Intracellular glutathione depletion by oridonin leads to apoptosis in hepatic stellate cells.

Proliferation of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) plays a key role in the pathogenesis of liver fibrosis. Induction of HSC apoptosis by natural products is considered an effective strategy for treating liver fibrosis. Herein, the apoptotic effects of 7,20-epoxy-ent-kaurane (oridonin), a diterpenoid isolated from Rabdosia rubescens, and its underlying mechanisms were investigated in rat HSC cell line, HSC-T6.

Propofol inhibits superoxide production, elastase release, and chemotaxis in formyl peptide-activated human neutrophils by blocking formyl peptide receptor 1.

Neutrophils play a critical role in acute and chronic inflammatory processes, including myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury, sepsis, and adult respiratory distress syndrome. Binding of formyl peptide receptor 1 (FPR1) by N-formyl peptides can activate neutrophils and may represent a new therapeutic target in either sterile or septic inflammation. Propofol, a widely used i.

Caspase-14 is an anti-apoptotic protein targeting apoptosis-inducing factor in lung adenocarcinomas.

Using apoptosis-inducing factor protein as bait in a yeast hybrid assay to screen protein libraries, we identified three proteins that interacted with apoptosis-inducing factor: human homolog of yeast Rad23 protein A (hHR23A), microsomal glutathione S-transferase and caspase-14 (casp-14). In this study, we investigated the expression and function of casp-14 in lung adenocarcinomas (LADC). Our results showed that monoclonal antibodies were specific to casp-14, and that casp-14 was highly expressed in LADC.