Alantolactone plays neuroprotective roles in traumatic brain injury in rats via anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative and anti-apoptosis pathways.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a common disease associated with a high rate of morbidity and mortality. Secondary brain injury following TBI triggers pathological, physiological, and biological reactions that lead to neurological dysfunctions. Alantolactone (ATL) is a well-known Chinese medicine that possesses strong anti-inflammatory properties, but its role in TBI remains poorly understood.

Dioscin Inhibits HSC-T6 Cell Migration via Adjusting SDC-4 Expression: Insights from iTRAQ-Based Quantitative Proteomics.

Hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) migration, an important bioprocess, contributes to the development of liver fibrosis. Our previous studies have found the potent activity of dioscin against liver fibrosis by inhibiting HSCs proliferation, triggering the senescence and inducing apoptosis of activated HSCs, but the molecular mechanisms associated with cell migration were not clarified. In this work, iTRAQ (isobaric tags for relative and absolution quantitation)-based quantitative proteomics study was carried out, and a total of 1566 differentially expressed proteins with fold change ≥2.

Targeting MicroRNA Function in Acute Pancreatitis.

Acute pancreatitis (AP) is a common gastrointestinal disorder that featured by acute inflammatory responses leading to systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) or multiple organ failure. A worldwide increase in annual incidence has been observed during the past decade with high acute hospitalization and mortality. Lack of any specific treatment for AP, even to this day, is a reminder that there is much to be learned about the exact pathogenesis of AP.

MicroRNA-205-5p regulates the chemotherapeutic resistance of hepatocellular carcinoma cells by targeting PTEN/JNK/ANXA3 pathway.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a common malignant tumor of the digestive system, and patients with advanced HCC have a poor outlook, partly due to resistance to chemotherapeutic drugs. Previous studies have implicated microRNAs in the regulation of chemoresistance, and we have previously shown that microRNA (miR)-205-5p is down-regulated in multiple hepatoma cell lines. Here, we investigate whether miR-205-5p is involved in chemotherapeutic resistance in HCC.

Solasonine inhibits glioma growth through anti-inflammatory pathways.

The global burden of malignant glioma is expected to increase and new therapy approaches are urgently required. Solasonine is a natural glycoalkaloid compound that has been used in cancer treatment for many years; however the precise mechanisms are poorly understood. Here we seek to explore the potential roles of solasonine in glioma that could add to the development of newer therapeutic approaches for the treatment of malignant glioma.

The Influence of Emotion on Fairness-Related Decision Making: A Critical Review of Theories and Evidence.

Fairness-related decision making is an important issue in the field of decision making. Traditional theories emphasize the roles of inequity aversion and reciprocity, whereas recent research increasingly shows that emotion plays a critical role in this type of decision making. In this review, we summarize the influences of three types of emotions (i.

Acute Hypoxia Induced an Imbalanced M1/M2 Activation of Microglia through NF-κB Signaling in Alzheimer's Disease Mice and Wild-Type Littermates.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disease mainly caused by abnormal tau phosphorylation, amyloid β (Aβ) deposition and neuroinflammation. As an important environmental factor, hypoxia has been reported to aggravate AD via exacerbating Aβ and tau pathologies. However, the link between hypoxia and neuroinflammation, especially the changes of pro-inflammatory M1 or anti-inflammation M2 microglia phenotypes in AD, is still far from being clearly investigated.

Alterations of the Gut Microbiome in Hypertension.

Human gut microbiota is believed to be directly or indirectly involved in cardiovascular diseases and hypertension. However, the identification and functional status of the hypertension-related gut microbe(s) have not yet been surveyed in a comprehensive manner. Here we characterized the gut microbiome in hypertension status by comparing fecal samples of 60 patients with primary hypertension and 60 gender-, age-, and body weight-matched healthy controls based on whole-metagenome shotgun sequencing.

Interspecies Variation of Stability and Metabolic Diversity of YZG-331, a Promising Sedative-Hypnotic Compound.

YZG-331, a synthetic adenosine derivative, express the sedative and hypnotic effects binding to the adenosine receptor. The current study was taken to investigate the metabolic pathway of YZG-331 as well as species-specific differences . YZG-331 was reduced by 14, 11, 6, 46, and 11% within 120 min incubation in human, monkey, dog, rat, and mouse liver microsomes (LMs), respectively.

Fentanyl Promotes Breast Cancer Cell Stemness and Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition by Upregulating α1, 6-Fucosylation via Wnt/β-Catenin Signaling Pathway.

Cancer pain is a common and severe complication of human breast cancer, and relieving pain is fundamental strategy in the treatment. Fentanyl, as an opioid analgesic, is widely used in breast cancer patients. However, little is known about its effects on stemness and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of breast cancer cells.

Inhibition of PAI-1 Activity by Toddalolactone as a Mechanism for Promoting Blood Circulation and Removing Stasis by Chinese Herb var. .

Traditional Chinese medicine has been used to treat a variety of human diseases for many centuries. var. is used as an adjuvant to promote blood circulation and remove stasis.

Structure-Activity Relationships of Pentacyclic Triterpenoids as Potent and Selective Inhibitors against Human Carboxylesterase 1.

Human carboxylesterase 1 (hCE1), one of the most important serine hydrolases distributed in liver and adipocytes, plays key roles in endobiotic homeostasis and xenobiotic metabolism. This study aimed to find potent and selective inhibitors against hCE1 from phytochemicals and their derivatives. To this end, a series of natural triterpenoids were collected and their inhibitory effects against human carboxylesterases (hCEs) were assayed using D-Luciferin methyl ester (DME) and 6,8-dichloro-9,9-dimethyl-7-oxo-7,9-dihydroacridin-2-yl benzoate (DDAB) as specific optical substrate for hCE1, and hCE2, respectively.

8-pCPT-cGMP prevents mitochondrial depolarization and improves the outcome of steatotic partial liver transplantation.

Permeant cGMP analogs prevent the mitochondria permeability transition (MPT) . In this study, we explored whether 8-pCPT-cGMP prevents the MPT and decreases post-transplant damage to fatty partial liver grafts (FPG) . Rats were fed a control or high-fat, high-fructose diet for 2-week.

Dehydrocostus lactone, a natural sesquiterpene lactone, suppresses the biological characteristics of glioma, through inhibition of the NF-κB/COX-2 signaling pathway by targeting IKKβ.

Dehydrocostus lactone (DHE), a natural sesquiterpene lactone, has been used for treatment of various diseases with its anti-inflammatory activity. Recently, it has caused extensive interest in researchers due to it has anti-cancer abilities in some types of carcinomas. However, the anti-cancer effect and mechanism of DHE in glioma remains unclear.

Osthole Stimulated Neural Stem Cells Differentiation into Neurons in an Alzheimer's Disease Cell Model via Upregulation of MicroRNA-9 and Rescued the Functional Impairment of Hippocampal Neurons in APP/PS1 Transgenic Mice.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most serious neurodegenerative disease worldwide and is characterized by progressive cognitive impairment and multiple neurological changes, including neuronal loss in the brain. However, there are no available drugs to delay or cure this disease. Consequently, neuronal replacement therapy may be a strategy to treat AD.

USP22 Induces Cisplatin Resistance in Lung Adenocarcinoma by Regulating γH2AX-Mediated DNA Damage Repair and Ku70/Bax-Mediated Apoptosis.

Resistance to platinum-based chemotherapy is one of the most important reasons for treatment failure in advanced non-small cell lung cancer, but the underlying mechanism is extremely complex and unclear. The present study aimed to investigate the correlation of ubiquitin-specific peptidase 22 (USP22) with acquired resistance to cisplatin in lung adenocarcinoma. In this study, we found that overexpression of USP22 could lead to cisplatin resistance in A549 cells.

Neural Responses to Rapid Facial Expressions of Fear and Surprise.

Facial expression recognition is mediated by a distributed neural system in humans that involves multiple, bilateral regions. There are six basic facial expressions that may be recognized in humans (fear, sadness, surprise, happiness, anger, and disgust); however, fearful faces and surprised faces are easily confused in rapid presentation. The functional organization of the facial expression recognition system embodies a distinction between these two emotions, which is investigated in the present study.

The Influence of Counterfactual Comparison on Fairness in Gain-Loss Contexts.

Fairness perceptions may be affected by counterfactual comparisons. Although certain studies using a two-player ultimatum game (UG) have shown that comparison with the proposers influences the responders' fairness perceptions in a gain context, the effect of counterfactual comparison in a UG with multiple responders or proposers remains unclear, especially in a loss context. To resolve these issues, this study used a modified three-player UG with multiple responders in Experiment 1 and multiple proposers in Experiment 2 to examine the influence of counterfactual comparison on fairness-related decision-making in gain and loss contexts.

Effects of α2A Adrenoceptors on Norepinephrine Secretion from the Locus Coeruleus during Chronic Stress-Induced Depression.

Chronic stressors can often lead to the development of psychological disorders, such as depression and anxiety. The locus coeruleus (LC) is a stress sensitive brain region located in the pons, with noradrenergic neurons that project to the hypothalamus, especially the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus. The purpose of this paper is to better understand how alpha 2A-adrenoceptors (α-ARs) and LC-hypothalamus noradrenergic system participate in the pathophysiological mechanism of depression.

Chinese Herbal Medicines Attenuate Acute Pancreatitis: Pharmacological Activities and Mechanisms.

Acute pancreatitis (AP) is a commonly occurring gastrointestinal disorder. An increase in the annual incidence of AP has been observed, and it causes acute hospitalization and high mortality. The diagnosis and treatment guidelines for AP recommend conservative medical treatments focused on reducing pancreatic secretion and secondary injury, as a primary therapeutic approach.

Androgen Receptor Regulates the Growth of Neuroblastoma Cells and .

Neuroblastoma is the most common extracranial tumors in children. At present about the true etiology of neuroblastoma is unclear and many studies have tried to find effective treatments for these primary malignant tumors. Although it has been illustrated that androgen receptor (AR) was expressed in neuroblastoma cells in some former reports, the biological role of androgen receptor in the development of neuroblastoma is not fully understood.

Targeting NF-κB/AP-2β signaling to enhance antitumor activity of cisplatin by melatonin in hepatocellular carcinoma cells.

Cisplatin is a common chemotherapeutic drug for cancer treatment, but its effect is limited because of its cytotoxicity and chemoresistance. The combinational use of cisplatin with some natural compounds has provided a potential option to improve its effect and lower its side effects in cancer treatment. Here, we investigated the role of melatonin in the regulation of cisplatin-mediated antitumor activity in hepatocellular carcinoma cells.