. Our previous study demonstrated that RORγt and CXCR3 signaling pathway of invariant natural killer T (iNKT) 17 cells play pathogenic roles in 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE)-induced IHC. Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) and 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) present a protective effect on IHC partially due to their immunomodulatory properties. Hence in present study, we aim to investigate the effectiveness of UDCA and 18β-GA in vitro and verify the accessibility of the above targets. Biochemical index measurement indicated that UDCA and 18β-GA presented efficacy to alleviate EE-induced cholestatic cytotoxicity. Both UDCA and 18β-GA exhibited suppression on the CXCL9/10-CXCR3 axis, and significantly restrained the expression of RORγt in vitro. In conclusion, our observations provide new therapeutic targets of UDCA and 18β-GA, and 18β-GA as an alternative treatment for EE-induced cholestasis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinyu Li
- State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines, New Drug Screening Center, Jiangsu Center for Pharmacodynamics Research and Evaluation, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, 210009, China
| | - Xiaojing Liang
- State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines, New Drug Screening Center, Jiangsu Center for Pharmacodynamics Research and Evaluation, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, 210009, China
| | - Xiaoxia Gu
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Zhongda Hospital, Southeast University, Nanjing 210009, China
| | - Mengzhi Zou
- State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines, New Drug Screening Center, Jiangsu Center for Pharmacodynamics Research and Evaluation, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, 210009, China
| | - Weiping Cao
- Departments of Obstetrics, Maternity and Child Health Hospital of Zhenjiang, Zhenjiang 212001, China.
| | - Chunhui Liu
- Physics and Chemistry Test Center of Jiangsu Province, 210042 Nanjing, China.
| | - Xinzhi Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines, New Drug Screening Center, Jiangsu Center for Pharmacodynamics Research and Evaluation, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, 210009, China.
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Guo Q, Zhao M, Wang Q, Lu T, Luo P, Chen L, Xia F, Pang H, Shen S, Cheng G, Dai C, Meng Y, Zhong T, Qiu C, Wang J. Glycyrrhetinic acid inhibits non-small cell lung cancer via promotion of Prdx6- and caspase-3-mediated mitochondrial apoptosis. Biomed Pharmacother 2024; 173:116304. [PMID: 38401519 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2024.116304] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2023] [Revised: 02/09/2024] [Accepted: 02/17/2024] [Indexed: 02/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) shows great efficiency against non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but the detailed mechanism is unclear, which has limited its clinical application. Herein, we investigated the potential targets of GA against NSCLC by activity-based protein profiling (ABPP) technology and the combination of histopathology and proteomics validation. In vitro and in vivo results indicated GA significantly inhibited NSCLC via promotion of peroxiredoxin-6 (Prdx6) and caspase-3 (Casp3)-mediated mitochondrial apoptosis. This original finding will provide theoretical and data support to improve the treatment of NSCLC with the application of GA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiuyan Guo
- State Key Laboratory for Quality Ensurance and Sustainable Use of Dao-di Herbs, Artemisinin Research Center, and Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China
| | - Minghong Zhao
- First Affiliated Hospital of Gannan Medical University, No. 23, Qingnian Road, Ganzhou, Jiangxi 341000, China
| | - Qixin Wang
- State Key Laboratory for Quality Ensurance and Sustainable Use of Dao-di Herbs, Artemisinin Research Center, and Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China
| | - Tianming Lu
- State Key Laboratory for Quality Ensurance and Sustainable Use of Dao-di Herbs, Artemisinin Research Center, and Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China
| | - Piao Luo
- State Key Laboratory for Quality Ensurance and Sustainable Use of Dao-di Herbs, Artemisinin Research Center, and Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China
| | - Lin Chen
- State Key Laboratory for Quality Ensurance and Sustainable Use of Dao-di Herbs, Artemisinin Research Center, and Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China
| | - Fei Xia
- State Key Laboratory for Quality Ensurance and Sustainable Use of Dao-di Herbs, Artemisinin Research Center, and Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China
| | - Huanhuan Pang
- State Key Laboratory for Quality Ensurance and Sustainable Use of Dao-di Herbs, Artemisinin Research Center, and Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China
| | - Shengnan Shen
- State Key Laboratory for Quality Ensurance and Sustainable Use of Dao-di Herbs, Artemisinin Research Center, and Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China
| | - Guangqing Cheng
- State Key Laboratory for Quality Ensurance and Sustainable Use of Dao-di Herbs, Artemisinin Research Center, and Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China
| | - Chuanhao Dai
- State Key Laboratory for Quality Ensurance and Sustainable Use of Dao-di Herbs, Artemisinin Research Center, and Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China
| | - Yuqing Meng
- State Key Laboratory for Quality Ensurance and Sustainable Use of Dao-di Herbs, Artemisinin Research Center, and Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China
| | - Tianyu Zhong
- First Affiliated Hospital of Gannan Medical University, No. 23, Qingnian Road, Ganzhou, Jiangxi 341000, China.
| | - Chong Qiu
- State Key Laboratory for Quality Ensurance and Sustainable Use of Dao-di Herbs, Artemisinin Research Center, and Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China.
| | - Jigang Wang
- State Key Laboratory for Quality Ensurance and Sustainable Use of Dao-di Herbs, Artemisinin Research Center, and Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China; Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Shenzhen Institute of Respiratory Diseases, and Shenzhen Clinical Research Centre for Geriatrics, Shenzhen People's Hospital; First Affiliated Hospital of Southern University of Science and Technology; Second Clinical Medical College of Jinan University, Shenzhen, 518020, China.
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8
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万 欣, 洪 崇, 王 进, 宋 高, 刘 叔. [3-O-β-chacotriosyl glycyrrhetinic acid derivatives as potential small-molecule SARS-CoV-2 fusion inhibitors against SARS-CoV-2 entry into host cells]. Nan Fang Yi Ke Da Xue Xue Bao 2024; 44:474-483. [PMID: 38597438 PMCID: PMC11006688 DOI: 10.12122/j.issn.1673-4254.2024.03.08] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2023] [Indexed: 04/11/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To study the inhibitory activities of 3-O-β-chacotriosyl glycyrrhetinic acid derivatives against the entry of SARS-CoV-2 into host cells. METHODS With pentacyclic triterpene saponin glycyrrhizic acid (a natural SARS-CoV-2 entry inhibitor) as the lead compound, a series of 3-O-β-chacotriosyl glycyrrhetinic acid derivatives were designed and synthesized based on hypridization principle, and their inhibitory activities against virus entry were tested in SARS-CoV-2 pseudovirusinfected cells. The antiviral targets of the lead compound 1b was identified by pseudotyped SARS-CoV-2 infection assay and surface plasmon resonance (SPR) assay, and the S protein-mediated cell-cell fusion assay was used to evaluate the effect of 1b on virus-cell membrane fusion. Molecular docking and single amino acid mutagenesis were carried out to analyze the effect of 1b on binding activitiy of S protein. RESULTS The lead compound 1b showed significant inhibitory effect against Omicron pseudovirus with an EC50 value of 3.28 μmol/L (P < 0.05), and had broad-spectrum antiviral activity against other SARS-CoV-2 pseudovirus. Spike-dependent cell-cell fusion assay demonstrated an inhibitory effect of 1b against SARS-CoV-2 S proteinmediated cell-cell fusion. Molecular docking analysis predicted that the lead compound 1b could be well fitted into a cavity between the attachment (S1) and fusion (S2) subunits at the 3-fold axis, where it formed multiple hydrophobic interactions with Glu309, Ser305, Arg765 and Lys964 residues with a KD value of -8.6 kcal/mol. The compound 1b at 10, 5, 2.5 and 1.25 μmol/L showed a significantly reduced inhibitory activity against the pseudovirus with mutated Arg765, Lys964, Glu309 and Leu303 (P < 0.01). CONCLUSION 3-O-β-chacotriosyl glycyrrhetinic acid derivatives are capable of stabilizing spike protein in the pre-fusion step to interfere with the fusion of SARS-CoV-2 with host cell membrane, and can thus serve as potential novel small-molecule SARS-CoV-2 fusion inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- 欣 万
- 惠州卫生职业技术学院药学与检验学院,广东 惠州 516000School of Pharmacy and Laboratory Medicine, Huizhou Health Sciences Polytechnic, Huizhou 516000, China
| | - 崇竣 洪
- 华南农业大学材料与能源学院,广东 广州 510642College of Materials and Energy, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - 进绅 王
- 南方医科大学药学院,广东 广州 510515School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China
| | - 高鹏 宋
- 华南农业大学材料与能源学院,广东 广州 510642College of Materials and Energy, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - 叔文 刘
- 南方医科大学药学院,广东 广州 510515School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China
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9
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Yang M, Jiang G, Li Y, Chen W, Zhang S, Wang R. Paeoniflorin loaded liposomes modified with glycyrrhetinic acid for liver-targeting: preparation, characterization, and pharmacokinetic study. Pharm Dev Technol 2024; 29:176-186. [PMID: 38376879 DOI: 10.1080/10837450.2024.2319738] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2023] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 02/21/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To enhance the retention times and therapeutic efficacy of paeoniflorin (PF), a liver-targeted drug delivery system has been developed using glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) as a ligand. SIGNIFICANCE The development and optimization of GA-modified PF liposomes (GPLs) have shown promising potential for targeted delivery to the liver, opening up new possibilities for liver disease treatment. METHODS This study aimed to identify the best prescriptions using single-factor experiments and response surface methodology. The formulation morphology was determined using transmission electron microscopy. Tissue distribution was observed through in vivo imaging, and pharmacokinetic studies were conducted. RESULTS The results indicated that GPLs, prepared using the thin film dispersion method and response surface optimization, exhibited well-dispersed and uniformly sized particles. The in vitro release rate of GPLs was slower compared to PF monomers, suggesting a sustained release effect. The liver-targeting ability of GA resulted in stronger fluorescence signals in the liver for targeted liposomes compared to non-targeted liposomes. Furthermore, pharmacokinetic studies demonstrated that GPLs significantly prolonged the residence time of PF in the bloodstream, thereby contributing to prolonged efficacy. CONCLUSION These findings suggest that GPLs are more effective than PF monomers in terms of controlling drug release and delivering drugs to specific targets, highlighting the potential of PF as a liver-protective drug.
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Affiliation(s)
- Menghuan Yang
- College of Pharmacy, Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, China
| | - Gang Jiang
- College of Pharmacy, Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, China
| | - Yumeng Li
- College of Pharmacy, Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, China
| | - Weidong Chen
- College of Pharmacy, Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, China
- MOE-Anhui Joint Collaborative Innovation Center for Quality Improvement of Anhui Genuine Chinese Medicinal Materials, Hefei, China
| | - Shantang Zhang
- College of Pharmacy, Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, China
- Department of Pharmacy, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Anhui Provincial Hospital, Hefei, China
| | - Rulin Wang
- College of Pharmacy, Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei, China
- MOE-Anhui Joint Collaborative Innovation Center for Quality Improvement of Anhui Genuine Chinese Medicinal Materials, Hefei, China
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Rychlá N, Navrátilová M, Kohoutová E, Raisová Stuchlíková L, Štěrbová K, Krátký J, Matoušková P, Szotáková B, Skálová L. Flubendazole carbonyl reduction in drug-susceptible and drug-resistant strains of the parasitic nematode Haemonchus contortus: changes during the life cycle and possible inhibition. Vet Res 2024; 55:7. [PMID: 38225645 PMCID: PMC10790374 DOI: 10.1186/s13567-023-01264-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2023] [Accepted: 12/12/2023] [Indexed: 01/17/2024] Open
Abstract
Carbonyl-reducing enzymes (CREs) catalyse the reduction of carbonyl groups in many eobiotic and xenobiotic compounds in all organisms, including helminths. Previous studies have shown the important roles of CREs in the deactivation of several anthelmintic drugs (e.g., flubendazole and mebendazole) in adults infected with the parasitic nematode Haemonchus contortus, in which the activity of a CRE is increased in drug-resistant strains. The aim of the present study was to compare the abilities of nematodes of both a drug-susceptible strain (ISE) and a drug-resistant strain (IRE) to reduce the carbonyl group of flubendazole (FLU) in different developmental stages (eggs, L1/2 larvae, L3 larvae, and adults). In addition, the effects of selected CRE inhibitors (e.g., glycyrrhetinic acid, naringenin, silybin, luteolin, glyceraldehyde, and menadione) on the reduction of FLU were evaluated in vitro and ex vivo in H. contortus adults. The results showed that FLU was reduced by H. contortus in all developmental stages, with adult IRE females being the most metabolically active. Larvae (L1/2 and L3) and adult females of the IRE strain reduced FLU more effectively than those of the ISE strain. Data from the in vitro inhibition study (performed with cytosolic-like fractions of H. contortus adult homogenate) revealed that glycyrrhetinic acid, naringenin, mebendazole and menadione are effective inhibitors of FLU reduction. Ex vivo study data showed that menadione inhibited FLU reduction and also decreased the viability of H. contortus adults to a similar extent. Naringenin and mebendazole were not toxic at the concentrations tested, but they did not inhibit the reduction of FLU in adult worms ex vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikola Rychlá
- Department of Biochemical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, Charles University, Heyrovského, 1203, Hradec Králové, Czech Republic
| | - Martina Navrátilová
- Department of Biochemical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, Charles University, Heyrovského, 1203, Hradec Králové, Czech Republic
| | - Eliška Kohoutová
- Department of Biochemical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, Charles University, Heyrovského, 1203, Hradec Králové, Czech Republic
| | - Lucie Raisová Stuchlíková
- Department of Biochemical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, Charles University, Heyrovského, 1203, Hradec Králové, Czech Republic
| | - Karolína Štěrbová
- Department of Biochemical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, Charles University, Heyrovského, 1203, Hradec Králové, Czech Republic
| | - Josef Krátký
- Department of Biochemical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, Charles University, Heyrovského, 1203, Hradec Králové, Czech Republic
| | - Petra Matoušková
- Department of Biochemical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, Charles University, Heyrovského, 1203, Hradec Králové, Czech Republic
| | - Barbora Szotáková
- Department of Biochemical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, Charles University, Heyrovského, 1203, Hradec Králové, Czech Republic
| | - Lenka Skálová
- Department of Biochemical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, Charles University, Heyrovského, 1203, Hradec Králové, Czech Republic.
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11
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Khalil H, Nada AH, Mahrous H, Hassan A, Rijo P, Ibrahim IA, Mohamed DD, AL-Salmi FA, Mohamed DD, Elmaksoud AIA. Amelioration effect of 18β-Glycyrrhetinic acid on methylation inhibitors in hepatocarcinogenesis -induced by diethylnitrosamine. Front Immunol 2024; 14:1206990. [PMID: 38322013 PMCID: PMC10844948 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1206990] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2023] [Accepted: 11/27/2023] [Indexed: 02/08/2024] Open
Abstract
Aim suppression of methylation inhibitors (epigenetic genes) in hepatocarcinogenesis induced by diethylnitrosamine using glycyrrhetinic acid. Method In the current work, we investigated the effect of sole GA combined with different agents such as doxorubicin (DOX) or probiotic bacteria (Lactobacillus rhamanosus) against hepatocarcinogenesis induced by diethylnitrosamine to improve efficiency. The genomic DNA was isolated from rats' liver tissues to evaluate either methylation-sensitive or methylation-dependent resection enzymes. The methylation activity of the targeting genes DLC-1, TET-1, NF-kB, and STAT-3 was examined using specific primers and cleaved DNA products. Furthermore, flow cytometry was used to determine the protein expression profiles of DLC-1 and TET-1 in treated rats' liver tissue. Results Our results demonstrated the activity of GA to reduce the methylation activity in TET-1 and DLC-1 by 33.6% and 78%, respectively. As compared with the positive control. Furthermore, the association of GA with DOX avoided the methylation activity by 88% and 91% for TET-1 and DLC-1, respectively, as compared with the positive control. Similarly, the combined use of GA with probiotics suppressed the methylation activity in the TET-1 and DLC-1 genes by 75% and 81% for TET-1 and DLC-1, respectively. Also, GA and its combination with bacteria attenuated the adverse effect in hepatocarcinogenesis rats by altering potential methylomic genes such as NF-kb and STAT3 genes by 76% and 83%, respectively. Conclusion GA has an ameliorative effect against methylation inhibitors in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) by decreasing the methylation activity genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hany Khalil
- Department of Molecular Biology, Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Research Institute (GEBRI) University of Sadat City, Sadat, Egypt
| | - Alaa H. Nada
- Department of Industrial Biotechnology, Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Research Institute (GEBRI) University of Sadat City, Sadat, Egypt
| | - Hoda Mahrous
- Department of Industrial Biotechnology, Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Research Institute (GEBRI) University of Sadat City, Sadat, Egypt
| | - Amr Hassan
- Department of Bioinformatics, Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Research Institute (GEBRI) University of Sadat City, Sadat, Egypt
| | - Patricia Rijo
- Research Center for Biosciences & Health Technologies (CBIOS), Universidade Lusófona de Humanidades e Tecnologias, Lisboa, Portugal
- Instituto de Investigação do Medicamento (iMed.ULisboa), Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Ibrahim A. Ibrahim
- Department of Plant Biotechnology, Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Research Institute (GEBRI) University of Sadat City, Sadat, Egypt
| | - Dalia D. Mohamed
- Department of Molecular Biology, Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Research Institute (GEBRI) University of Sadat City, Sadat, Egypt
| | - Fawziah A. AL-Salmi
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Taif University, Taif, Saudi Arabia
| | - Doaa D. Mohamed
- Department of Molecular Biology, Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Research Institute (GEBRI) University of Sadat City, Sadat, Egypt
| | - Ahmed I. Abd Elmaksoud
- Department of Molecular Biology, Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Research Institute (GEBRI) University of Sadat City, Sadat, Egypt
- College of Biotechnology, Misr University of Science and Technology, Giza, Egypt
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12
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Wang L, Wang X, Chen F, Song YQ, Nao SC, Chan DSH, Wong CY, Wang W, Leung CH. A glycyrrhetinic acid-iridium(III) conjugate as a theranostic NIR probe for hepatocellular carcinoma with mitochondrial-targeting ability. Eur J Med Chem 2024; 264:115995. [PMID: 38043488 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejmech.2023.115995] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2023] [Revised: 11/18/2023] [Accepted: 11/22/2023] [Indexed: 12/05/2023]
Abstract
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major contributor to global mortality rates, but current treatment options have limitations. Advanced theranostics are needed to effectively integrate diagnosis and therapeutic of HCC. Glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) has abundant binding sites with glycyrrhetinic acid receptors (GA-Rs) on the surface of HCC cells and has also been reported to possess ligands with mitochondrial-targeting capability but with limited efficacy. Herein, we report a near-infrared (NIR) luminescent theranostic complex 1 through conjugating an iridium(III) complex to GA, which exhibits the desired photophysical properties and promotes mitochondrial-targeting capability. Complex 1 was selectively taken up by HepG2 liver cancer cells and was imaged within mitochondria with NIR emission. Complex 1 targeted mitochondria and opened mitochondrial permeability transition pores (MPTPs), resulting in ROS accumulation, mitochondrial damage, disruption of Bax/Bcl-2 equilibrium, and tumor cell apoptosis, resulting in significantly improved anticancer activity compared to GA. This work offers a methodology for developing multifunctional theranostic probes with amplified specificity and efficacy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ling Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau, Macao, 999078, China
| | - Xueliang Wang
- Institute of Medical Research, Northwestern Polytechnical University, 127 West Youyi Road, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710072, China; Research & Development Institute of Northwestern Polytechnical University in Shenzhen, 45 South Gaoxin Road, Shenzhen, 518057, China
| | - Feng Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau, Macao, 999078, China
| | - Ying-Qi Song
- State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau, Macao, 999078, China
| | - Sang-Cuo Nao
- State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau, Macao, 999078, China
| | | | - Chun-Yuen Wong
- Department of Chemistry, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China
| | - Wanhe Wang
- Institute of Medical Research, Northwestern Polytechnical University, 127 West Youyi Road, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710072, China; Research & Development Institute of Northwestern Polytechnical University in Shenzhen, 45 South Gaoxin Road, Shenzhen, 518057, China.
| | - Chung-Hang Leung
- State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau, Macao, 999078, China; Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Macao, 999078, China; Macau Centre for Research and Development in Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau, Taipa, Macao, 999078, China; MoE Frontiers Science Center for Precision Oncology, University of Macau, Taipa, Macao, 999078, China.
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13
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Zou B, Zhang S, Zhao J, Song G, Weng F, Xu X, Li F, Jin J, Yan D, Huang K, Liu C, Li Y, Qiu F. Glycyrrhetinic acid attenuates endoplasmic reticulum stress-induced hepatocyte apoptosis via CHOP/DR5/Caspase 8 pathway in cholestasis. Eur J Pharmacol 2023; 961:176193. [PMID: 37981257 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejphar.2023.176193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2023] [Revised: 10/19/2023] [Accepted: 11/07/2023] [Indexed: 11/21/2023]
Abstract
Bile acid (BA)-induced apoptosis is a common pathologic feature of cholestatic liver injury. Glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) is the hepatoprotective constituent of licorice. In the present study, the anti-apoptotic potential of GA was investigated in wild type and macrophage-depleted C57BL/6 mice challenged with alpha-naphthyl isothiocyanate (ANIT), and hepatocytes stimulated with Taurocholic acid (TCA) or Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α). Apoptosis was determined by TUNEL positive cells and expression of executioner caspases. Firstly, we found that GA markedly alleviated liver injury, accompanied with reduced positive TUNEL-staining cells, and expression of caspases 3, 8 and 9 in mice modeled with ANIT. Secondly, GA mitigated apoptosis in macrophage-depleted mice with exacerbated liver injury and augmented cell apoptosis. In vitro study, pre-treatment with GA reduced the expression of activated caspases 3 and 8 in hepatocytes stimulated with TCA, but not TNF-α. The ability of GA to ameliorate apoptosis was abolished in the presence of Tauroursodeoxycholic Acid (TUDCA), a chemical chaperon against Endoplasmic reticulum stress (ER stress). Furthermore, GA attenuated the over-expression of Glucose regulated protein 78 (GRP78), and blocked all three branches of Unfolded protein reaction (UPR) in cholestatic livers of mice induced by ANIT. GA also downregulated C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP) expression, accompanied with reduced expression of Death receptor 5 (DR5) and activation of caspase 8 in both ANIT-modeled mice and TCA-stimulated hepatocytes. The results indicate that GA inhibits ER stress-induced hepatocyte apoptosis in cholestasis, which correlates with blocking CHOP/DR5/Caspase 8 pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bin Zou
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Shuang Zhang
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Jing Zhao
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Guochao Song
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Fengyi Weng
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Xiaoqing Xu
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Fengling Li
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Jingyi Jin
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Dongming Yan
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Kai Huang
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Clinical Medicine, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China
| | - Chenghai Liu
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Traditional Chinese Clinical Medicine, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China.
| | - Yue Li
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China.
| | - Furong Qiu
- Laboratory of Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Shuguang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201213, China.
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Sharma R, Singla RK, Banerjee S, Sharma R. Revisiting Licorice as a functional food in the management of neurological disorders: Bench to trend. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2023; 155:105452. [PMID: 37925093 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105452] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2023] [Revised: 10/16/2023] [Accepted: 10/29/2023] [Indexed: 11/06/2023]
Abstract
Traditional and scientific evidence attribute numerous bioactivities of Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra Linn.) in aging-related disorders. In this state-of-art review, an extensive search in several databases was conducted to collect all relevant literature and comprehensively analyze Licorice's pharmacological attributes, neuroprotective properties, safety, and its mechanistic role in treating various neurological conditions. Network pharmacology was employed for the first time exploring the mechanistic role of Licorice in neurological disorders. Its neuroprotective role is attributed to phytoconstituents, including liquiritin, glycyrrhizic acid, liquiritigenin, glabridin, 18ß-glycyrrhetinic acid, quercetin, isoliquiritigenin, paratocarpin B, glycyglabrone, and hispaglabridin B, as evident from in vitro and in vivo studies. Network pharmacology analysis reveals that these compounds protect against long-term depression, aging-associated diseases, Alzheimer's disease, and other addictions through interactions with cholinergic, dopaminergic, and serotonergic proteins, validated in animal studies only. Future clinical trials are warranted as Licorice administration has a limiting factor of mild hypertension and hypokalemia. Hopefully, scientific updates on Licorice will propagate a paradigm shift in medicine, research propagation, and development of the central nervous system phytopharmaceuticals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruchi Sharma
- Department of Rasa Shastra and Bhaishajya Kalpana, Faculty of Ayurveda, Institute of Medical Sciences, BHU, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221005, India
| | - Rajeev K Singla
- Joint Laboratory of Artificial Intelligence for Critical Care Medicine, Department of Critical Care Medicine and Institutes for Systems Genetics, Frontiers Science Center for Disease-related Molecular Network, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China; School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Lovely Professional University, Phagwara, Punjab 144411, India
| | - Subhadip Banerjee
- Medicinal Plant Innovation Centre, Mae Fah Luang University, Chiang Rai, Thailand
| | - Rohit Sharma
- Department of Rasa Shastra and Bhaishajya Kalpana, Faculty of Ayurveda, Institute of Medical Sciences, BHU, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221005, India.
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Wang XL, Guan HD, Qu SX, Xue BW, Li G, Liu XY, Chen LS, Gu H. [Liver targeting of compound liposomes mediated by glycyrrhetinic acid derivative receptor and its effect on hepatic stellate cells]. Zhongguo Zhong Yao Za Zhi 2023; 48:5195-5204. [PMID: 38114109 DOI: 10.19540/j.cnki.cjcmm.20230605.301] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2023]
Abstract
The 3-succinate-30-stearyl glycyrrhetinic acid(18-GA-Suc) was inserted into glycyrrhetinic acid(GA)-tanshinone Ⅱ_A(TSN)-salvianolic acid B(Sal B) liposome(GTS-lip) to prepare liver targeting compound liposome(Suc-GTS-lip) mediated by GA receptors. Next, pharmacokinetics and tissue distribution of Suc-GTS-lip and GTS-lip were compared by UPLC, and in vivo imaging tracking of Suc-GTS-lip was conducted. The authors investigated the effect of Suc-GTS-lip on the proliferation inhibition of hepatic stellate cells(HSC) and explored their molecular mechanism of improving liver fibrosis. Pharmacokinetic results showed that the AUC_(Sal B) decreased from(636.06±27.73) μg·h·mL~(-1) to(550.39±12.34) μg·h·mL~(-1), and the AUC_(TSN) decreased from(1.08±0.72) μg·h·mL~(-1) to(0.65±0.04) μg·h·mL~(-1), but the AUC_(GA) increased from(43.64±3.10) μg·h·mL~(-1) to(96.21±3.75) μg·h·mL~(-1). The results of tissue distribution showed that the AUC_(Sal B) and C_(max) of Sal B in the liver of the Suc-GTS-lip group were 10.21 and 4.44 times those of the GTS-lip group, respectively. The liver targeting efficiency of Sal B, TSN, and GA in the Suc-GTS-lip group was 40.66%, 3.06%, and 22.08%, respectively. In vivo imaging studies showed that the modified liposomes tended to accumulate in the liver. MTT results showed that Suc-GTS-lip could significantly inhibit the proliferation of HSC, and RT-PCR results showed that the expression of MMP-1 was significantly increased in all groups, but that of TIMP-1 and TIMP-2 was significantly decreased. The mRNA expressions of collagen-I and collagen-Ⅲ were significantly decreased in all groups. The experimental results showed that Suc-GTS-lip had liver targeting, and it could inhibit the proliferation of HSC and induce their apoptosis, which provided the experimental basis for the targeted treatment of liver fibrosis by Suc-GTS-lip.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiu-Li Wang
- Beijing University of Chinese Medicine Beijing 102488, China
| | - Hui-da Guan
- Beijing University of Chinese Medicine Beijing 102488, China
| | - Shu-Xian Qu
- Beijing University of Chinese Medicine Beijing 102488, China
| | - Bo-Wen Xue
- Southwest University Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Geng Li
- Chinese Medicine Regulatory Scientific Research Center of NMPA,China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences Beijing 100700, China
| | - Xing-Yu Liu
- Technical Center Beijing Workstation, Shanghai Tobacco Group Co., Ltd. Beijing 101121, China
| | - Li-Sha Chen
- Technical Center Beijing Workstation, Shanghai Tobacco Group Co., Ltd. Beijing 101121, China
| | - Heng Gu
- Kunming Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine Kunming 650011, China
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Álvarez-Almazán S, Solís-Domínguez LC, Duperou-Luna P, Fuerte-Gómez T, González-Andrade M, Aranda-Barradas ME, Palacios-Espinosa JF, Pérez-Villanueva J, Matadamas-Martínez F, Miranda-Castro SP, Mercado-Márquez C, Cortés-Benítez F. Anti-Diabetic Activity of Glycyrrhetinic Acid Derivatives FC-114 and FC-122: Scale-Up, In Silico, In Vitro, and In Vivo Studies. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:12812. [PMID: 37628991 PMCID: PMC10454726 DOI: 10.3390/ijms241612812] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2023] [Revised: 08/07/2023] [Accepted: 08/12/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is one of the most common diseases and the 8th leading cause of death worldwide. Individuals with T2D are at risk for several health complications that reduce their life expectancy and quality of life. Although several drugs for treating T2D are currently available, many of them have reported side effects ranging from mild to severe. In this work, we present the synthesis in a gram-scale as well as the in silico and in vitro activity of two semisynthetic glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) derivatives (namely FC-114 and FC-122) against Protein Tyrosine Phosphatase 1B (PTP1B) and α-glucosidase enzymes. Furthermore, the in vitro cytotoxicity assay on Human Foreskin fibroblast and the in vivo acute oral toxicity was also conducted. The anti-diabetic activity was determined in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats after oral administration with FC-114 or FC-122. Results showed that both GA derivatives have potent PTP1B inhibitory activity being FC-122, a dual PTP1B/α-glucosidase inhibitor that could increase insulin sensitivity and reduce intestinal glucose absorption. Molecular docking, molecular dynamics, and enzymatic kinetics studies revealed the inhibition mechanism of FC-122 against α-glucosidase. Both GA derivatives were safe and showed better anti-diabetic activity in vivo than the reference drug acarbose. Moreover, FC-114 improves insulin levels while decreasing LDL and total cholesterol levels without decreasing HDL cholesterol.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samuel Álvarez-Almazán
- Laboratory of Biotechnology, Unidad de Posgrado, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Cuautitlán Campus 1, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Cuautitlán Izcalli 54740, Mexico; (S.Á.-A.); (L.C.S.-D.); (T.F.-G.); (M.E.A.-B.); (S.P.M.-C.)
| | - Luz Cassandra Solís-Domínguez
- Laboratory of Biotechnology, Unidad de Posgrado, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Cuautitlán Campus 1, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Cuautitlán Izcalli 54740, Mexico; (S.Á.-A.); (L.C.S.-D.); (T.F.-G.); (M.E.A.-B.); (S.P.M.-C.)
| | - Paulina Duperou-Luna
- Laboratory of Synthesis and Isolation of Bioactive Substances, Departamento de Sistemas Biológicos, División de Ciencias Biológicas y de la Salud, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana–Xochimilco (UAM–X), Mexico City 04960, Mexico; (P.D.-L.); (J.F.P.-E.); (J.P.-V.); (F.M.-M.)
| | - Teresa Fuerte-Gómez
- Laboratory of Biotechnology, Unidad de Posgrado, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Cuautitlán Campus 1, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Cuautitlán Izcalli 54740, Mexico; (S.Á.-A.); (L.C.S.-D.); (T.F.-G.); (M.E.A.-B.); (S.P.M.-C.)
| | - Martin González-Andrade
- Laboratory of Biosensors and Molecular Modelling, Departamento de Bioquímica, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City 04510, Mexico;
| | - María E. Aranda-Barradas
- Laboratory of Biotechnology, Unidad de Posgrado, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Cuautitlán Campus 1, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Cuautitlán Izcalli 54740, Mexico; (S.Á.-A.); (L.C.S.-D.); (T.F.-G.); (M.E.A.-B.); (S.P.M.-C.)
| | - Juan Francisco Palacios-Espinosa
- Laboratory of Synthesis and Isolation of Bioactive Substances, Departamento de Sistemas Biológicos, División de Ciencias Biológicas y de la Salud, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana–Xochimilco (UAM–X), Mexico City 04960, Mexico; (P.D.-L.); (J.F.P.-E.); (J.P.-V.); (F.M.-M.)
| | - Jaime Pérez-Villanueva
- Laboratory of Synthesis and Isolation of Bioactive Substances, Departamento de Sistemas Biológicos, División de Ciencias Biológicas y de la Salud, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana–Xochimilco (UAM–X), Mexico City 04960, Mexico; (P.D.-L.); (J.F.P.-E.); (J.P.-V.); (F.M.-M.)
| | - Félix Matadamas-Martínez
- Laboratory of Synthesis and Isolation of Bioactive Substances, Departamento de Sistemas Biológicos, División de Ciencias Biológicas y de la Salud, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana–Xochimilco (UAM–X), Mexico City 04960, Mexico; (P.D.-L.); (J.F.P.-E.); (J.P.-V.); (F.M.-M.)
| | - Susana Patricia Miranda-Castro
- Laboratory of Biotechnology, Unidad de Posgrado, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Cuautitlán Campus 1, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Cuautitlán Izcalli 54740, Mexico; (S.Á.-A.); (L.C.S.-D.); (T.F.-G.); (M.E.A.-B.); (S.P.M.-C.)
| | - Crisóforo Mercado-Márquez
- Isolation and Animal Facility Unit, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Cuautitlán 28, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Cuautitlán Izcalli 54714, Mexico;
| | - Francisco Cortés-Benítez
- Laboratory of Synthesis and Isolation of Bioactive Substances, Departamento de Sistemas Biológicos, División de Ciencias Biológicas y de la Salud, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana–Xochimilco (UAM–X), Mexico City 04960, Mexico; (P.D.-L.); (J.F.P.-E.); (J.P.-V.); (F.M.-M.)
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Lin D, Liu J, Chang X, Yang B, Gu X, Li W. Glycyrrhetinic acid ameliorates diosbulbin B-induced hepatotoxicity in mice by modulating metabolic activation of diosbulbin B. J Appl Toxicol 2023; 43:1139-1147. [PMID: 36807597 DOI: 10.1002/jat.4450] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2022] [Revised: 02/02/2023] [Accepted: 02/15/2023] [Indexed: 02/23/2023]
Abstract
Exposure to diosbulbin B (DBB), the primary component of the herbal medicine Dioscorea bulbifera L. (DB), can cause liver injury in humans and experimental animals. A previous study found DBB-induced hepatotoxicity was initiated by CYP3A4-mediated metabolic activation and subsequent formation of adducts with cellular proteins. The herbal medicine licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra L.) is frequently combined with DB used in numerous Chinese medicinal formulas in an effort to protect against DB-elicited hepatotoxicity. Importantly, glycyrrhetinic acid (GA), the major bioactive ingredient in licorice, inhibits CYP3A4 activity. The study aimed to investigate the protection of GA against DBB-induced hepatotoxicity and the underlying mechanism. Biochemical and histopathological analysis showed GA alleviated DBB-induced liver injury in a dose-dependent manner. In vitro metabolism assay with mouse liver microsomes (MLMs) indicated that GA decreased the generation of metabolic activation-derived pyrrole-glutathione (GSH) conjugates from DBB. Toxicokinetic studies demonstrated that GA increased maximal serum concentration (Cmax ) and area under the serum-time curve (AUC) of DBB in mice. In addition, GA attenuated hepatic GSH depletion caused by DBB. Further mechanistic studies showed that GA reduced the production of DBB-derived pyrroline-protein adducts in a dose-dependent manner. In conclusion, our findings demonstrated that GA exerted protective effect against DBB-induced hepatotoxicity, mainly correlated with suppressing the metabolic activation of DBB. Therefore, the development of a standardized combination of DBB with GA may protect patients from DBB-induced hepatotoxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dongju Lin
- Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Quality Control of Hebei Province, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hebei University, Baoding, China
| | - Jie Liu
- Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Quality Control of Hebei Province, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hebei University, Baoding, China
| | - Xiaojin Chang
- Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Quality Control of Hebei Province, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hebei University, Baoding, China
| | - Bufan Yang
- Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Quality Control of Hebei Province, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hebei University, Baoding, China
| | - Xiaofei Gu
- Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Quality Control of Hebei Province, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hebei University, Baoding, China
| | - Weiwei Li
- State Key Laboratory of Functions and Applications of Medicinal Plants, Guizhou Provincial Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutics, Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang, China
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Li X, Du Y, Huang S, Yang Y, Lu D, Zhang J, Chen Y, Zhang L, Nan Y, Yuan L. Exploring the molecular mechanism of glycyrrhetinic acid in the treatment of gastric cancer based on network pharmacology and experimental validation. Aging (Albany NY) 2023; 15:3839-3856. [PMID: 37171392 PMCID: PMC10449304 DOI: 10.18632/aging.204718] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2023] [Accepted: 04/25/2023] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
There is a wide range of pharmacological effects for glycyrrhetinic acid (GRA). Previous studies have shown that GRA could inhibit the proliferation of tumor cells, showing a promising value in the treatment of gastric cancer (GC). Nonetheless, the precise mechanism of the effect of GRA on GC remains unclear. We explored cellular and molecular mechanisms of GRA based on network pharmacology and in vitro experimental validation. In this study, we predicted 156 potential therapeutic targets for GC with GRA from public databases. We then screened the hub targets using protein-protein interaction network (PPI) and conducted clinical correlation analysis. Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment showed that GRA made anti-GC effects through multiple targets and pathways, particularly the MAPK signaling pathway. Next, molecular docking results revealed a potential interaction between GRA and MAPK3. In addition, qRT-PCR experiments revealed that 18β-GRA was able to suppress mRNA expression of KRAS, ERK1 and ERK2 in AGS cells. Western blotting results also revealed that 18β-GRA was able to suppress the expression of KRAS and p-ERK1/2 proteins in AGS cells. Additionally, immunofluorescence assays revealed that 18β-GRA inhibited p-ERK1/2 nuclear translocation in AGS cells. These results systematically reveal that 18β-GRA may have anti-tumor effects on GC by modulating the MAPK signaling pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xia Li
- College of Pharmacy, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan 750004, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China
| | - Yuhua Du
- College of Pharmacy, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan 750004, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China
| | - Shicong Huang
- College of Pharmacy, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan 750004, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China
| | - Yi Yang
- College of Basic Medicine, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan 750004, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China
| | - Doudou Lu
- College of Clinical Medicine, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan 750004, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China
| | - Junfei Zhang
- College of Clinical Medicine, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan 750004, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China
| | - Yan Chen
- Traditional Chinese Medicine College, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan 750004, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China
| | - Lei Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Hui Ethnic Medicine Modernization of Ministry of Education, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan 750004, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China
| | - Yi Nan
- Traditional Chinese Medicine College, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan 750004, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China
- Key Laboratory of Hui Ethnic Medicine Modernization of Ministry of Education, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan 750004, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China
| | - Ling Yuan
- College of Pharmacy, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan 750004, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China
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Cheng Y, Wu X, Nie X, Wu Y, Zhang C, Lee SMY, Lv K, Leung GPH, Fu C, Zhang J, Li J. Natural compound glycyrrhetinic acid protects against doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity by activating the Nrf2/HO-1 signaling pathway. Phytomedicine 2022; 106:154407. [PMID: 36070662 DOI: 10.1016/j.phymed.2022.154407] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2022] [Revised: 07/04/2022] [Accepted: 08/17/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND As one of the most classic antineoplastic agents, doxorubicin (Dox) is extensively used to treat a wide range of cancers. Nevertheless, the clinical outcomes of Dox-based therapies are severely hampered due to the significant cardiotoxicity. Glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) is the major biologically active compound of licorice, one of the most well-known food additives and medicinal plants in the world. We previously demonstrated that GA has the potential capability to protect mice from Dox-induced cardiac injuries. However, the underlying cardioprotective mechanism remains unexplored. PURPOSE To investigate the cardioprotective benefits of GA against Dox-induced cardiotoxicity and to elucidate its mechanisms of action. STUDY DESIGN/METHODS H9c2 cardiomyoblasts and AC16 cardiomyocytes were used as the cell models in vitro. A transgenic zebrafish model and a 4T1 mouse breast cancer model were applied to explore the cardioprotective effects of GA in vivo. RESULTS In vitro, GA inhibited Dox-induced cell death and LDH release in H9c2 and AC16 cells without affecting the anti-cancer effects of Dox. GA significantly alleviated Dox-induced ROS generation, mitochondrial dysfunction, and apoptosis in H9c2 cells. Moreover, GA abolished the expression of pro-apoptotic proteins and restored Nrf2/HO-1 signaling pathway in Dox-treated H9c2 cells. On the contrary, Nrf2 knockdown strongly abrogated the cardioprotective effects of GA on Dox-treated H9c2 cells. In vivo, GA attenuated Dox-induced cardiac dysfunction by restoring stroke volume, cardiac output, and fractional shortening in the transgenic zebrafish embryos. In a 4T1 mouse breast cancer model, GA dramatically prevented body weight loss, attenuated cardiac dysfunction, and prolonged survival rate in Dox-treated mice, without compromising Dox's anti-tumor efficacy. Consistently, GA attenuated oxidative injury, reduced cardiomyocytes apoptosis, and restored the expressions of Nrf2 and HO-1 in Dox-treated mouse hearts. CONCLUSION GA protects against Dox-induced cardiotoxicity by suppressing oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, and apoptosis via upregulating Nrf2/HO-1 signaling pathway. These findings could provide solid evidence to support the further development of GA as a feasible and safe adjuvant to Dox chemotherapy for overcoming Dox-induced cardiotoxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanfen Cheng
- State Key Laboratory of Southwestern Chinese Medicine Resources, School of Pharmacy, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, China
| | - Xiaoping Wu
- Department of Pharmacology and Pharmacy, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
| | - Xin Nie
- State Key Laboratory of Southwestern Chinese Medicine Resources, School of Pharmacy, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, China
| | - Yihan Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Southwestern Chinese Medicine Resources, School of Pharmacy, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, China
| | - Chen Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Southwestern Chinese Medicine Resources, School of Pharmacy, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, China
| | - Simon Ming-Yuen Lee
- State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine and Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau, Macao SAR, China
| | - Kongpeng Lv
- Department of Interventional Radiology, Shenzhen People's Hospital (The Second Clinical Medical College, Jinan University; The First Affiliated Hospital, Southern University of Science and Technology), Shenzhen, China
| | - George Pak-Heng Leung
- Department of Pharmacology and Pharmacy, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
| | - Chaomei Fu
- State Key Laboratory of Southwestern Chinese Medicine Resources, School of Pharmacy, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, China
| | - Jinming Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Southwestern Chinese Medicine Resources, School of Pharmacy, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, China.
| | - Jingjing Li
- State Key Laboratory of Southwestern Chinese Medicine Resources, School of Pharmacy, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, China; Department of Pharmacology and Pharmacy, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
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Xu Y, Wang M, Ning S, Yang Z, Zhou L, Xia X. Development of Glycyrrhetinic Acid and Folate Modified Cantharidin Loaded Solid Lipid Nanoparticles for Targeting Hepatocellular Carcinoma. Molecules 2022; 27:molecules27206786. [PMID: 36296377 PMCID: PMC9610810 DOI: 10.3390/molecules27206786] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2022] [Revised: 10/01/2022] [Accepted: 10/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Cantharidin (CTD) is the major component of anticancer drugs obtained from Mylabris Cichorii and has a good inhibitory effect on several cancers, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and breast cancer. However, due to its toxicity, oral administration can cause various adverse reactions, limiting its clinical application. The aim of this work was to design glycyrrhetinic acid (GA)- and/or folate (FA)-modified solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) for the encapsulation of CTD to target HCC. Four CTD-loaded SLNs (cantharidin solid lipid nanoparticles (CSLNs), glycyrrhetinic acid-modified cantharidin solid lipid nanoparticles (GA-CSLNs), folate-modified cantharidin solid lipid nanoparticles (FA-CSLNs), and glycyrrhetinic acid and folate-modified cantharidin solid lipid nanoparticles (GA-FA-CSLNs)) were prepared by the emulsion ultrasonic dispersion method, and their physicochemical parameters were determined (particle size and distribution, morphology, zeta-potential, entrapment efficiency, drug loading, and hemolysis). Additionally, the antitumor activities of the four SLNs were evaluated comprehensively by tests for cytotoxicity, cell migration, cell cycle, apoptosis, cellular uptake, competition suppression assay, and in vivo tumor suppression assay. Four SLNs showed spherical shapes and mean diameters in the range of 75–110 nm with size dispersion (PDI) within the range of 0.19–0.50 and zeta-potential approximately –10 mV. The entrapment efficiency of CTD in SLNs was higher than 95% for all tested formulations, and no hemolysis was observed. Compared to GA-CSLNs or CSLNs, GA-FA-CSLNs and FA-CSLNs showed stronger cytotoxicity on hepatocellular carcinoma cells (HepG2), and the cytotoxicity of GA-FA-CSLNs on hepatocyte cells (L-02) was remarkably reduced compared with other formulations. GA-FA-CSLNs and FA-CSLNs also increased the inhibition of HepG2 cell migration, and FA-CSLNs had the highest apoptosis rate. The cell cycle results indicated that HepG2 cells were arrested mainly in the S phase and G2/M phase. Analysis of competition inhibition experiments showed that GA and FA ligands had targeted effects on HepG2 cells. The in vivo tumor inhibition experiment showed that GA-FA-CSLNs and FA-CSLNs had excellent tumor inhibition ability—their tumor inhibition rates were 96.46% and 89.92%, respectively. Our results indicate that GA-FA-CSLNs and FA-CSLNs have a promising future in the therapeutic intervention of HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yilin Xu
- School of Pharmacy, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Changsha 410208, China
| | - Min Wang
- School of Pharmacy, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Changsha 410208, China
- The Second Hospital of Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Changsha 410005, China
| | - Shuangcheng Ning
- School of Pharmacy, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Changsha 410208, China
| | - Zhonglan Yang
- School of Pharmacy, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Changsha 410208, China
| | - Lili Zhou
- School of Pharmacy, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Changsha 410208, China
- Correspondence: (L.Z.); (X.X.); Tel.: +86-138-7596-5134 (L.Z.); +86-139-7313-1320 (X.X.)
| | - Xinhua Xia
- School of Pharmacy, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Changsha 410208, China
- Correspondence: (L.Z.); (X.X.); Tel.: +86-138-7596-5134 (L.Z.); +86-139-7313-1320 (X.X.)
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Fan Y, Dong W, Wang Y, Zhu S, Chai R, Xu Z, Zhang X, Yan Y, Yang L, Bian Y. Glycyrrhetinic acid regulates impaired macrophage autophagic flux in the treatment of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Front Immunol 2022; 13:959495. [PMID: 35967372 PMCID: PMC9365971 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.959495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2022] [Accepted: 07/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Macrophages are involved in hepatocyte steatosis and necroinflammation and play an important role in the pathogenesis of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Impaired autophagy function (decreased autophagy or blocked autophagic flow) leads to cell damage and death and promotes NAFLD progression. The experimental and clinical research of glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) in the treatment of NAFLD has gradually attracted attention with clear pharmacological activities such as immune regulation, antiviral, antitumor, antioxidant, liver protection, and anti-inflammatory. However, the effects of GA on the STAT3-HIF-1α pathway and autophagy in macrophages are still unclear, and its mechanism of action in the treatment of NAFLD remains to be further elucidated. We constructed a NAFLD mouse model through a high-fat and high-sugar diet to investigate the therapeutic effects of GA. The results showed that GA reduced weight, improved the pathological changes and hepatic lipid deposition of liver, and abnormally elevated the levels of serum biochemical (AST, ALT, TG, T-CHO, LDL-C, and HDL-C) and inflammatory indexes (IL-1β, IL-4, IL-6, MCP-1, and TNF-α) in NAFLD mice. Further examination revealed that GA ameliorates excessive hepatic macrophage infiltration and hepatocyte apoptosis. The results of the cell experiments further elaborated that GA modulated the PA-induced macrophage STAT3-HIF-1α pathway and ameliorated impaired autophagic flux (blockade of autophagosome–lysosome fusion) and overactivation of inflammation. Excessive hepatocyte apoptosis caused by the uncontrolled release of inflammatory cytokines was also suppressed by GA.ConclusionThis study demonstrated that GA could regulate the STAT3-HIF-1α pathway of macrophages, ameliorate the impaired autophagy flux, and reduce the excessive production of inflammatory cytokines to improve the excessive apoptosis of liver cells, thus playing a therapeutic role on NAFLD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yadong Fan
- School of Integrative Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China
| | - Wenjin Dong
- Department of Science and Education, Tianjin Union Medical Center, Tianjin, China
| | - Ying Wang
- School of Integrative Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China
| | - Shan Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Component Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China
| | - Rundong Chai
- School of Integrative Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China
| | - Zhe Xu
- School of Integrative Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China
| | - Xiaoyu Zhang
- The Reproductive Center, First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China
| | - Yiqi Yan
- State Key Laboratory of Component Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China
| | - Long Yang
- School of Integrative Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China
- Research Center for Infectious Diseases, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China
- *Correspondence: Long Yang, ; Yuhong bian,
| | - Yuhong Bian
- School of Integrative Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China
- *Correspondence: Long Yang, ; Yuhong bian,
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Li H, You J, Yang X, Wei Y, Zheng L, Zhao Y, Huang Y, Jin Z, Yi C. Glycyrrhetinic acid: A potential drug for the treatment of COVID-19 cytokine storm. Phytomedicine 2022; 102:154153. [PMID: 35636166 PMCID: PMC9098921 DOI: 10.1016/j.phymed.2022.154153] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2022] [Revised: 04/09/2022] [Accepted: 05/04/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The cytokine storm (CS) triggered by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has caused serious harm to health of humanity and huge economic burden to the world, and there is a lack of effective methods to treat this complication. PURPOSE In this research, we used network pharmacology and molecular docking to reveal the interaction mechanism in the glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) for the treatment of CS, and validated the effect of GA intervention CS by experiments. STUDY DESIGN First, we screened corresponding target of GA and CS from online databases, and obtained the action target genes through the Venn diagram. Then, protein-protein interaction (PPI) network, Gene ontology (GO) analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment of the action target genes were acquired by R language to predict its mechanism. Next, molecular docking was performed on core targets. Finally, experiments in which GA intervened in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced CS were implemented. RESULTS 84 action target genes were obtained from online database. The PPI network of target genes showed that TNF, IL6, MAPK3, PTGS2, ESR1 and PPARG were considered as the core genes. The results of GO and KEGG showed that action target genes were closely related to inflammatory and immune related signaling pathways, such as TNF signaling pathway, IL-17 signaling pathway, Human cytomegalovirus infection, PPAR signaling pathway and so on. Molecule docking results prompted that GA had fine affinity with IL6 and TNF proteins. Finally, in vivo and in vitro experimental results showed that GA could significantly inhibit LPS-induced CS. CONCLUSION GA has a potential inhibitory effect on CS, which is worthy of further exploration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huawei Li
- Department of Medical Oncology, Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, No.37 Guoxue Lane, Chengdu 610041, China; Department of Oncology, Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu 610072, China
| | - Jia You
- Department of Oncology, Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu 610072, China
| | - Xi Yang
- Department of Medical Oncology, Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, No.37 Guoxue Lane, Chengdu 610041, China
| | - Yuanfeng Wei
- Department of Medical Oncology, Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, No.37 Guoxue Lane, Chengdu 610041, China
| | - Lingnan Zheng
- Department of Medical Oncology, Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, No.37 Guoxue Lane, Chengdu 610041, China
| | - Yaqin Zhao
- Department of Medical Oncology, Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, No.37 Guoxue Lane, Chengdu 610041, China
| | - Ying Huang
- West China School of Basic Medical Science and Forensic Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610044, China
| | - Zhao Jin
- School of Basic Medicine, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu 611137, China.
| | - Cheng Yi
- Department of Medical Oncology, Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, No.37 Guoxue Lane, Chengdu 610041, China.
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Li Q, Su R, Bao X, Cao K, Du Y, Wang N, Wang J, Xing F, Yan F, Huang K, Feng S. Glycyrrhetinic acid nanoparticles combined with ferrotherapy for improved cancer immunotherapy. Acta Biomater 2022; 144:109-120. [PMID: 35314366 DOI: 10.1016/j.actbio.2022.03.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2021] [Revised: 03/09/2022] [Accepted: 03/13/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1)/Programmed Cell Death Ligand 1 (PD-L1) blockade immunotherapy has emerged as a promising strategy to treat both solid and hematological malignancies. Despite the considerable therapeutic effects obtained in pre-clinical and clinical studies, PD-1/PD-L1 blockade therapy is still limited by the low benefit rates and a large number of patients still do not respond to this treatment. In this study, we developed a highly efficient and cancer-specific immunogenic cell death nanoinducer for effective tumor immunotherapy. A leukocyte membrane coated poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) encapsulating glycyrrhetinic acid (GCMNPs) was developed to enhance targeting, tumor-homing capacity, and reduce toxicity in vivo. GCMNPs could induce ferroptosis in acute myeloid leukemia and colorectal cancer cells by downregulating glutathione-dependent peroxidases 4, leading to increased lipid peroxidation levels. Moreover, GCMNPs and ferumoxytol could synergistically enhance Fe-dependent cytotoxicity through the Fenton reaction. Finally, in vivo studies showed that GCMNPs synergized with ferumoxytol and anti-PD-L1 synergistically improve T-cell immune response against leukemia and colorectal tumor. This study anticipated that the combination of glycyrrhetinic acid-based nanomaterials and ferrotherapy would provide further insights into anti-cancer immune response to PD-1/PD-L1 blockade for both solid and hematological malignancies. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: Despite the considerable therapeutic effects obtained in pre-clinical and clinical studies, PD-1/PD-L1 blockade therapy is still limited by the low benefit rates and a large number of patients still do not respond to this treatment. We designed a glycyrrhetinic acid-based nanoplatform as a new ICD inducer (GCMNPs), with high cancer cell specificity and reduced toxicity to AML and CRC. GCMNPs cooperates with ferumoxytol to promote a Fenton reaction and induce ferroptosis. Moreover, the combination of GCMNPs and ferumoxytol enhanced the blockage of PD-1/PD-L1 to activate T cells, subsequently generating a systemic immune response in CRC and AML mouse models. This pre-clinical findings provide the proof-of-concept of combination of glycyrrhetinic acid-based nanomaterials and ferrotherapy as an "ICD nano-inducer" and immunotherapeutic agent for treating cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qing Li
- State Key Laboratory of Inorganic Synthesis and Preparative Chemistry, International Joint Research Laboratory of Nano-Micro Architecture Chemistry (NMAC), International Research Center for Chemistry-Medicine Joint Innovation, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, 2699 Qianjin Street, Changchun 130012, China
| | - Rui Su
- State Key Laboratory of Inorganic Synthesis and Preparative Chemistry, International Joint Research Laboratory of Nano-Micro Architecture Chemistry (NMAC), International Research Center for Chemistry-Medicine Joint Innovation, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, 2699 Qianjin Street, Changchun 130012, China
| | - Xin Bao
- Department of Thyroid, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, No. 218, Ziqiang Street, Nanguan District, Changchun 130041, China
| | - Kunxia Cao
- State Key Laboratory of Inorganic Synthesis and Preparative Chemistry, International Joint Research Laboratory of Nano-Micro Architecture Chemistry (NMAC), International Research Center for Chemistry-Medicine Joint Innovation, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, 2699 Qianjin Street, Changchun 130012, China
| | - Yangyang Du
- State Key Laboratory of Inorganic Synthesis and Preparative Chemistry, International Joint Research Laboratory of Nano-Micro Architecture Chemistry (NMAC), International Research Center for Chemistry-Medicine Joint Innovation, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, 2699 Qianjin Street, Changchun 130012, China
| | - Nanya Wang
- The Cancer Center, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Xinmin Street, Changchun 130021, China
| | - Jianfeng Wang
- Department of Radiotherapy, China-Japan Union Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun 130033, China
| | - Fan Xing
- State Key Laboratory of Inorganic Synthesis and Preparative Chemistry, International Joint Research Laboratory of Nano-Micro Architecture Chemistry (NMAC), International Research Center for Chemistry-Medicine Joint Innovation, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, 2699 Qianjin Street, Changchun 130012, China
| | - Fei Yan
- State Key Laboratory of Inorganic Synthesis and Preparative Chemistry, International Joint Research Laboratory of Nano-Micro Architecture Chemistry (NMAC), International Research Center for Chemistry-Medicine Joint Innovation, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, 2699 Qianjin Street, Changchun 130012, China.
| | - Keke Huang
- State Key Laboratory of Inorganic Synthesis and Preparative Chemistry, International Joint Research Laboratory of Nano-Micro Architecture Chemistry (NMAC), International Research Center for Chemistry-Medicine Joint Innovation, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, 2699 Qianjin Street, Changchun 130012, China.
| | - Shouhua Feng
- State Key Laboratory of Inorganic Synthesis and Preparative Chemistry, International Joint Research Laboratory of Nano-Micro Architecture Chemistry (NMAC), International Research Center for Chemistry-Medicine Joint Innovation, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, 2699 Qianjin Street, Changchun 130012, China
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Sun W, Bai J, Li FY, Miao J, Miao LY. [The effect of glycyrrhetinic acid on the proliferation and inva-sion of colorectal cancer LoVo cells]. Zhongguo Ying Yong Sheng Li Xue Za Zhi 2022; 38:37-40. [PMID: 35634667 DOI: 10.12047/j.cjap.6219.2022.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
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Feng Y, Li Y, Zhou D, Li B, Chen G, Li N. Glycyrrhetinic acid reverses antibiotic-induced intestinal epithelial injury through RNA-binding protein human antigen R (HuR). Phytomedicine 2022; 94:153836. [PMID: 34775357 DOI: 10.1016/j.phymed.2021.153836] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2021] [Revised: 10/02/2021] [Accepted: 10/27/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The application/abuse of antibiotics can cause antibiotic-induced intestinal injury (AIJ), a typical clinical issue that disturbs intestinal homeostasis. However, the underlying post-transcriptional mechanism of AIJ remains unknown. Glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) is one of the main components of Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch. and Glycyrrhiza inflata Batalin (Fabaceae), and findings of our previous study showed that GA can maintain intestinal homeostasis post-transcriptionally through the RNA-binding protein human antigen R (HuR). PURPOSE This study aimed to elucidate the role of HuR in AIJ and the protective effects of GA on AIJ. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS Clindamycin hydrochloride was used to clarify the effect of the antibiotic on the intestinal epithelium. Intestinal epithelium cell-6 (IEC-6) and Caco2 cells were used to demonstrate the in vitro effects of the antibiotic and GA on intestinal cells. HuR plasmid and siRNA were used to overexpress or silence HuR in vitro. SD rats were induced by using clindamycin hydrochloride capsules (250 mg/kg i.g.) for 7 consecutive days to construct the in vivo AIJ model. Rats of the AIJ model group were administrated GA (10 and 20 mg/kg i.g.) for 7 days, and subsequently, the protective effect of GA on the intestinal epithelium was evaluated. RESULTS In vitro results showed that the antibiotic (150-500 μM) suppressed proliferation, induced a delay in restitution after wounding, and caused cell cycle arrest at the G0/G1 phase in IEC-6 and Caco-2 cells. Moreover, the expression levels of HuR and its downstream gene, occludin and cyclin D1, decreased after treatment with the antibiotic (500 μM). Overexpression of HuR and GA (10 and 20 μM) reversed the antibiotic-induced inhibition of proliferation and G0/G1 phase arrest, and the antibiotic-induced decrease in HuR, occludin, and cyclin D1 expression was reversed after GA treatment (10 and 20 μM) in IEC-6 cells. In vivo results revealed the antibiotic-induced epithelial injury of both the small intestines (shortened and spared mucosa) and the large intestines (injured/deformed glands, reduced number of cup cells, and evident inflammatory cell infiltration), all of which were ameliorated after GA treatment (10 and 20 μM). CONCLUSION Antibiotics induce intestinal epithelial injury through HuR, and GA can exert a protective effect on AIJ by restoring HuR levels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuan Feng
- School of Traditional Chinese Materia Medica, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, China
| | - Yanwu Li
- Pi-Wei Institute, Science and Technology Innovation Center, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, 510405, China
| | - Di Zhou
- School of Traditional Chinese Materia Medica, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, China
| | - Bingxin Li
- School of Traditional Chinese Materia Medica, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, China
| | - Gang Chen
- School of Traditional Chinese Materia Medica, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, China.
| | - Ning Li
- School of Traditional Chinese Materia Medica, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, China.
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Yu Y, Wu Y, Yan HZ, Xia ZR, Wen W, Liu DY, Wan LH. Rosmarinic acid ameliorates acetaminophen-induced acute liver injury in mice via RACK1/TNF-α mediated antioxidant effect. Pharm Biol 2021; 59:1286-1293. [PMID: 34517734 PMCID: PMC8451635 DOI: 10.1080/13880209.2021.1974059] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2020] [Revised: 07/19/2021] [Accepted: 08/25/2021] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
CONTEXT Rosmarinic acid (RA) dose-dependently ameliorates acetaminophen (APAP) induced hepatotoxicity in rats. However, whether RA hepatoprotective effect is by regulating RACK1 and its downstream signals is still unclear. OBJECTIVE This study explores the RA protective effect on APAP-induced ALI and its mechanism. MATERIALS AND METHODS Sixty Kunming mice 6-8 weeks old were randomly separated into six groups (n = 10) and pre-treated with normal saline, ammonium glycyrrhetate (AG) or RA (10, 20 or 40 mg/kg i.p./day) for two consecutive weeks. Then, APAP (300 mg/kg, i.g.) was administrated to induce ALI, except for the control. Serum alanine/aspartate aminotransferases (ALT and AST), malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and histopathology were used to authenticate RA effect. The liver RACK1 and TNF-α were measured by western blot. RESULTS Compared with the APAP group, different dosages RA significantly decreased ALT (52.09 ± 7.98, 55.13 ± 10.19, 65.08 ± 27.61 U/L, p < 0.05), AST (114.78 ± 19.87, 115.29 ± 31.91, 101.78 ± 21.85 U/L, p < 0.05), MDA (2.37 ± 0.87, 2.13 ± 0.87, 1.86 ± 0.39 nmol/mg, p < 0.01) and increased SOD (306.178 ± 90.80, 459.21 ± 58.54, 444.01 ± 78.09 U/mg, p < 0.05). With increasing doses of RA, RACK1 and TNF-α expression decreased. Moreover, the RACK1 and TNF-α levels were positively correlated with MDA (r = 0.8453 and r = 0.9391, p < 0.01). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS Our findings support RA as a hepatoprotective agent to improve APAP-induced ALI and the antioxidant effect mediated through RACK1/TNF-α pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yang Yu
- Department of Neurosurgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, PR China
- Department of Pharmacology, West China School of Basic Medical Sciences & Forensic Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, PR China
| | - Yao Wu
- Department of Pharmacology, West China School of Basic Medical Sciences & Forensic Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, PR China
- NHC Key Laboratory of Chronobiology, Sichuan University, Chengdu, PR China
| | - Hao-zheng Yan
- Department of Pharmacology, West China School of Basic Medical Sciences & Forensic Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, PR China
- West China School of Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, PR China
| | - Zi-ru Xia
- Department of Pharmacology, West China School of Basic Medical Sciences & Forensic Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, PR China
- West China School of Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, PR China
| | - Wen Wen
- Department of Pharmacology, West China School of Basic Medical Sciences & Forensic Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, PR China
- West China School of Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, PR China
| | - Dan-yang Liu
- Department of Pharmacology, West China School of Basic Medical Sciences & Forensic Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, PR China
- NHC Key Laboratory of Chronobiology, Sichuan University, Chengdu, PR China
| | - Li-hong Wan
- Department of Pharmacology, West China School of Basic Medical Sciences & Forensic Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, PR China
- NHC Key Laboratory of Chronobiology, Sichuan University, Chengdu, PR China
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Wang X, Xie F, Zhou X, Chen T, Xue Y, Wang W. 18β-Glycyrrhetinic acid inhibits the apoptosis of cells infected with rotavirus SA11 via the Fas/FasL pathway. Pharm Biol 2021; 59:1098-1105. [PMID: 34411493 PMCID: PMC8382007 DOI: 10.1080/13880209.2021.1961821] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2021] [Revised: 06/01/2021] [Accepted: 07/22/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
CONTEXT 18β-Glycyrrhetinic acid (18β-GA), a pentacyclic triterpenoid saponin metabolite of glycyrrhizin, exhibits several biological activities. OBJECTIVE We investigated the effects of 18β-GA on MA104 cells infected with rotavirus (RV) and its potential mechanism of action. MATERIALS AND METHODS Cell Counting Kit-8 was used to assess tissue culture infective dose 50 (TCID50) and 50% cellular cytotoxicity (CC50) concentration. MA104 cells infected with RV SA11 were treated with 18β-GA (1, 2, 4, and 8 μg/mL, respectively). Cytopathic effects were observed. The virus inhibition rate, concentration for 50% of maximal effect (EC50), and selection index (SI) were calculated. Cell cycle, cell apoptosis, and mRNA and protein expression related to the Fas/FasL pathway were detected. RESULTS TCID50 of RV SA11 was 10-4.47/100 µL; the CC50 of 18β-GA on MA104 cells was 86.92 µg/mL. 18β-GA showed significant antiviral activity; EC50 was 3.14 μg/mL, and SI was 27.68. The ratio of MA104 cells infected with RV SA11 in the G0/G1 phase and the G2/M phase decreased and increased, respectively, after 18β-GA treatment. 18β-GA significantly induced apoptosis in the infected cells. Furthermore, after 18β-GA treatment, the mRNA and protein expression levels of Fas, FasL, caspase 3, and Bcl-2 decreased, whereas the expression levels of Bax increased. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS The study demonstrates that 18β-GA may be a promising candidate for the treatment of RV SA11 infection and provides theoretical support for the clinical development of glycyrrhizic acid compounds for the treatment of RV infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyan Wang
- College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, Shandong, China
| | - Fang Xie
- College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, Shandong, China
| | - Xiaofeng Zhou
- Linyi Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital-Endoscopic Centre, Linyi, China
| | - Ting Chen
- The First Clinical Medical College, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, Shandong, China
| | - Ye Xue
- The First Clinical Medical College, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, Shandong, China
| | - Wei Wang
- Department of Spleen and Stomach Diseases, The Affiliated Hospital of Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, Shandong, China
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Morris DJ, Brem AS, Odermatt A. Modulation of 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase functions by the cloud of endogenous metabolites in a local microenvironment: The glycyrrhetinic acid-like factor (GALF) hypothesis. J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol 2021; 214:105988. [PMID: 34464733 DOI: 10.1016/j.jsbmb.2021.105988] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2021] [Revised: 08/08/2021] [Accepted: 08/25/2021] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
11β-Hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (11β-HSD)-dependent conversion of cortisol to cortisone and corticosterone to 11-dehydrocorticosterone are essential in regulating transcriptional activities of mineralocorticoid receptors (MR) and glucocorticoid receptors (GR). Inhibition of 11β-HSD by glycyrrhetinic acid metabolites, bioactive components of licorice, causes sodium retention and potassium loss, with hypertension characterized by low renin and aldosterone. Essential hypertension is a major disease, mostly with unknown underlying mechanisms. Here, we discuss a putative mechanism for essential hypertension, the concept that endogenous steroidal compounds acting as glycyrrhetinic acid-like factors (GALFs) inhibit 11β-HSD dehydrogenase, and allow for glucocorticoid-induced MR and GR activation with resulting hypertension. Initially, several metabolites of adrenally produced glucocorticoids and mineralocorticoids were shown to be potent 11β-HSD inhibitors. Such GALFs include modifications in the A-ring and/or at positions 3, 7 and 21 of the steroid backbone. These metabolites may be formed in peripheral tissues or by gut microbiota. More recently, metabolites of 11β-hydroxy-Δ4androstene-3,17-dione and 7-oxygenated oxysterols have been identified as potent 11β-HSD inhibitors. In a living system, 11β-HSD isoforms are not exposed to a single substrate but to several substrates, cofactors, and various inhibitors simultaneously, all at different concentrations depending on physical state, tissue and cell type. We propose that this "cloud" of steroids and steroid-like substances in the microenvironment determines the 11β-HSD-dependent control of MR and GR activity. A dysregulated composition of this cloud of metabolites in the respective microenvironment needs to be taken into account when investigating disease mechanisms, for forms of low renin, low aldosterone hypertension.
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Affiliation(s)
- David J Morris
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, The Miriam Hospital, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, USA.
| | - Andrew S Brem
- Division of Kidney Diseases and Hypertension, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, USA.
| | - Alex Odermatt
- Swiss Centre for Applied Human Toxicology and Division of Molecular and Systems Toxicology, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Basel, Klingelbergstrasse 50, 4056 Basel, Switzerland.
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Alanazi IS, Emam M, Elsabagh M, Alkahtani S, Abdel-Daim MM. The protective effects of 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid against acrylamide-induced cellular damage in diabetic rats. Environ Sci Pollut Res Int 2021; 28:58322-58330. [PMID: 34117542 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-021-14742-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2020] [Accepted: 06/01/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
This study was aimed at elucidating the protective effects of 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid (18βGA) against acrylamide (Acr)-induced cellular damage in diabetic rats. Rats were randomly assigned into eight groups (n = 8) following 12 h of fasting: control group, a single dose of 50 mg/kg streptozotocin (STZ) intraperitoneally (diabetic group), 50 mg/kg 18βGA orally after 2 weeks from STZ injection (18βGA group), 20 mg/kg Acr after 1month from STZ injection (Acr group), STZ plus Acr (STZ-Acr group), STZ plus 18βGA (STZ-18βGA group), Acr plus 18βGA (Acr-18βGA group), or STZ plus Acr plus 18βGA (STZ-Acr-18βGA group). Administration of 18βGA alone increased GSH, GSH-PX, SOD, and CAT in both liver and kidneys. While STZ injection was associated with diabetic and oxidative stress changes as indicated by the higher serum glucose, cholesterol, creatinine, IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, and antioxidant enzyme activities, together with increased lipid peroxides and decreased antioxidant biomarkers in the liver and kidneys. Similarly, the co-administration of STZ and Acr was associated with similar, more augmented effects, compared to STZ alone. The administration of 18βGA normalized STZ and Acr-induced elevations in oxidative defense variables in the liver and kidney tissues and blood biomarkers. Thus, our study demonstrated that the damaging effects of Acr were more exaggerated in diabetic rats. Furthermore, it showed the ability of 18βGA to inhibit reactive oxygen species generation and restore the antioxidant defenses in diabetic rats with Acr-induced liver and kidney cytotoxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ibtesam S Alanazi
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Hafr Al Batin, Hafr Al Batin, Saudi Arabia
| | - Mohamed Emam
- Department of Nutrition and Veterinary Clinical Nutrition, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Damanhour University, El Beheira, Damanhour, Egypt
| | - Mabrouk Elsabagh
- Department of Nutrition and Clinical Nutrition, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Kafr El-sheikh University, Kafr El-Sheikh, 33516, Egypt
| | - Saad Alkahtani
- Department of Zoology, College of Science, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia
| | - Mohamed M Abdel-Daim
- Department of Zoology, College of Science, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia.
- Pharmacology Department, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, 41522, Egypt.
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Yang T, Zhou J, Fang L, Wang M, Dilinuer M, Ainiwaer A. Protection function of 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid on rats with high-altitude pulmonary hypertension based on 1H NMR metabonomics technology. Anal Biochem 2021; 631:114342. [PMID: 34419454 DOI: 10.1016/j.ab.2021.114342] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2021] [Revised: 08/02/2021] [Accepted: 08/16/2021] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
18β-Glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) is the triterpenoid aglycone component of glycyrrhizic acid, a natural product of traditional Chinese medicine, and has been proven to possess a variety of pharmacological effects. The protection function and the mechanism of GA on rats with high-altitude pulmonary hypertension (HAPH) are studied using proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) metabonomics technology and biochemical analysis. An HAPH model is established, and 60 male rats are randomly divided into the following groups: Control(normal saline, 0.4 mL/100 g), model (normal saline, 0.4 mL/100 g), Nifedipine (nifedipine, 2.7 mg/kg), and high-, medium-, and low-dose GA groups (100, 50, and 25 mg/kg GA designated as GA.H, GA.M, and GA.L, respectively). Serum biochemical indicators of rats in each group are measured, and pathological changes in the pulmonary artery are observed. 1H NMR metabonomics technology is used for serum analysis. Results show that GA can significantly reduce pulmonary arterial pressure and malondialdehyde levels and increase the glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase activities in HAPH rats. Pathological results show that GA can alleviate pulmonary artery injuries of HAPH rats. Metabolomics analytical findings show that GA can alleviate the metabolic disorder of HAPH rats through anti-oxidation and anti-inflammatory effects, improve their bodies' ability to resist hypoxia, and restore various metabolic pathways (energy metabolism, amino acid metabolism, and lipid metabolism). GA has potential therapeutic effects on HAPH rats, but its target needs to be further studied.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tao Yang
- Central Laboratory, Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi, 830011, China
| | - Jing Zhou
- Department of Human Resources, General Hospital of Xinjiang Military, Urumqi, 830011, China
| | - Lei Fang
- College of Pharmacy, Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi, 830011, China
| | - Minmin Wang
- College of Pharmacy, Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi, 830011, China
| | - Maimaitiyiming Dilinuer
- Heart Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi, 830054, China
| | - Aikemu Ainiwaer
- College of Pharmacy, Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi, 830011, China; Key Laboratory of Active Components of Xinjiang Natural Medicine and Drug Release Technology, Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi, 830011, China.
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Maestrini M, Molento MB, Forzan M, Perrucci S. In vitro anthelmintic activity of an aqueous extract of Glycyrrhiza glabra and of glycyrrhetinic acid against gastrointestinal nematodes of small ruminants. Parasite 2021; 28:64. [PMID: 34468311 PMCID: PMC10649775 DOI: 10.1051/parasite/2021060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2020] [Accepted: 08/12/2021] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
This study evaluated the in vitro anthelmintic activity of a liquorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) root aqueous extract and of glycyrrhetinic acid at 30, 10, 5, 1, and 0.5 mg/mL against sheep gastrointestinal nematodes (GINs), using the egg hatch test (EHT), the larval development test (LDT), and the larval migration inhibition test (LMIT). The compounds were applied on a mixture of GIN eggs and larvae, mainly Trichostrongylus spp. and Teladorsagia/Ostertagia spp. Cytotoxicity assays were also performed. In the EHT, both candidates showed significant concentration-dependent efficacy and were significantly more effective (p < 0.001) at the highest concentrations (30 and 10 mg/mL) than the lowest ones. In the LDT, only G. glabra showed a concentration-dependent effect (R2 = 0.924), but glycyrrhetinic acid (R2 = 0.910) had significantly higher efficacy than G. glabra root extract. Moreover, the efficacy of glycyrrhetinic acid at 30, 10, and 5 mg/mL was significantly higher (p < 0.001) than at lower concentrations. In the LMIT, G. glabra showed concentration-dependent efficacy (R2 = 0.971), while considerably reduced efficacy was observed for glycyrrhetinic acid (R2 = 0.855) at the lowest concentrations. These data suggest that the two compounds may have different mechanisms of action. In the LMIT, the 50% lethal concentration (LC50) of glycyrrhetinic acid (~5.12 mg/mL) was > 2.0-fold lower when compared to G. glabra (12.25 mg/mL). Analysis and previous findings indicated low toxicity for both compounds. The results obtained encourage in vivo studies aimed at evaluating the potential use of the tested compounds as natural de-wormers in ruminants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michela Maestrini
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Pisa Viale delle Piagge 2 56124 Pisa Italy
| | - Marcelo Beltrão Molento
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Paraná R. dos Funcionarios, 1540 Curitiba 80035-050 PR Brazil
| | - Mario Forzan
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Pisa Viale delle Piagge 2 56124 Pisa Italy
| | - Stefania Perrucci
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Pisa Viale delle Piagge 2 56124 Pisa Italy
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Moustafa GO, Shalaby A, Naglah AM, Mounier MM, El-Sayed H, Anwar MM, Nossier ES. Synthesis, Characterization, In Vitro Anticancer Potentiality, and Antimicrobial Activities of Novel Peptide-Glycyrrhetinic-Acid-Based Derivatives. Molecules 2021; 26:4573. [PMID: 34361728 PMCID: PMC8346995 DOI: 10.3390/molecules26154573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2021] [Revised: 07/23/2021] [Accepted: 07/23/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) is one of many interesting pentacyclic triterpenoids showing significant anticancer activity by triggering apoptosis in tumor cell lines. This study deals with the design and synthesis of new glycyrrhetinic acid (GA)-amino acid peptides and peptide ester derivatives. The structures of the new derivatives were established through various spectral and microanalytical data. The novel compounds were screened for their in vitro cytotoxic activity. The evaluation results showed that the new peptides produced promising cytotoxic activity against the human breast MCF-7 cancer cell line while comparing to doxorubicin. On the other hand, only compounds 3, 5, and 7 produced potent activity against human colon HCT-116 cancer cell line. The human liver cancer (HepG-2) cell line represented a higher sensitivity to peptide 7 (IC50; 3.30 μg/mL), while it appeared insensitive to the rest of the tested peptides. Furthermore, compounds 1, 3, and 5 exhibited a promising safety profile against human normal skin fibroblasts cell line BJ-1. In order to investigate the mode of action, compound 5 was selected as a representative example to study its in vitro effect against the apoptotic parameters and Bax/BCL-2/p53/caspase-7/caspase-3/tubulin, and DNA fragmentation to investigate beta (TUBb). Additionally, all the new analogues were subjected to antimicrobial assay against a panel of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria and the yeast candida Albicans. All the tested GA analogues 1-8 exhibited more antibacterial effect against Micrococcus Luteus than gentamicin, but they exhibited moderate antimicrobial activity against the tested bacterial and yeast strains. Molecular docking studies were also simulated for compound 5 to give better rationalization and put insight to the features of its structure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gaber O. Moustafa
- National Research Centre, Peptide Chemistry Department, Chemical Industries Research Division, Cairo 12622, Egypt;
| | - Ahmed Shalaby
- National Research Centre, Peptide Chemistry Department, Chemical Industries Research Division, Cairo 12622, Egypt;
| | - Ahmed M. Naglah
- National Research Centre, Peptide Chemistry Department, Chemical Industries Research Division, Cairo 12622, Egypt;
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Drug Exploration and Development Chair (DEDC), College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
| | - Marwa M. Mounier
- National Research Centre, Pharmacognosy Department, Pharmaceutical and Drug Industries Research Division, 33-El Bohouth St., Giza 12622, Egypt;
| | - Heba El-Sayed
- Botany and Microbiology Department, Faculty of Science, Helwan University, Helwan 11111, Egypt;
| | - Manal M. Anwar
- National Research Centre, Department of Therapeutic Chemistry, Cairo 12622, Egypt;
| | - Eman S. Nossier
- Department of Pharmaceutical Medicinal Chemistry and Drug Design, Faculty of Pharmacy (Girls), Al-Azhar University, Cairo 11754, Egypt;
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Diomede L, Beeg M, Gamba A, Fumagalli O, Gobbi M, Salmona M. Can Antiviral Activity of Licorice Help Fight COVID-19 Infection? Biomolecules 2021; 11:855. [PMID: 34201172 PMCID: PMC8227143 DOI: 10.3390/biom11060855] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2021] [Revised: 05/21/2021] [Accepted: 06/02/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The phytotherapeutic properties of Glycyrrhiza glabra (licorice) extract are mainly attributed to glycyrrhizin (GR) and glycyrrhetinic acid (GA). Among their possible pharmacological actions, the ability to act against viruses belonging to different families, including SARS coronavirus, is particularly important. With the COVID-19 emergency and the urgent need for compounds to counteract the pandemic, the antiviral properties of GR and GA, as pure substances or as components of licorice extract, attracted attention in the last year and supported the launch of two clinical trials. In silico docking studies reported that GR and GA may directly interact with the key players in viral internalization and replication such as angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), spike protein, the host transmembrane serine protease 2, and 3-chymotrypsin-like cysteine protease. In vitro data indicated that GR can interfere with virus entry by directly interacting with ACE2 and spike, with a nonspecific effect on cell and viral membranes. Additional anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects of GR cannot be excluded. These multiple activities of GR and licorice extract are critically re-assessed in this review, and their possible role against the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 and the features of COVID-19 disease is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luisa Diomede
- Department of Molecular Biochemistry and Pharmacology, Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri IRCCS, Via Mario Negri 2, 20156 Milano, Italy; (M.B.); (O.F.); (M.G.)
| | - Marten Beeg
- Department of Molecular Biochemistry and Pharmacology, Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri IRCCS, Via Mario Negri 2, 20156 Milano, Italy; (M.B.); (O.F.); (M.G.)
| | - Alessio Gamba
- Department of Environmental Health Science, Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri IRCCS, Via Mario Negri 2, 20156 Milano, Italy;
| | - Oscar Fumagalli
- Department of Molecular Biochemistry and Pharmacology, Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri IRCCS, Via Mario Negri 2, 20156 Milano, Italy; (M.B.); (O.F.); (M.G.)
| | - Marco Gobbi
- Department of Molecular Biochemistry and Pharmacology, Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri IRCCS, Via Mario Negri 2, 20156 Milano, Italy; (M.B.); (O.F.); (M.G.)
| | - Mario Salmona
- Department of Molecular Biochemistry and Pharmacology, Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri IRCCS, Via Mario Negri 2, 20156 Milano, Italy; (M.B.); (O.F.); (M.G.)
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Quan W, Kong S, Ouyang Q, Tao J, Lu S, Huang Y, Li S, Luo H. Use of 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid nanocrystals to enhance anti-inflammatory activity by improving topical delivery. Colloids Surf B Biointerfaces 2021; 205:111791. [PMID: 34022703 DOI: 10.1016/j.colsurfb.2021.111791] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2021] [Revised: 04/17/2021] [Accepted: 04/24/2021] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
18β-Glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) is often topically applied in clinical treatment of inflammatory skin diseases. However, GA has poor solubility in water, which results in poor skin permeability and low bioavailability. Nanocrystallization of drugs can enhance their permeability and improve bioavailability. We prepared GA nanocrystals (Nano GA) by high-pressure homogenization. These nanocrystals were characterized by photon correlation spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and X-ray diffractometry. The ability of Nano GA to improve dermal permeability was investigated ex vivo using Franz diffusion vertical cells and mouse skin. The topical anti-inflammatory activity of Nano GA was assessed in vivo by a 12-O-tetradecanoyl phorbol-13-acetate (TPA)-induced model in mouse ears. The average particle size of a GA nanocrystalline suspension was 288.6 ± 7.3 nm, with a narrow particle-size distribution (polydispersity index ∼0.13 ± 0.10), and the particle size of the lyophilized powder increased (552.0 ± 9.8 nm). After nanocrystallization, the thermal stability and crystallinity decreased but solubility increased significantly. Nano GA showed higher dermal permeability than Coarse GA. Macroscopic and staining-based observations of mouse ears and the levels of proinflammatory factors and myeloperoxidase revealed that the Nano GA hydrogel exhibited better anti-edema ability and more strongly inhibited inflammation development than the Coarse GA hydrogel and indomethacin hydrogel (positive drug). These results suggest that Nano GA could be an efficacious topical therapeutic agent for skin inflammation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Weiyan Quan
- Department of Applied Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang, 524088, China
| | - Songzhi Kong
- Department of Applied Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang, 524088, China.
| | - Qianqian Ouyang
- The Marine Biomedical Research Institute of Guangdong Zhangjiang, Zhanjiang, 524023, China
| | - Jinlong Tao
- Agricultural Products Processing Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Zhanjiang, 524001, China
| | - Sitong Lu
- Department of Applied Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang, 524088, China
| | - Yongmei Huang
- The Marine Biomedical Research Institute of Guangdong Zhangjiang, Zhanjiang, 524023, China
| | - Sidong Li
- Department of Applied Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang, 524088, China; The Marine Biomedical Research Institute of Guangdong Zhangjiang, Zhanjiang, 524023, China
| | - Hui Luo
- The Marine Biomedical Research Institute of Guangdong Zhangjiang, Zhanjiang, 524023, China.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elazer R Edelman
- From the Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital (E.R.E.), the Departments of Medicine (N.M.B., A.L.L.), Radiology (L.L.A.), and Pathology (A.S.D.), Massachusetts General Hospital, and the Departments of Medicine (E.R.E., N.M.B., A.L.L.), Radiology (L.L.A.), and Pathology (A.S.D.), Harvard Medical School - all in Boston, and the Institute for Medical Engineering and Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge (E.R.E.)
| | - Neel M Butala
- From the Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital (E.R.E.), the Departments of Medicine (N.M.B., A.L.L.), Radiology (L.L.A.), and Pathology (A.S.D.), Massachusetts General Hospital, and the Departments of Medicine (E.R.E., N.M.B., A.L.L.), Radiology (L.L.A.), and Pathology (A.S.D.), Harvard Medical School - all in Boston, and the Institute for Medical Engineering and Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge (E.R.E.)
| | - Laura L Avery
- From the Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital (E.R.E.), the Departments of Medicine (N.M.B., A.L.L.), Radiology (L.L.A.), and Pathology (A.S.D.), Massachusetts General Hospital, and the Departments of Medicine (E.R.E., N.M.B., A.L.L.), Radiology (L.L.A.), and Pathology (A.S.D.), Harvard Medical School - all in Boston, and the Institute for Medical Engineering and Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge (E.R.E.)
| | - Andrew L Lundquist
- From the Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital (E.R.E.), the Departments of Medicine (N.M.B., A.L.L.), Radiology (L.L.A.), and Pathology (A.S.D.), Massachusetts General Hospital, and the Departments of Medicine (E.R.E., N.M.B., A.L.L.), Radiology (L.L.A.), and Pathology (A.S.D.), Harvard Medical School - all in Boston, and the Institute for Medical Engineering and Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge (E.R.E.)
| | - Anand S Dighe
- From the Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital (E.R.E.), the Departments of Medicine (N.M.B., A.L.L.), Radiology (L.L.A.), and Pathology (A.S.D.), Massachusetts General Hospital, and the Departments of Medicine (E.R.E., N.M.B., A.L.L.), Radiology (L.L.A.), and Pathology (A.S.D.), Harvard Medical School - all in Boston, and the Institute for Medical Engineering and Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge (E.R.E.)
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Abstract
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is one of the most prevalent arrhythmias. Myocardial sleeves of the pulmonary vein are critical in the occurrence of AF. Our study aims to investigate the effect of synthetic vascular smooth muscle cells (SMCs) on gap junction proteins in cardiomyocytes. (1) Extraction of vascular SMCs from the pulmonary veins of Norway rats. TGF-β1 was used to induce the vascular SMCs switching to the synthetic phenotype and 18-α-GA was used to inhibit gap junctions of SMCs. The contractile and synthetic phenotype vascular SMCs were cocultured with HL-1 cells; (2) Western blotting was used to detect the expression of Cx43, Cx40 and Cx45 in HL-1 cells, and RT-PCR to test microRNA 27b in vascular SMCs or in HL-1 cells; (3) Lucifer yellow dye transfer experiment was used to detect the function of gap junctions. (1) TGF- β1 induced the vascular SMCs switching to synthetic phenotype; (2) Cx43 was significantly increased, and Cx40 and Cx45 were decreased in HL-1 cocultured with synthetic SMCs; (3) The fluorescence intensity of Lucifer yellow was higher in HL-1 cocultured with synthetic SMCs than that in the cells cocultured with contractile SMCs, which was inhibited by18-α-GA; (4) the expression of microRNA 27b was increased in HL-1 cocultured with synthetic SMCs, which was attenuated markedly by 18-α-GA. (5) the expression of ZFHX3 was decreased in HL-1 cocultured with synthetic SMCs, which was reversed by 18-α-GA. The gap junction proteins of HL-1 were regulated by pulmonary venous SMCs undergoing phenotypic transition in this study, accompanied with the up-regulation of microRNA 27b and the down-regulation of ZFHX3 in HL-1 cells, which was associated with heterocellular gap junctions between HL-1 and pulmonary venous SMCs.
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Affiliation(s)
- En Zhou
- Department of Cardiology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 639 Zhizaoju Road, Shanghai, 200011, China
| | - Tiantian Zhang
- Department of Cardiology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 639 Zhizaoju Road, Shanghai, 200011, China
| | - Changlong Bi
- Department of Cardiology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 639 Zhizaoju Road, Shanghai, 200011, China
| | - Changqian Wang
- Department of Cardiology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 639 Zhizaoju Road, Shanghai, 200011, China.
- Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 227 South Chongqing Road, Shanghai, 200025, China.
| | - Zongqi Zhang
- Department of Cardiology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 639 Zhizaoju Road, Shanghai, 200011, China.
- Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 227 South Chongqing Road, Shanghai, 200025, China.
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Du QH, Zhang CJ, Li WH, Mu Y, Xu Y, Lowe S, Han L, Yu X, Wang SY, Li Y, Li J. Gan Shen Fu Fang ameliorates liver fibrosis in vitro and in vivo by inhibiting the inflammatory response and extracellular signal-regulated kinase phosphorylation. World J Gastroenterol 2020; 26:2810-2820. [PMID: 32550756 PMCID: PMC7284177 DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v26.i21.2810] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2020] [Revised: 03/26/2020] [Accepted: 04/26/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Liver fibrosis is a common health problem worldwide and there is still a lack of effective medicines. The Chinese herbal medicine, Gan Shen Fu Fang (GSFF) is composed of salvianolic acid B and diammonium glycyrrhizinate. In this study, we observed the effects of GSFF on liver fibrosis in vivo and in vitro in an attempt to provide some hope for the treatment.
AIM To observe the effects of GSFF on liver fibrosis in vivo and in vitro and investigate the mechanism from the perspective of the inflammatory response and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) phosphorylation.
METHODS Common bile duct-ligated rats were used for in vivo experiments. Hepatic stellate cells-T6 (HSC-T6) cells were used for in vitro experiments. Hematoxylin and eosin staining and Masson staining, biochemical assays, hydroxyproline (Hyp) assays, enzyme-linked immunoasorbent assay and western blotting were performed to evaluate the degree of liver fibrosis, liver function, the inflammatory response and ERK phosphorylation. The CCK8 assay, immunofluorescence and western blotting were applied to test the effect of GSFF on HSC-T6 cell activation and determine whether GSFF had an effect on ERK phosphorylation in HSC-T6 cells.
RESULTS GSFF improved liver function and inhibited liver fibrosis in common bile duct-ligated rats after 3 wk of treatment, as demonstrated by histological changes, hydroxyproline assays and collagen I concentrations. GSFF alleviated inflammatory cell infiltration and reduced the synthesis of pro-inflammatory cytokines [tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interlukin-1β] and NF-κB. In addition, GSFF decreased ERK phosphorylation. In vitro, GSFF inhibited the viability of HSC-T6 cells with and without transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1) stimulation and decreased the synthesis of collagen I. GSFF had the greatest effect at a concentration of 0.5 μmol/L. GSFF inhibited the expression of α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), a marker of HSC activation, in HSC-T6 cells. Consistent with the in vivo results, GSFF also inhibited the phosphorylation of ERK and downregulated the expression of NF-κB.
CONCLUSION GSFF inhibited liver fibrosis progression in vivo and HSC-T6 cell activation in vitro. These effects may be related to an alleviated inflammatory response and downregulated ERK phosphorylation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qing-Hong Du
- Department of Histology and Embryology, School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing 102488, China
- Institute of Tibetan Medicine, University of Tibetan Medicine, Lhasa 850000, Tibet Autonomous Region, China
| | - Chu-Jun Zhang
- Department of Histology and Embryology, School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing 102488, China
| | - Wei-Hong Li
- School of Nursing, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing 102488, China
| | - Yan Mu
- Department of Histology and Embryology, School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing 102488, China
| | - Ya Xu
- Department of Histology and Embryology, School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing 102488, China
| | - Scott Lowe
- School of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL 61820, United States
| | - Lin Han
- Department of Histology and Embryology, School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing 102488, China
| | - Xue Yu
- Department of Histology and Embryology, School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing 102488, China
| | - Shu-Yan Wang
- Department of Histology and Embryology, School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing 102488, China
| | - Yu Li
- Department of Histology and Embryology, School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing 102488, China
| | - Jian Li
- Department of Histology and Embryology, School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing 102488, China
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Shi L, Guo S, Zhang S, Gao X, Liu A, Wang Q, Zhang T, Zhang Y, Wen A. Glycyrrhetinic acid attenuates disturbed vitamin a metabolism in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease through AKR1B10. Eur J Pharmacol 2020; 883:173167. [PMID: 32485245 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejphar.2020.173167] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2020] [Revised: 04/23/2020] [Accepted: 05/04/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Abnormal vitamin A (retinol) metabolism plays an important role in the occurrence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). In this study, NAFLD and NASH models were established to investigate the effects of food additives glycyrrhizic acid (GL) on retinol metabolism in NAFLD/NASH mice. Potential targets of GL and its active metabolite glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) were analyzed by RNA sequence, bioinformatics, and molecular docking analyses. Gene transfection and enzymatic kinetics were used to identify the target of GL. The results showed that GL could resolve the fatty and inflammatory lesions in the mouse liver, thereby improving the disorder of retinol metabolism. RNA sequence analysis of model mice liver revealed significant changes in AKR1B10 (retinol metabolic enzymes). Bioinformatics and molecular docking analyses showed that AKR1B10 is a potential target of GA but not GL. GA could inhibit AKR1B10 activity, which then affects retinol metabolism, whereas GL only had the same effect after hydrolysis into GA. In AKR1B10-KO hepatocytes, GA, GL, and hydrolysates of GL had no regulatory effect on retinol metabolism. Therefore, GA, the active metabolite of GL, as a novel AKR1B10 inhibitor, could promote retinoic acid synthesis. GL restored the balance of retinol metabolism in NAFLD/NASH mice by metabolizing to GA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lei Shi
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Air Force Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, PR China; Department of Pharmacy, The First Affiliated Hospital of Air Force Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, PR China
| | - Shun Guo
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Air Force Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, PR China
| | - Song Zhang
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Air Force Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, PR China
| | - Xiaobo Gao
- Department of Pharmacy, The No.987 Hospital of the PLA Joint Logistics Support Force, Baoji, 610303, PR China
| | - An Liu
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Air Force Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, PR China
| | - Qinhui Wang
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Air Force Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, PR China
| | - Tian Zhang
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Air Force Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, PR China
| | - Yan Zhang
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Air Force Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, PR China.
| | - Aidong Wen
- Department of Pharmacy, The First Affiliated Hospital of Air Force Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, PR China.
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Markov AV, Sen’kova AV, Salomatina OV, Logashenko EB, Korchagina DV, Salakhutdinov NF, Zenkova MA. Trioxolone Methyl, a Novel Cyano Enone-Bearing 18βH-Glycyrrhetinic Acid Derivative, Ameliorates Dextran Sulphate Sodium-Induced Colitis in Mice. Molecules 2020; 25:molecules25102406. [PMID: 32455822 PMCID: PMC7287650 DOI: 10.3390/molecules25102406] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2020] [Revised: 05/18/2020] [Accepted: 05/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Semi-synthetic triterpenoids, bearing cyano enone functionality in ring A, are considered to be novel promising therapeutic agents with complex inhibitory effects on tissue damage, inflammation and tumor growth. Previously, we showed that the cyano enone-containing 18βH-glycyrrhetinic acid derivative soloxolone methyl (SM) effectively suppressed the inflammatory response of macrophages in vitro and the development of influenza A-induced pneumonia and phlogogen-stimulated paw edema in vivo. In this work, we reported the synthesis of a novel 18βH-glycyrrhetinic acid derivative trioxolone methyl (TM), bearing a 2-cyano-3-oxo-1(2)-en moiety in ring A and a 12,19-dioxo-9(11),13(18)-dien moiety in rings C, D, and E. TM exhibited a high inhibitory effect on nitric oxide (II) production by lipopolysaccharide-stimulated J774 macrophages in vitro and dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced colitis in mice, displaying higher anti-inflammatory activity in comparison with SM. TM effectively suppressed the DSS-induced epithelial damage and inflammatory infiltration of colon tissue, the hyperproduction of colonic neutral mucin and TNFα and increased glutathione synthesis. Our in silico analysis showed that Akt1, STAT3 and dopamine receptor D2 can be considered as mediators of the anti-colitic activity of TM. Our findings provided valuable information for a better understanding of the anti-inflammatory activity of cyano enone-bearing triterpenoids and revealed TM as a promising anti-inflammatory candidate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrey V. Markov
- Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 8, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (A.V.S.); (O.V.S.); (E.B.L.); (M.A.Z.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +7-383-363-51-61
| | - Aleksandra V. Sen’kova
- Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 8, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (A.V.S.); (O.V.S.); (E.B.L.); (M.A.Z.)
| | - Oksana V. Salomatina
- Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 8, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (A.V.S.); (O.V.S.); (E.B.L.); (M.A.Z.)
- N.N. Vorozhtsov Novosibirsk Institute of Organic Chemistry, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 9, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (D.V.K.); (N.F.S.)
| | - Evgeniya B. Logashenko
- Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 8, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (A.V.S.); (O.V.S.); (E.B.L.); (M.A.Z.)
| | - Dina V. Korchagina
- N.N. Vorozhtsov Novosibirsk Institute of Organic Chemistry, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 9, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (D.V.K.); (N.F.S.)
| | - Nariman F. Salakhutdinov
- N.N. Vorozhtsov Novosibirsk Institute of Organic Chemistry, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 9, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (D.V.K.); (N.F.S.)
| | - Marina A. Zenkova
- Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 8, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (A.V.S.); (O.V.S.); (E.B.L.); (M.A.Z.)
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Markov AV, Sen’kova AV, Popadyuk II, Salomatina OV, Logashenko EB, Komarova NI, Ilyina AA, Salakhutdinov NF, Zenkova MA. Novel 3'-Substituted-1',2',4'-Oxadiazole Derivatives of 18βH-Glycyrrhetinic Acid and Their O-Acylated Amidoximes: Synthesis and Evaluation of Antitumor and Anti-Inflammatory Potential In Vitro and In Vivo. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:E3511. [PMID: 32429154 PMCID: PMC7279002 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21103511] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2020] [Revised: 05/10/2020] [Accepted: 05/12/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
A series of novel 18βH-glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) derivatives containing 3'-(alkyl/phenyl/pyridin(-2″, -3″, and -4″)-yl)-1',2',4'-oxadiazole moieties at the C-30 position were synthesized by condensation of triterpenoid's carboxyl group with corresponding amidoximes and further cyclization. Screening of the cytotoxicity of novel GA derivatives on a panel of tumor cell lines showed that the 3-acetoxy triterpenoid intermediates-O-acylated amidoxime 3a-h-display better solubility under bioassay conditions and more pronounced cytotoxicity compared to their 1',2',4'-oxadiazole analogs 4f-h (median IC50 = 7.0 and 49.7 µM, respectively). Subsequent replacement of the 3-acetoxy group by the hydroxyl group of pyridin(-2″, 3″, and -4″)-yl-1',2',4'-oxadiazole-bearing GA derivatives produced compounds 5f-h, showing the most pronounced selective toxicity toward tumor cells (median selectivity index (SI) > 12.1). Further detailed analysis of the antitumor activity of hit derivative 5f revealed its marked proapoptotic activity and inhibitory effects on clonogenicity and motility of HeLa cervical carcinoma cells in vitro, and the metastatic growth of B16 melanoma in vivo. Additionally, the comprehensive in silico study revealed intermediate 3d, bearing the tert-butyl moiety in O-acylated amidoxime, as a potent anti-inflammatory candidate, which was able to effectively inhibit inflammatory response induced by IFNγ in macrophages in vitro and carrageenan in murine models in vivo, probably by primary interactions with active sites of MMP9, neutrophil elastase, and thrombin. Taken together, our findings provide a basis for a better understanding of the structure-activity relationship of 1',2',4'-oxadiazole-containing triterpenoids and reveal two hit molecules with pronounced antitumor (5f) and anti-inflammatory (3d) activities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrey V. Markov
- Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 8, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (A.V.S.); (O.V.S.); (E.B.L.); (A.A.I.); (M.A.Z.)
| | - Aleksandra V. Sen’kova
- Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 8, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (A.V.S.); (O.V.S.); (E.B.L.); (A.A.I.); (M.A.Z.)
| | - Irina I. Popadyuk
- N.N. Vorozhtsov Novosibirsk Institute of Organic Chemistry, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 9, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (I.I.P.); (N.I.K.); (N.F.S.)
| | - Oksana V. Salomatina
- Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 8, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (A.V.S.); (O.V.S.); (E.B.L.); (A.A.I.); (M.A.Z.)
- N.N. Vorozhtsov Novosibirsk Institute of Organic Chemistry, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 9, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (I.I.P.); (N.I.K.); (N.F.S.)
| | - Evgeniya B. Logashenko
- Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 8, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (A.V.S.); (O.V.S.); (E.B.L.); (A.A.I.); (M.A.Z.)
| | - Nina I. Komarova
- N.N. Vorozhtsov Novosibirsk Institute of Organic Chemistry, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 9, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (I.I.P.); (N.I.K.); (N.F.S.)
| | - Anna A. Ilyina
- Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 8, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (A.V.S.); (O.V.S.); (E.B.L.); (A.A.I.); (M.A.Z.)
| | - Nariman F. Salakhutdinov
- N.N. Vorozhtsov Novosibirsk Institute of Organic Chemistry, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 9, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (I.I.P.); (N.I.K.); (N.F.S.)
| | - Marina A. Zenkova
- Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Lavrent’ev ave., 8, 630090 Novosibirsk, Russia; (A.V.S.); (O.V.S.); (E.B.L.); (A.A.I.); (M.A.Z.)
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Shi X, Yu L, Zhang Y, Liu Z, Zhang H, Zhang Y, Liu P, Du P. Glycyrrhetinic acid alleviates hepatic inflammation injury in viral hepatitis disease via a HMGB1-TLR4 signaling pathway. Int Immunopharmacol 2020; 84:106578. [PMID: 32416454 PMCID: PMC7205693 DOI: 10.1016/j.intimp.2020.106578] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2019] [Revised: 04/24/2020] [Accepted: 05/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Licorice defect in TCM recipes leads to the hepatotoxicity in administrated mice. GA inhibits viral hepatitis by suppressing HMGB1 release and cytokine activity. GA treatment effect on infected mice is similar with HMGB1 neutralizing antibody. HMGB1-TLR4 axis is involved in murine hepatic injury during MHV infection.
Various human disorders are cured by the use of licorice, a key ingredient of herbal remedies. Glycyrrhizic acid (GL), a triterpenoid glycoside, is the aqueous extract from licorice root. Glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) has been reported to be a major bioactive hydrolysis product of GL and has been regarded as an anti-inflammatory agent for the treatment of a variety of inflammatory diseases, including hepatitis. However, the mechanism by which GA inhibits viral hepatic inflammatory injury is not completely understood. In this study, we found that, by consecutively treating mice with a traditional herbal recipe, licorice plays an important role in the detoxification of mice. We also employed a murine hepatitis virus (MHV) infection model to illustrate that GA treatment inhibited activation of hepatic inflammatory responses by blocking high-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) cytokine activity. Furthermore, decreased HMGB1 levels and downstream signaling triggered by injection of a neutralizing HMGB1 antibody or TLR4 gene deficiency, also significantly protected against MHV-induced severe hepatic injury. Thus, our findings characterize GA as a hepatoprotective therapy agent in hepatic infectious disease not only by suppressing HMGB1 release and blocking HMGB1 cytokine activity, but also via an underlying viral-induced HMGB1-TLR4 immunological regulation axis that occurs during the cytokine storm. The present study provides a new therapy strategy for the treatment of acute viral hepatitis in the clinical setting.
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MESH Headings
- Animals
- Anti-Inflammatory Agents/pharmacology
- Anti-Inflammatory Agents/therapeutic use
- Cell Line
- Cytokines/genetics
- Drugs, Chinese Herbal/pharmacology
- Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use
- Female
- Glycyrrhetinic Acid/pharmacology
- Glycyrrhetinic Acid/therapeutic use
- Glycyrrhiza
- HMGB1 Protein/immunology
- Hepatitis, Viral, Animal/drug therapy
- Hepatitis, Viral, Animal/genetics
- Hepatitis, Viral, Animal/immunology
- Liver/drug effects
- Liver/immunology
- Mice, Inbred C57BL
- Mice, Knockout
- Murine hepatitis virus
- Signal Transduction/drug effects
- Toll-Like Receptor 4/genetics
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaodong Shi
- National Center for Occupational Safety and Health, National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China, Beijing 102308, China.
| | - Lijia Yu
- National Center for Occupational Safety and Health, National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China, Beijing 102308, China
| | - Yinglin Zhang
- National Center for Occupational Safety and Health, National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China, Beijing 102308, China
| | - Zequan Liu
- National Center for Occupational Safety and Health, National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China, Beijing 102308, China
| | - Huawei Zhang
- National Center for Occupational Safety and Health, National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China, Beijing 102308, China
| | - Yansong Zhang
- National Center for Occupational Safety and Health, National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China, Beijing 102308, China
| | - Ping Liu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Peishuang Du
- CAS Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
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Kim SJ, Oh HW, Chang JW, Kim SJ. Recovery of Tendon Characteristics by Inhibition of Aberrant Differentiation of Tendon-Derived Stem Cells from Degenerative Tendinopathy. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:ijms21082687. [PMID: 32294907 PMCID: PMC7215446 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21082687] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2020] [Revised: 04/09/2020] [Accepted: 04/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The inhibition of the aberrant differentiation of tendon-derived stem cells (TDSCs) is a major target for the regeneration of damaged tendon tissues, as tendinopathy can be caused by the aberrant differentiation of TDSCs. We investigated whether the possible aberrant differentiation of TDSCs can be prevented by using adequate inhibitors. TDSCs extracted from chemically induced tendinopathy and injury-with-overuse tendinopathy models were cultured with 18α-glycyrrhetinic acid (AGA) and T0070907 to block osteogenic differentiation and adipogenic differentiation, respectively. The optimal dose of AGA decreased the osteogenic-specific marker Runx2 (Runt-related transcription factor 2), and T0070907 blocked the adipogenic-specific marker peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) in mRNA levels. We also found that AGA induced tenogenic differentiation in mRNA levels. However, T0070907 did not affect the tenogenic differentiation and regenerative capacity of TDSCs. We expect that optimal doses of AGA and T0070907 can prevent tendinopathy by inhibiting osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation, respectively. In addition, AGA and T0070907 may play important roles in the treatment of tendinopathy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sun Jeong Kim
- Department of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine, Stem Cell & Regenerative Medicine Institute, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul 06351, Korea;
- R&D Center, ENCell Co. Ltd., Seoul 06072, Korea
| | - Hae Won Oh
- Division of Health Policy and Administration, School of Public Health, University of Illinois, Chicago, IL 60612, USA;
| | - Jong Wook Chang
- R&D Center, ENCell Co. Ltd., Seoul 06072, Korea
- Department of Health Sciences and Technology, SAIHST, Sungkyunkwan University, Seoul 06351, Korea
- Stem Cell & Regenerative Medicine Institute, Samsung Medical Center, Seoul 06351, Korea
- Correspondence: (J.W.C.); (S.J.K.); Tel.: +82-2-3410-6048 (J.W.C.); +82-2-576-0100 (S.J.K.)
| | - Sang Jun Kim
- Seoul Jun Research Center, Seoul Jun Rehabilitation Clinic, Seoul 06737, Korea
- Correspondence: (J.W.C.); (S.J.K.); Tel.: +82-2-3410-6048 (J.W.C.); +82-2-576-0100 (S.J.K.)
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Xiang M, Zhou X, Luo TR, Wang PY, Liu LW, Li Z, Wu ZB, Yang S. Design, Synthesis, Antibacterial Evaluation, and Induced Apoptotic Behaviors of Epimeric and Chiral 18β-Glycyrrhetinic Acid Ester Derivatives with an Isopropanolamine Bridge against Phytopathogens. J Agric Food Chem 2019; 67:13212-13220. [PMID: 31702905 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.9b06147] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Because only a handful of agrochemicals can manage bacterial infections, the discovery and development of innovative, inexpensive, and high-efficiency antibacterial agents targeting these infections are challenging. Herein, a series of novel epimeric and chiral 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) ester derivatives with various tertiary amine pendants were designed, synthesized, and screened for pharmacological activity. Results showed that some of the title compounds were conferred with significantly enhanced antibacterial activity toward phytopathogens Xanthomonas oryzae pv oryzae (A2, B1-B3, and C1, EC50 values within 3.81-4.82 μg/mL) and Xanthomonas axonopodis pv citri (B1, EC50 = 3.18 μg/mL; B2, EC50 = 2.76 μg/mL). These activities are superior to those of GA (EC50 > 400 μg/mL), thiodiazole copper, and bismerthiazol. Pharmacophore studies revealed that the synergistic combination of GA skeleton and tertiary amine scaffolds contributed to the biological actions. In vivo experiments displayed their promising applications in controlling bacterial infections. Antibacterial mechanism studies revealed that the title compounds could trigger apoptosis in the tested pathogens, evident by bacteria morphological changes observed in scanning electron microscopy images. This outcome should motivate the development of various apoptosis inducers against plant bacterial diseases by a novel mode of action compared to that of existing agricultural chemicals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meng Xiang
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Ministry of Education , Center for R&D of Fine Chemicals of Guizhou University , Guiyang 550025 , China
| | - Xiang Zhou
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Ministry of Education , Center for R&D of Fine Chemicals of Guizhou University , Guiyang 550025 , China
| | - Ting-Rong Luo
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Ministry of Education , Center for R&D of Fine Chemicals of Guizhou University , Guiyang 550025 , China
| | - Pei-Yi Wang
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Ministry of Education , Center for R&D of Fine Chemicals of Guizhou University , Guiyang 550025 , China
| | - Li-Wei Liu
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Ministry of Education , Center for R&D of Fine Chemicals of Guizhou University , Guiyang 550025 , China
| | - Zhong Li
- College of Pharmacy , East China University of Science & Technology , Shanghai 200237 , China
| | - Zhi-Bing Wu
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Ministry of Education , Center for R&D of Fine Chemicals of Guizhou University , Guiyang 550025 , China
| | - Song Yang
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Key Laboratory of Green Pesticide and Agricultural Bioengineering, Ministry of Education , Center for R&D of Fine Chemicals of Guizhou University , Guiyang 550025 , China
- College of Pharmacy , East China University of Science & Technology , Shanghai 200237 , China
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Cun X, Chen J, Li M, He X, Tang X, Guo R, Deng M, Li M, Zhang Z, He Q. Tumor-Associated Fibroblast-Targeted Regulation and Deep Tumor Delivery of Chemotherapeutic Drugs with a Multifunctional Size-Switchable Nanoparticle. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 2019; 11:39545-39559. [PMID: 31617997 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.9b13957] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Tumor-associated fibroblasts (TAFs), which form a predominant stromal cellular component of the tumor microenvironment, hinder the delivery of nanomedicine to deep tumor cells and lead to poor prognosis of tumors. However, depletion of TAFs by therapeutic agents results in the secretion of damage response program (DRP) molecules to weaken the efficacy of tumor treatment. This paper reports a multifunctional size-switchable nanoparticle (denoted DGL (dendrigraft poly-l-lysine) (DGL)/GEM@PP/GA) for TAF-targeted regulation and deep tumor penetration. After accumulation at the tumor site, in response to overexpressed matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) in the tumor microenvironment, gemcitabine (GEM)-conjugated small nanoparticles (DGL/GEM) are released from DGL/GEM@PP/GA, leaving 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid (GA)-loaded large nanoparticles (PP/GA). The released DGL/GEM can penetrate to the deep region of the tumor as well as intracellularly release GEM to kill tumor cells. However, residual GA-loaded nanoparticles with lower tumor penetration ability could accumulate around tumor vessels and be preferentially absorbed by TAFs to regulate the secretion of Wnt 16, which is an important DRP molecule. By taking actions on both tumor cells and TAFs, DGL/GEM@PP/GA displayed significant and long-term antitumor effect in stroma-rich pancreatic cancer and breast cancer models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xingli Cun
- Key Laboratory of Drug Targeting and Drug Delivery Systems, West China School of Pharmacy , Sichuan University , No. 17, Block 3, Southern Renmin Road , Chengdu 610041 , China
| | - Jiantao Chen
- Key Laboratory of Drug Targeting and Drug Delivery Systems, West China School of Pharmacy , Sichuan University , No. 17, Block 3, Southern Renmin Road , Chengdu 610041 , China
| | - Mengmeng Li
- Key Laboratory of Drug Targeting and Drug Delivery Systems, West China School of Pharmacy , Sichuan University , No. 17, Block 3, Southern Renmin Road , Chengdu 610041 , China
| | - Xuan He
- Key Laboratory of Drug Targeting and Drug Delivery Systems, West China School of Pharmacy , Sichuan University , No. 17, Block 3, Southern Renmin Road , Chengdu 610041 , China
| | - Xian Tang
- Key Laboratory of Drug Targeting and Drug Delivery Systems, West China School of Pharmacy , Sichuan University , No. 17, Block 3, Southern Renmin Road , Chengdu 610041 , China
| | - Rong Guo
- Key Laboratory of Drug Targeting and Drug Delivery Systems, West China School of Pharmacy , Sichuan University , No. 17, Block 3, Southern Renmin Road , Chengdu 610041 , China
| | - Miao Deng
- Key Laboratory of Drug Targeting and Drug Delivery Systems, West China School of Pharmacy , Sichuan University , No. 17, Block 3, Southern Renmin Road , Chengdu 610041 , China
| | - Man Li
- Key Laboratory of Drug Targeting and Drug Delivery Systems, West China School of Pharmacy , Sichuan University , No. 17, Block 3, Southern Renmin Road , Chengdu 610041 , China
| | - Zhirong Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Drug Targeting and Drug Delivery Systems, West China School of Pharmacy , Sichuan University , No. 17, Block 3, Southern Renmin Road , Chengdu 610041 , China
| | - Qin He
- Key Laboratory of Drug Targeting and Drug Delivery Systems, West China School of Pharmacy , Sichuan University , No. 17, Block 3, Southern Renmin Road , Chengdu 610041 , China
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Cai D, Zhang Z, Chen Y, Zhang Y, Sun Y, Gong Y. Exploring New Structural Features of the 18β-Glycyrrhetinic Acid Scaffold for the Inhibition of Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase. Molecules 2019; 24:molecules24193631. [PMID: 31597403 PMCID: PMC6803848 DOI: 10.3390/molecules24193631] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2019] [Revised: 10/02/2019] [Accepted: 10/03/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Novel 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid derivatives possessing a carbamate moiety and structurally similar ester derivatives were developed and evaluated for their efficacy as antitumor inhibitors. In the cellular assays, most of the N-substituted carbamate derivatives at the C3-position exhibited potent activities. The results of SAR investigation revealed that the introduction of the morpholine group at the C30-COOH led to a significant loss of the inhibitory potency. Among the ester derivatives, the ester group at C3-position also determined a noticeable reduction in the efficacy. Compound 3j exhibited the most prominent antiproliferative activity against six human cancer cells (A549, HT29, HepG2, MCF-7, PC-3, and Karpas299). Furthermore, compound 3j exerted a moderate inhibiting effect on the ALK. The results of molecular docking analyses suggested that it could bind well to the active site of the receptor ALK, which was consistent with the biological data. These results might inspire further structural optimization of 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid aiming at the development of potent antitumor agents. The structures 4d, 4g, 4h, 4j, and 4n were studied by X-ray crystallographic analyses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dong Cai
- College of Public Basic Sciences, Jinzhou Medical University, Jinzhou 121001, China.
| | - ZhiHua Zhang
- School of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Liaoning University of Technology, Jinzhou 121001, China.
| | - Yu Chen
- School of Life Science and Biopharmaceutics, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang 110016, China.
| | - YanYan Zhang
- School of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Liaoning University of Technology, Jinzhou 121001, China.
| | - YuQi Sun
- School of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Liaoning University of Technology, Jinzhou 121001, China.
| | - YiXia Gong
- College of Public Basic Sciences, Jinzhou Medical University, Jinzhou 121001, China.
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46
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Sun J, Liu HY, Lv CZ, Qin J, Wu YF. Modification, Antitumor Activity, and Targeted PPARγ Study of 18β-Glycyrrhetinic Acid, an Important Active Ingredient of Licorice. J Agric Food Chem 2019; 67:9643-9651. [PMID: 31390199 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.9b03442] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Licorice is a traditional Chinese medicine, which is often used as sweetener and cosmetic ingredients in food and pharmaceutical industries. Among them, glycyrrhetic acid is one of the most important agents. Studies have shown that glycyrrhetic acid exhibited antitumor activities as PPARγ agonist. However, the limited number of PPARγ glycyrrhetinic agonists and their high toxicity greatly limit the design based on the structure. Therefore, clarifying the binding mode between PPARγ and small molecules, we focused on the introduction of a natural active piperazine skeleton in the position of glycyrrhetinic acid C-3. According to the Combination Principle and the Structure-Based Drug Design, 19 glycyrrhetic acid derivatives were designed and synthesized as potential PPARγ agonists. Compounds 4c and 4q were screened as high-efficiency and low-toxicity lead compounds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan Sun
- School of Biological & Chemical Engineering , Zhejiang University of Science & Technology , Hangzhou 310023 , People's Republic of China
- Elion Nature Biological Technology Company, Limited , Nanjing 210046 , People's Republic of China
| | - Han-Yu Liu
- School of Life Science , Shandong University of Technology , Zibo 255049 , People's Republic of China
| | - Cheng-Zhi Lv
- School of Biological & Chemical Engineering , Zhejiang University of Science & Technology , Hangzhou 310023 , People's Republic of China
| | - Jie Qin
- School of Life Science , Shandong University of Technology , Zibo 255049 , People's Republic of China
| | - Yuan-Feng Wu
- School of Biological & Chemical Engineering , Zhejiang University of Science & Technology , Hangzhou 310023 , People's Republic of China
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Alho DPS, Salvador JAR, Cascante M, Marin S. Synthesis and Antiproliferative Activity of Novel A-Ring Cleaved Glycyrrhetinic Acid Derivatives. Molecules 2019; 24:E2938. [PMID: 31416117 PMCID: PMC6721064 DOI: 10.3390/molecules24162938] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2019] [Revised: 08/09/2019] [Accepted: 08/12/2019] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
A series of new glycyrrhetinic acid derivatives was synthesized via the opening of its ring A along with the coupling of an amino acid. The antiproliferative activity of the derivatives was evaluated against a panel of nine human cancer cell lines. Compound 17 was the most active compound, with an IC50 of 6.1 µM on Jurkat cells, which is 17-fold more potent than that of glycyrrhetinic acid, and was up to 10 times more selective toward that cancer cell line. Further biological investigation in Jurkat cells showed that the antiproliferative activity of compound 17 was due to cell cycle arrest at the S phase and induction of apoptosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniela P S Alho
- Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Coimbra, 3000-548 Coimbra, Portugal
- Centre for Neuroscience and Cell Biology, 3000-504 Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Jorge A R Salvador
- Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Coimbra, 3000-548 Coimbra, Portugal.
- Centre for Neuroscience and Cell Biology, 3000-504 Coimbra, Portugal.
| | - Marta Cascante
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biomedicine, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Diagonal 643, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Hepáticas y Digestivas (CIBEREHD), Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII), 28029 Madrid, Spain
| | - Silvia Marin
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biomedicine, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Diagonal 643, 08028 Barcelona, Spain.
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Hepáticas y Digestivas (CIBEREHD), Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII), 28029 Madrid, Spain.
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Li ZY, Tung YT, Chen SY, Yen GC. Novel findings of 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid on sRAGE secretion through inhibition of transient receptor potential canonical channels in high-glucose environment. Biofactors 2019; 45:607-615. [PMID: 31120605 DOI: 10.1002/biof.1517] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2019] [Accepted: 05/06/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Enhancing soluble receptor for advanced glycation endproducts (sRAGE) is considered as a potent strategy for diabetes therapy. sRAGE secretion is regulated by calcium and transient receptor potential canonical (TRPC) channels. However, the role of TRPC channels in diabetes remains unknown. 18β-Glycyrrhetinic acid (18β-GA), produced from liquorice, has shown antidiabetic properties. This study was aimed to investigate the effect of 18β-GA on sRAGE secretion via TRPC channels in high glucose (HG)-induced THP-1 cells. HG treatment enhanced TRPC3 and TRPC6 expression and consequently caused reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation mediated through p47 nicotinamide-adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) associated with uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2) decline and lower sRAGE secretion. Interestingly, 18β-GA showed the dramatic effects similar to Pyr3 or 2-aminoethyl diphenyl borinate inhibitors and effectively reversed HG-elicited mechanisms including that blocking TRPC3 and TRPC6 protein expressions, suppressing intracellular [Ca2+] concentration, decreasing expressions of ROS, p47s, and iNOS, but increasing UCP2 level and promoting sRAGE secretion. Therefore, 18β-GA provides a potential implication to diabetes mellitus and its complications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zih-Ying Li
- Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Yu-Tang Tung
- Graduate Institute of Metabolism and Obesity Sciences, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Sheng-Yi Chen
- Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Gow-Chin Yen
- Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
- Graduate Institute of Food Safety, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
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Zhang Y, Yang S, Zhang M, Wang Z, He X, Hou Y, Bai G. Glycyrrhetinic Acid Improves Insulin-Response Pathway by Regulating the Balance between the Ras/MAPK and PI3K/Akt Pathways. Nutrients 2019; 11:nu11030604. [PMID: 30871060 PMCID: PMC6470473 DOI: 10.3390/nu11030604] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2019] [Revised: 03/03/2019] [Accepted: 03/09/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Glycyrrhetinic acid (GA), a bioactive component in the human diet, has been reported to improve hyperglycemia, dyslipidemia, insulin resistance and obesity in rats with metabolic syndrome. However, GA-specific target proteins and the mechanisms involved in the downstream signaling and cross-talk to improve insulin sensitivity have not been fully elucidated. In this study, the potential targets of GA were identified by chemical proteomics strategies using serial GA probes for target fishing and cell molecular imaging. Intracellular enzyme activity evaluation and insulin resistance models were used for validating the function of the target proteins on the downstream insulin signaling pathways. Collectively, our data demonstrate that GA improved the insulin-responsive pathway and glucose consumption levels via multiple diabetogenic factors that activated the insulin signaling pathway in HepG2 cells. GA improved Glucose transporter 4(GLUT4) expression by targeting the Ras protein to regulate the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway. GA exhibited a strong inhibitory effect on IRS1ser307 phosphorylation in cells treated with the Protein kinase C (PKC) activator Phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA.) Consistently, IRS1ser307 phosphorylation was also inhibited by GA in Free fatty acid (FFA)-treated HepG2 cells. GA also inhibited the PMA-induced phosphorylation of IκB kinase α/β (IKKα/β), c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) and p38 proteins (P38), suggesting that IKKα/β, JNK and P38 activation is dependent on PKC activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuan Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, College of Pharmacy and Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Drug Research, Nankai University, Haihe Education Park, 38 Tongyan Road, Tianjin 300353, China.
| | - Shengnan Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, College of Pharmacy and Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Drug Research, Nankai University, Haihe Education Park, 38 Tongyan Road, Tianjin 300353, China.
| | - Man Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, College of Pharmacy and Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Drug Research, Nankai University, Haihe Education Park, 38 Tongyan Road, Tianjin 300353, China.
| | - Zhihua Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, College of Pharmacy and Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Drug Research, Nankai University, Haihe Education Park, 38 Tongyan Road, Tianjin 300353, China.
| | - Xin He
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, College of Pharmacy and Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Drug Research, Nankai University, Haihe Education Park, 38 Tongyan Road, Tianjin 300353, China.
| | - Yuanyuan Hou
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, College of Pharmacy and Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Drug Research, Nankai University, Haihe Education Park, 38 Tongyan Road, Tianjin 300353, China.
| | - Gang Bai
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, College of Pharmacy and Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Drug Research, Nankai University, Haihe Education Park, 38 Tongyan Road, Tianjin 300353, China.
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50
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Link P, Wink M. Isoliquiritigenin exerts antioxidant activity in Caenorhabditis elegans via insulin-like signaling pathway and SKN-1. Phytomedicine 2019; 55:119-124. [PMID: 30668421 DOI: 10.1016/j.phymed.2018.07.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2017] [Revised: 06/05/2018] [Accepted: 07/14/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Glycyrrhiza uralensis is a well-known medicinal plant. Different therapeutic effects have been reported for its secondary metabolites, including neuroprotective activity. Antioxidant properties have also been documented for some of its compounds and it could be a possible mechanism of neuroprotection. PURPOSE The present study was conducted to investigate the antioxidant effect and underlying pathways of G. uralensis and its main compounds. METHODS The experiments were conducted with Caenorhabditis elegans, a simple in vivo model, widely used in this context. The methanol extract of G. uralensis and its main compounds isoliquiritigenin, liquiritigenin, glycyrrhizic acid, and glycyrrhetinic acid were tested for their effects on heat shock protein expression under mild oxidative stress and survival rate under lethal oxidative stress. To clarify the underlying pathways, the effect on the transcription factors DAF-16, SKN-1, and HSF-1 was tested. RESULTS Isoliquiritigenin was the most potent compound in both assays, leading to a 31% decrease in expression of the stress marker heat shock protein and an 87% increase in survival rate. It significantly activated DAF-16 and SKN-1, but not HSF-1. CONCLUSION The present study identified isoliquiritigenin as the most active antioxidant compound in G. uralensis. It exerts its effect by activating the transcription factors DAF-16/FOXO and SKN-1/Nrf2 which regulate many genes, including those which code for proteins of antioxidative response. This implicates isoliquiritigenin as a possible supplement drug against oxidative stress especially in neurodegenerative diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pille Link
- Department of Biology, Institute of Pharmacy and Molecular Biology, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 364, Heidelberg, Germany.
| | - Michael Wink
- Department of Biology, Institute of Pharmacy and Molecular Biology, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 364, Heidelberg, Germany.
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