Benzoylmesaconine mitigates NLRP3 inflammasome-related diseases by reducing intracellular K efflux and disrupting NLRP3 inflammasome assembly.

Background: Benzoylmesaconine (BMA), a major alkaloid derived from the traditional Chinese medicine Aconitum carmichaeli Debx, exhibits potent anti-inflammatory properties. However, the precise mechanism underlying its action remains unclear.

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the inhibitory mechanism of BMA on the NLRP3 inflammasome and assess its therapeutic efficacy in NLRP3-related metabolic diseases.

Water extract of earthworms mitigates kidney injury triggered by oxidative stress via activating intrarenal Sirt1/Nrf2 cascade and ameliorating mitochondrial damage.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury can result in acute renal failure. Oxidative stress is a major factor in IR-induced cell death in the kidneys. According to traditional Chinese medicine, earthworms (Pheretima aspergillum) can be used to treat various kidney diseases.

Effects of Kv1.3 knockout on pyramidal neuron excitability and synaptic plasticity in piriform cortex of mice.

Kv1.3 belongs to the voltage-gated potassium (Kv) channel family, which is widely expressed in the central nervous system and associated with a variety of neuropsychiatric disorders. Kv1.

Licochalcone Mediates the Pain Relief by Targeting the Voltage-Gated Sodium Channel.

Licorice is a traditional Chinese medicine and recorded to have pain relief effects in national pharmacopoeia, but the mechanisms behind these effects have not been fully explored. Among the hundreds of compounds in licorice, licochalcone A (LCA) and licochalcone B (LCB) are two important components belonging to the chalcone family. In this study, we compared the analgesic effects of these two licochalcones and the molecular mechanisms.

The immunosuppressive effects and mechanisms of loureirin B on collagen-induced arthritis in rats.

Introduction: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a common disease mainly affecting joints of the hands and wrists. The discovery of autoantibodies in the serum of patients revealed that RA belonged to the autoimmune diseases and laid a theoretical basis for its immunosuppressive therapy. The pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases mainly involves abnormal activation and proliferation of effector memory T cells, which is closely related to the elevated expression of Kv1.

Chemotherapy-induced phlebitis via the GBP5/NLRP3 inflammasome axis and the therapeutic effect of aescin.

Background And Purpose: Intravenous infusion of chemotherapy drugs can cause severe chemotherapy-induced phlebitis (CIP) in patients. However, the underlying mechanism of CIP development remains unclear.

Experimental Approach: RNA-sequencing analysis was used to identify potential disease targets in CIP.

Integrating network pharmacology and pharmacological validation to explore the effect of Shi Wei Ru Xiang powder on suppressing hyperuricemia.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Shi Wei Ru Xiang powder (SWR) is a traditional Tibetan medicinal formula with the effect of dispelling dampness and dispersing cold. In clinical practice, SWR is generally used for the treatment of hyperuricemia (HUA). However, its exact pharmacological mechanism remains unclear.

Mechanisms Underlying the Inhibition of KV1.3 Channel by Scorpion Toxin ImKTX58.

Voltage-gated K1.3 channel has been reported to be a drug target for the treatment of autoimmune diseases, and specific inhibitors of Kv1.3 are potential therapeutic drugs for multiple diseases.

Loureirin B Exerts its Immunosuppressive Effects by Inhibiting STIM1/Orai1 and K1.3 Channels.

Loureirin B (LrB) is a constituent extracted from traditional Chinese medicine Resina Draconis. It has broad biological functions and an impressive immunosuppressive effect that has been supported by numerous studies. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying Loureirin B-induced immune suppression are not fully understood.

Tick peptides evoke itch by activating MrgprC11/MRGPRX1 to sensitize TRPV1 in pruriceptors.

Background: Tick bites severely threaten human health because they allow the transmission of many deadly pathogens, including viruses, bacteria, protozoa, and helminths. Pruritus is a leading symptom of tick bites, but its molecular and neural bases remain elusive.

Objectives: This study sought to discover potent drugs and targets for the specific prevention and treatment of tick bite-induced pruritus and arthropod-related itch.

Immunosuppressive effects of a novel potassium channel toxin Ktx-Sp2 from Scorpiops Pocoki.

Background: The cDNA Library of venomous animals could provide abundant bioactive peptides coding information and is an important resource for screening bioactive peptides that target and regulate disease-related ion channels. To further explore the potential medicinal usage of the transcriptome database of Scorpiops Pocoki's venom gland, this research identified the function of a new potassium channel toxin Ktx-Sp2, whose gene was screened from the database by sequence alignment.

Results: The mature peptide of Ktx-Sp2 was obtained by genetic engineering.

TRPV4 Channel Signaling in Macrophages Promotes Gastrointestinal Motility via Direct Effects on Smooth Muscle Cells.

Intestinal macrophages are critical for gastrointestinal (GI) homeostasis, but our understanding of their role in regulating intestinal motility is incomplete. Here, we report that CX3C chemokine receptor 1-expressing muscularis macrophages (MMs) were required to maintain normal GI motility. MMs expressed the transient receptor potential vanilloid 4 (TRPV4) channel, which senses thermal, mechanical, and chemical cues.

Zinc Inhibits TRPV1 to Alleviate Chemotherapy-Induced Neuropathic Pain.

Zinc is a transition metal that has a long history of use as an anti-inflammatory agent. It also soothes pain sensations in a number of animal models. However, the effects and mechanisms of zinc on chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy remain unknown.

Cloning, expression and identification of KTX-Sp4, a selective Kv1.3 peptidic blocker from .

Background: Specific and selective peptidic blockers of Kv1.3 channels can serve as a valuable drug lead for treating T cell-mediated autoimmune diseases, and scorpion venom is an important source of kv1.3 channel inhibitors.

Sensory TRP channels contribute differentially to skin inflammation and persistent itch.

Although both persistent itch and inflammation are commonly associated with allergic contact dermatitis (ACD), it is not known if they are mediated by shared or distinct signaling pathways. Here we show that both TRPA1 and TRPV1 channels are required for generating spontaneous scratching in a mouse model of ACD induced by squaric acid dibutylester (SADBE), a small molecule hapten, through directly promoting the excitability of pruriceptors. TRPV1 but not TRPA1 channels protect the skin inflammation, as genetic ablation of TRPV1 function or pharmacological ablation of TRPV1-positive sensory nerves promotes cutaneous inflammation in the SADBE-induced ACD.

Transient receptor potential vanilloid 4-expressing macrophages and keratinocytes contribute differentially to allergic and nonallergic chronic itch.

Background: Chronic itch is a highly debilitating symptom that underlies many medical disorders with no universally effective treatments. Although unique neuronal signaling cascades in the sensory ganglia and spinal cord have been shown to critically promote the pathogenesis of chronic itch, the role of skin-associated cells remains poorly understood.

Objective: We sought to examine the cutaneous mechanisms underlying transient receptor potential vanilloid 4 (TRPV4)-mediated allergic and nonallergic chronic itch.

Facilitation of TRPV4 by TRPV1 is required for itch transmission in some sensory neuron populations.

The transient receptor potential channels (TRPs) respond to chemical irritants and temperature. TRPV1 responds to the itch-inducing endogenous signal histamine, and TRPA1 responds to the itch-inducing chemical chloroquine. We showed that, in sensory neurons, TRPV4 is important for both chloroquine- and histamine-induced itch and that TRPV1 has a role in chloroquine-induced itch.

The Pore Loop Domain of TRPV1 Is Required for Its Activation by the Volatile Anesthetics Chloroform and Isoflurane.

The environmental irritant chloroform, a naturally occurring small volatile organohalogen, briefly became the world's most popular volatile general anesthetic (VGA) before being abandoned because of its low therapeutic index. When chloroform comes in contact with skin or is ingested, it causes a painful burning sensation. The molecular basis for the pain associated with chloroform remains unknown.

Scorpiopsingens sp. n. and an updated key to the Scorpiops from China (Scorpiones, Euscorpiidae, Scorpiopinae).

A new species, Scorpiopsingens sp. n., from Xizang, is described and illustrated.

Chaeriluspseudoconchiformus sp. n. and an updated key of the chaerilid scorpions from China (Scorpiones, Chaerilidae).

A new species, Chaeriluspseudoconchiformus sp. n., is described from Xizang, China.

History of study, updated checklist, distribution and key of scorpions (Arachnida: Scorpiones) from China.

This review describes the history of taxonomic research on scorpions and provides an updated checklist and key of the scorpions currently known in China. This checklist is based on a thorough review of the extant literatures on scorpion species whose presence has been confirmed in China through field expeditions and examination of scorpion collections, excepting a few members that have no clear distribution or are currently in doubt. Totally, the scorpion fauna of China consists of 53 species and subspecies belonging to 12 genera crossing five families, with 33 species (62.

Loureirin B, an essential component of Sanguis Draxonis, inhibits Kv1.3 channel and suppresses cytokine release from Jurkat T cells.

Sanguis draxonis (SD), also known as "Dragon's Blood", is a traditional herb medicine that has been used to treat a variety of complications with unknown mechanisms. Recent studies show that SD displays immunosuppressive activities and improves symptoms of type I diabetes in animal models. However, the mechanisms underlying SD's immunosuppressive actions are not completely understood.

LE135, a retinoid acid receptor antagonist, produces pain through direct activation of TRP channels.

Background And Purpose: Retinoids, through their activation of retinoic acid receptors (RARs) and retinoid X receptors, regulate diverse cellular processes, and pharmacological intervention in their actions has been successful in the treatment of skin disorders and cancers. Despite the many beneficial effects, administration of retinoids causes irritating side effects with unknown mechanisms. Here, we demonstrate that LE135 [4-(7,8,9,10-tetrahydro-5,7,7,10,10-pentamethyl-5H-benzo[e]naphtho[2,3-b][1,4]diazepin-13-yl)benzoic acid], a selective antagonist of RARβ , is a potent activator of the capsaicin (TRPV1) and wasabi (TRPA1) receptors, two critical pain-initiating cation channels.

Retinoids activate the irritant receptor TRPV1 and produce sensory hypersensitivity.

Retinoids are structurally related derivatives of vitamin A and are required for normal vision as well as cell proliferation and differentiation. Clinically, retinoids are effective in treating many skin disorders and cancers. Application of retinoids evokes substantial irritating side effects, including pain and inflammation; however, the precise mechanisms accounting for the sensory hypersensitivity are not understood.