Isolation and characterization of ZK002, a novel dual function snake venom protein from with anti-angiogenic and anti-inflammatory properties.

Pathological angiogenesis, the abnormal or excessive generation of blood vessels, plays an important role in many diseases including cancer, diabetic retinopathy, psoriasis, and arthritis. Additionally, increasing evidence supports the close linkage between angiogenesis and inflammation. Snake venoms are a rich natural source of biologically active molecules and carry rich potential for the discovery of anti-angiogenic and anti-inflammatory modulators.

Adjuvant herbal therapy for targeting susceptibility genes to Kawasaki disease: An overview of epidemiology, pathogenesis, diagnosis and pharmacological treatment of Kawasaki disease.

Background: Kawasaki disease (KD) is a self-limiting acute systemic vasculitis occur mainly in infants and young children under 5 years old. Although the use of acetylsalicylic acid (AAS) in combination with intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) remains the standard therapy to KD, the etiology, genetic susceptibility genes and pathogenic factors of KD are still un-elucidated.

Purpose: Current obstacles in the treatment of KD include the lack of standard clinical and genetic markers for early diagnosis, possible severe side effect of AAS (Reye's syndrome), and the refractory KD cases with resistance to IVIG therapy, therefore, this review has focused on introducing the current advances in the identification of genetic susceptibility genes, environmental factors, diagnostic markers and adjuvant pharmacological intervention for KD.

Allicin Modifies the Composition and Function of the Gut Microbiota in Alcoholic Hepatic Steatosis Mice.

The intestinal microbiome plays an important role in the pathogenesis of liver diseases. Alcohol intake induces gut microbiota dysbiosis and alters its function. This study investigated the antibiotic effect of allicin in mice with hepatic steatosis.

Artemisinin Derivatives Target Topoisomerase 1 and Cause DNA Damage and .

DNA topoisomerases 1 and 2 are enzymes that maintain DNA topology and play important essential genome functions, including DNA replication and transcription. Aberrant topoisomerases cause genome instability and a wide range of diseases, cancer in particular. Both Topo 1 and 2 are the targets of valuable anticancer drugs, such as camptothecin.

Mechanistic study of the anti-cancer effect of Gynostemma pentaphyllum saponins in the Apc(Min/+) mouse model.

Gynostemma pentaphyllum saponins (GpS) have been shown to have anti-cancer activity. However, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. In this study, we used the Apc(Min) (/+) colorectal cancer (CRC) mouse model to investigate the anti-cancer effect of GpS and we demonstrated that GpS treatment could significantly reduce the number and size of intestinal polyps in Apc(Min) (/+) mice.

Proteomic study of pyrrolizidine alkaloid-induced hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome in rats.

Pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs) are a group of phytotoxins that can induce human liver injury, particularly hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome (HSOS). To date, the molecular targets of PA-induced HSOS are largely unknown. In this study, retrorsine (RTS), a known hepatotoxic PA, was used as a representative PA for proteomic studies.

Optimization of 2-dimensional gel electrophoresis for proteomic studies of solid tumor tissue samples.

The method of 2‑dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) has been widely used for the proteomic profiling of solid biological samples, however, the analytical conditions have not been optimized. The present study optimized the major conditions of 2‑DE for determining the protein contents of solid tumor tissues, through enhancement of the separation efficiency and resolution. Three major analytical conditions of 2‑DE analysis, namely protein extraction, focusing time for isoelectric focusing (IEF), and pre‑reduction and alkylation prior to IEF, were carefully examined so that the optimal parameters and procedures were achieved.

Evaluation on the effect of different in-gel peptide isoelectric focusing parameters in global proteomic profiling.

Peptide isoelectric focusing (IEF) is a common technique used in two-dimensional liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (2D-LC-MS/MS) proteomic workflow, in which the tryptic peptide is first pre-fractionated based on pI values before being subjected to reverse phase LC-MS analysis. Although this method has been widely used by many research groups, a systemic study on the optimal conditions and fundamental parameters influencing the experimental outcomes has been lacking, including the effect of peptide extraction methods, the extent of pre-fractionation, and the choice of pH range. In this study, we compared the effect of different parameters on the numbers of peptides and proteins identified using two complex mouse proteomes.

Characterization and simultaneous determination of immunosuppressive decalins in red yeast rice by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography hyphenated with mass spectrometry.

Decalins are secondary metabolites of red yeast rice with immunosuppressive effects on human T cell proliferation. In this study, ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography hyphenated with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS) was employed for elucidation of the mass fragmentation patterns of decalins by collision-induced dissociation tandem mass spectrometry (CID-MS/MS). Based on the MS/MS fragmentation patterns of the authentic decalin standards as well as high mass accuracy, a new decalin in the crude extract of red yeast rice was further putatively identified.

The Predicted Proteomic Network Associated with the Antiarthritic Action of Qingfu Guanjieshu in Collagen-II-Induced Arthritis in Rats.

Qingfu Guanjieshu (QFGJS) is an herbal preparation for treating rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Previous studies revealed that QFGJS significantly inhibited experimental arthritis and acute inflammation, accompanied by reduction of proinflammatory cytokines and elevation of anti-inflammatory cytokines. This study aims to identify the targeted proteins and predict the proteomic network associated with the drug action of QFGJS by using 2D gel and MALDI-TOF-MS/MS techniques.

Inhibition of DNA-dependent protein kinase reduced palmitate and oleate-induced lipid accumulation in HepG2 cells.

Purpose: The aim of this study is to investigate the involvement of DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK) in palmitate and oleate-induced lipid accumulation in hepatocytes.

Methods: We treated HepG2 with free fatty acids (FFA) (0.33 mM palmitate and 0.

A new application of an aqueous diphase solvent system in one-step preparation of polysaccharide from the crude water extract of Radix Astragali by high-speed counter-current chromatography.

Polysaccharide's purification remains challenge to separation technology. Conventional methods involve time-consuming and complicated operations and always cause significant variation in the isolates' chemistry. This paper reports an aqueous diphase solvent system, namely PEG1000-MgSO(4)-H(2)O, which succeeded in one-step CCC separation of a polysaccharide (43 mg) from the water extract (1.

Structural characterization and immuno-modulating activities of a polysaccharide from Ganoderma sinense.

A protein-bound polysaccharide (GSP-4) with a molecular weight of 8.3 × 10⁵ Da, was isolated from the water extract of the fruiting bodies of Ganoderma sinense. Chemical study revealed that this fraction was composed of mannose, glucose and galactose in the molar ratio of 4.

The anticancer effect of oridonin is mediated by fatty acid synthase suppression in human colorectal cancer cells.

Background: Fatty acid synthase (FAS) inhibitors could be a therapeutic target in cancer treatment. However, only a few FAS inhibitors showing clinical potential have been reported. Oridonin is a diterpenoid isolated from Rabdosia rubescens.

Isolation, structure characterization, and immunomodulating activity of a hyperbranched polysaccharide from the fruiting bodies of Ganoderma sinense.

A polysaccharide (GSP-6B) with a molecular mass of 1.86 × 10⁶ Da was isolated from the fruiting bodies of Ganoderma sinense . Chemical composition analysis, methylation analysis, infrared spectroscopy, and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy were conducted to elucidate its structure.

Immunosuppressive decalin derivatives from red yeast rice.

Five new decalin derivatives (1-5), together with two known compounds (6 and 7), were isolated from the ethyl acetate extract of red yeast rice. Their structures were elucidated by means of NMR and mass spectroscopic analyses. Monascusic lactone A (1) is the first reported naturally occurring decalin derivative possessing a spiro lactone at the C-1 position.

Cytotoxic dehydromonacolins from red yeast rice.

Two new dehydromonacolins (1 and 3), together with nine known monacolins (4-12), were isolated from red yeast rice. Compounds 4-6 were isolated from a natural resource for the first time. Their structures were elucidated by means of NMR and mass spectroscopic analyses.

Inhibition of the p38 and PKA signaling pathways is associated with the anti-melanogenic activity of Qian-wang-hong-bai-san, a Chinese herbal formula, in B16 cells.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Qian-wang-hong-bai-san (QW), a Chinese herbal formula, is traditionally used as a skin whitening agent in China.

Aim Of Study: In our previous screening assays, QW was identified as an effective tyrosinase inhibitor. In this study, we aim to investigate the underlying mechanism of the anti-melanogenic effect of QW in B16 cells.

Simple and convenient G-quadruplex-based turn-on fluorescence assay for 3' → 5' exonuclease activity.

A selective, oligonucleotide-based, label-free, turn-on fluorescence detection method for 3' → 5' exonuclease activity has been developed using crystal violet as a G-quadruplex-binding probe. The assay is highly simple and rapid, does not require the use of gel-based equipment or radioisotopic labeling, and is amenable to high-throughput and real-time detection. A proof-of-concept of this assay has been demonstrated for prokaryotic Exonuclease III (ExoIII) and human TREX1.