Role of Traditional Chinese Medicine for the Treatment of Lupus nephritis: Mechanisms and Applications.

Background: Lupus nephritis (LN), caused by Systemic lupus erythematosus, is a chronic autoimmune renal disease and a key risk factor for morbidity and fatality involving 50% damage to the kidney. LN is associated with aberrant functioning of the immune system, characterized by increased systemic inflammation, altered lymphocyte count, perivascular infiltration of inflammatory cells, and declined organ functioning.

Current Therapies And Limitations: Conventional therapies to LN include high-dose glucocorticoids, immunosuppressants, calcineurin inhibitors, immune boosters, and targeted medicines that improve kidney functioning.

The effects of autophagy on the replication of Nelson Bay orthoreovirus.

Background: Nelson Bay orthoreovirus (NBV) was first isolated over 40 years ago from a fruit bat in Australia. Normally, NBV does not cause human diseases, but recently several NBV strains have been associated with human respiratory tract infections, thus attracting clinical attention. Autophagy, an evolutionarily conserved process in eukaryotic cells, degrades intracellular substrates, participates in multiple physiological processes, and maintains cellular homeostasis.

[Purification of Nelson Bay virus S3 protein and preparation of rat polyclonal antibody].

Objective To prepare a polyclonal antibody against S3 of Nelson Bay virus (NBV). Methods The E.coli BL21 (DE3) competent cells were transfected with the constructed Pris His MB-S3 recombinant plasmid.

An UHPLC-MS/MS method for simultaneous determination of quercetin 3-O-rutinoside, kaempferol 3-O-rutinoside, isorhamnetin 3-O-rutinoside, bilobalide and ligustrazine in rat plasma, and its application to pharmacokinetic study of Xingxiong injection.

The present study was designed to develop and validate a rapid, sensitive, and reliable ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) method for the simultaneous determination of five major active constituents in the traditional Chinese medicinal preparation Xingxiong injection (XXI) in rat plasma, including quercetin 3-O-rutinoside (QCR), kaempferol 3-O-rutinoside (KFR), isorhamnetin 3-O-rutinoside (ISR), bilobalide (BB), and ligustrazine (LGT). The plasma samples were pretreated by protein precipitation with acetonitrile. The chromatographic separation was achieved on a Waters Symmetry C analytical column (2.

Qualitative and quantitative analysis of chemical constituents in Ardisiae Japonicae Herba.

Ardisiae Japonicae Herba is a well-known traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of bronchitis conjunctivitis, pneumonia, and trauma. In this work, a high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry method was first established for the separation and structural identification of the chemical constituents in Ardisiae Japonicae Herba. A total of 15 compounds including coumarins, flavonoid glycosides, and catechins were identified or tentatively characterized based on their chromatographic behaviors and mass spectral fragmentation and by comparisons with the reference standards.

Polymethoxyflavones in peel of Citrus reticulata 'Chachi' and their biological activities.

Citrus polymethoxyflavones (PMFs) have been of increasing interest due to their extensive biological activities. In the present study, a total of eight PMFs were isolated from the peel of Citrus reticulata 'Chachi' (CRC). They were individually identified as 5-hydroxy-6,7,8,4'-tetramethoxyflavone (1), 5,6,7,3',4'-pentamethoxyflavanone (2), 5-hydroxy-6,7,8,3',4'-pentamethoxyflavone (3), 3,5,6,7,8,3',4'- heptamethoxyflavone (4), 5,6,7,8,3',4'-hexamethoxyflavone (5), 5,6,7,8,4'-pentamethoxyflavone (6), 6,7,8,3',4'-pentamethoxyflavanone (7) and 5,6,7,3',4'-pentamethoxyflavone (8) by nuclear magnetic resonance and mass spectroscopic analysis.

A new compound, methylbergenin along with eight known compounds with cytotoxicity and anti-inflammatory activity from Ardisia japonica.

A new compound, methylbergenin (1), was isolated from the whole plants of Ardisia japonica (Thunb.) Bl. (Myrsinaceae), along with eight known compounds: demethoxybergenin (2), bergenin (3), afzelin (4), quercitrin (5), bauerenol (6), bauerenone (7), α-spinasterol (8) and chondrillasterone (9).

Deep eutectic solvents as green media for extraction of flavonoid glycosides and aglycones from Platycladi Cacumen.

Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) are emerging as alternatives to conventional ionic liquids and organic solvents due to their unique advantages. In the present study, the tuneability of DESs as tailor-made solvents to efficiently extract polar and non-polar bioactive compounds from Platycladi Cacumen was detailedly investigated. Totally 12 types of choline chloride-, betaine-, and l-proline-based DESs were synthesized for initial screening, and extraction conditions was optimized by single-factor experiment.

Comparison of Aurantii Fructus Immaturus and Aurantii Fructus based on multiple chromatographic analysis and chemometrics methods.

To get a better understanding of the bioactive constituents in Aurantii Fructus Immaturus (AFI) and Aurantii Fructus (AF), in the present study, a comprehensive strategy integrating multiple chromatographic analysis and chemometrics methods was firstly proposed. Based on segmental monitoring, a high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-variable wavelength detection method was established for simultaneous quantification of ten major flavonoids, and the quantitative data were further analyzed by hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) and principal component analysis (PCA). A strong cation exchange-high performance liquid chromatography (SCX-HPLC) method combined with t-test and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was developed to determine synephrine, the major alkaloid in AFI and AF.

Quality standardization of herbal medicines using effective compounds combination as labeled constituents.

Selection of suitable labeled constituents is vital for the quality standardization of herbal medicines (HMs). However, discovery of labeled constituents that can account for the whole efficacy of original HMs is a challenging issue. Taking tanshinones extract (TE) as an example, a strategy to establish reasonable quality control method using effective compounds combination (ECC) as labeled constituents was proposed.

Comprehensive analysis of chemical constituents in Xingxiong injection by high performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry.

Xingxiong injection (XXI) is a widely used Chinese herbal formula prepared by the folium ginkgo extract and ligustrazine for the treatment of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Compared with the pharmacological studies, chemical analysis and quality control studies on this formula are relatively limited. In the present study, a high performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (HPLC-QTOF MS) method was applied to comprehensive analysis of constituents in XXI.

Screening β1AR inhibitors by cell membrane chromatography and offline UPLC/MS method for protecting myocardial ischemia.

A high expression β1AR/cell membrane chromatography (β1AR-CMC) and offline UPLC/MS method has been developed for screening active ingredients from Coptis chinensis. In this study, the fractions retained by CMC column were separated and identified by UPLC/MS system. Using metoprolol as a positive control drug, coptisine from C.

Metabolic profile of miltirone in rats by high performance liquid chromatography/quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

Miltirone is one of the bioactive diterpene quinones isolated from Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge. This compound has been found to possess significant anticancer, antibacterial, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory activities. However, the metabolic fate of miltirone remains unknown.

Chemical and biological comparison of the fruit extracts of Citrus wilsonii Tanaka and Citrus medica L.

Citri Fructus (CF), the mature fruit of Citrus wilsonii Tanaka (CWT) or Citrus medica L. (CML), is an important citrus by-product with health promoting and nutritive properties. The present study compares the chemical and biological differences of CWT and CML.

A simple and sensitive LC-MS/MS method for determination of miltirone in rat plasma and its application to pharmacokinetic studies.

A rapid and sensitive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method was developed and validated for the quantification of miltirone concentration in rat plasma. The cytotoxic activity of miltirone was firstly evaluated by the MTT assay and compared with other tanshinones. Quantification was carried out on an Agilent triple quadrupole LC-MS system using multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode in positive mode.

Comparison of chemical profiling and antioxidant activities of fruits, leaves, branches, and flowers of Citrus grandis 'Tomentosa'.

Citrus grandis 'Tomentosa' (CGT) is particularly cultivated in China and widely used in health foods. In this study, the chemical profiles of different parts of CGT were comprehensively compared by rapid resolution liquid chromatography coupled to electrospray ionization quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry method. A total of 22 compounds were identified and two C-glucosyl flavones were found for the first time in CGT.

Peritonitis due to Burkholderia gladioli.

We report a case of continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD)-related peritonitis. Burkholderia gladioli, as a plant pathogen, were cultured from peritoneal effluent. Peritonitis healed after intraperitoneal cefazolin and gentamicin.

Recent developments in the field of the determination of constituents of TCMs in body fluids of animals and human.

Although traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) play important role in drug discovery and human health, the actual value of TCMs has not been fully recognized worldwide due to its complex components and uncontrollable quality. For the modernization and globalization of TCMs, it is important to establish selective, sensitive and feasible analytical methods for determination and quantification of bioactive components of TCMs in body fluids primarily due to the low concentration, the complex nature of the biological matrices, and multi-components and their metabolites present in biological fluids. The present review summarizes the current extraction techniques, chromatographic separation and spectroscopic (especially mass spectrometric) analysis methods and new trends on the analysis of bioactive components and metabolites of TCMs in biological fluids.

Protective role of deoxyschizandrin and schisantherin A against myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury in rats.

Background: Our previous studies suggested that deoxyschizandrin (DSD) and schisantherin A (STA) may have cardioprotective effects, but information in this regard is lacking. Therefore, we explored the protective role of DSD and STA in myocardial ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury.

Methodology/principal Findings: Anesthetized male rats were treated once with DSD and STA (each 40 µmol/kg) through the tail vein after 45 min of ischemia, followed by 2-h reperfusion.