You-Hua Wang

A Review on the Traditional Chinese Medicinal Herbs and Formulae with Hypolipidemic Effect

Hyperlipidemia, characterized by the abnormal blood lipid profiles, is one of the dominant factors of many chronic diseases such as diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular diseases (CVD). For the low cost, effectiveness, and fewer side effects, the popularity of using traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) to handle hyperlipidemia is increasing and its role in health care has been recognized by the public at large. Despite the importance of TCM herbs and formulations, there is no comprehensive review summarizing their scientific findings on handling hyperlipidemia. This review summarizes the recent experimental and clinical results of nine representative single Chinese herbs and seven classic TCM formulae that could improve lipid profiles so as to help understand and compare their underlying mechanisms. Most of single herbs and formulae demonstrated the improvement of hyperlipidemic conditions with multiple and diverse mechanisms of actions similar to conventional Western drugs in spite of their mild side effects. Due to increasing popularity of TCM, more extensive, well-designed preclinical and clinical trials on the potential synergistic and adverse side effects of herb-drug interactions as well as their mechanisms are warranted. Hyperlipidemic patients should be warned about the potential risks of herb-drug interactions, particularly those taking anticoagulants and antiplatelet drugs.

Ginsenoside Rb3 attenuates oxidative stress and preserves endothelial function in renal arteries from hypertensive rats

Panax ginseng is commonly used to treat cardiovascular conditions in Oriental countries. This study investigated the mechanisms underlying the vascular benefits of ginsenoside Rb3 (Rb3) in hypertension.

Effects of Panax notoginseng flower extract on the TGF-β/Smad signal transduction pathway in heart remodeling of human chymase transgenic mice

Panax notoginseng is a common Chinese herb extensively used in Chinese medical practice for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. The present study aimed to evaluate the effects of Panax notoginseng flower extract (PNFE) on the TGF-β/Smad signal transduction pathway in heart remodeling of human chymase transgenic mice. After treatment with PNFE and soybean trypsin inhibitor (SBTI), the left ventricular mass indexes (LVMIs) of transgenic and normal C57 BL/6 mice were analyzed. The mRNA expression of chymase, TGF-β1, Smad2, Smad3 and Smad7 in myocardium was assessed with RT-PCR, while the protein expression in myocardium was detected by western blotting. The results showed that PNFE and SBTI treatment led to a significant reduction in LVMIs in transgenic mice, indicating a beneficial effect on left ventricular remodeling. Mechanistically, PNFE and SBTI treatment attenuated the mRNA expression of chymase, TGF-β1, Smad2 and Smad3, as well as the protein expression in the myocardium tissues of the transgenic mouse model. By contrast, PNFE and SBTI treatment markedly up-regulated the mRNA and protein expression of Smad7. It was concluded that PNFE was able to improve the ventricular hypertrophy state in human chymase transgenic mice through regulation of the expression of mRNA and protein of TGF-β/Smad in ventricular tissues.

Screening in larval zebrafish reveals tissue-specific distribution of fifteen fluorescent compounds

ABSTRACT The zebrafish is a prominent vertebrate model for low-cost in vivo whole organism screening. In our recent screening of the distribution patterns of fluorescent compounds in live zebrafish larvae, fifteen compounds with tissue-specific distributions were identified. Several compounds were observed to accumulate in tissues where they were reported to induce side-effects, and compounds with similar structures tended to be enriched in the same tissues, with minor differences. In particular, we found three novel red fluorescent bone-staining dyes: purpurin, lucidin and 3-hydroxy-morindone; purpurin can effectively label bones in both larval and adult zebrafish, as well as in postnatal mice, without significantly affecting bone mass and density. Moreover, two structurally similar chemotherapeutic compounds, doxorubicin and epirubicin, were observed to have distinct distribution preferences in zebrafish. Epirubicin maintained a relatively higher concentration in the liver, and performed better in inhibiting hepatic hyperplasia caused by the over-expression of krasG12V. In total, our study suggests that the transparent zebrafish larvae serve as valuable tools for identifying tissue-specific distributions of fluorescent compounds. Summary: Fifteen fluorescent compounds have tissue-specific distributions in zebrafish larvae: three anthraquinones were identified as bone dyes in live vertebrates, and two chemotherapeutic drugs were shown to have distinct preferences for the liver.

Saponin Accumulation in Flower Buds of Panax notoginseng

Abstract Objective Panax notoginseng is an important Chinese medicinal plant. Saponin accumulation is higher in the flower buds than in the other parts of P. notoginseng . However, the flower bud compositions have not yet been quantified. The aim of this study is to investigate the formation and accumulation of saponins in the flower buds of P. notoginseng from different populations and at different growth years. Methods Fourteen types of P. notoginseng with different growing durations and from different areas of Wenshan County, Yunnan Province were collected. We separated P. notoginseng individually into the flower buds, stems, leaves, and roots at the places where it has the highest saponin content. An efficient high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method was developed for simultaneously quantifying two active saponins, ginsenoside Rb 1 and ginsenoside Rb 3 , in the flower buds of P. notoginseng . The total saponin content was determined by using a quantitative vanillin-sulfuric acid colorimetric method. HPLC method was used to establish the fingerprints of 13 saponins and then quantify the composition in the whole plant of P. notoginseng . Results The saponin contents of different parts differ significantly, and the total saponin content and those of Rb 1 and Rb 3 do not entirely correlated. The flower buds of P. notoginseng contain 27.79% of total saponins, which is the highest saponin content in the whole plant. Fingerprint result showed that different saponins were appeared in different parts of the plant, i.e. flower buds, stems, leaves, and roots. Conclusion The saponin contents from the flower buds of P. notoginseng vary depending on the growth area and duration. The fingerprints show that the saponin contents and compositions vary depending on the part of P. notoginseng . These results are useful for the pharmacological evaluation and quality control of P. notoginseng .

Compatibility Study of Danggui Buxue Tang on Chemical Ingredients, Angiogenesis and Endothelial Function

Danggui Buxue Tang (DBT) is a classic Chinese herbal formula which consists of Astragali mongholici Radix and Angelica sinensis Radix (ASR). For chemical ingredients, HPLC were performed. Results showed compared with single herbs, DBT decoction could promote the dissolution of ingredients such as ferulic acid and calycosin. Furthermore, when ratio of AMR to ASR was 5 to 1, synthetic score was the best. For angiogenesis, normal and injured zebrafish model were applied. Results showed DBT and its ingredients had angiogenesis effects on Sub Intestinal vessels (SIVs) of normal zebrafish. Meanwhile, DBT and its single herbs could also recover Inter-Segmental Vessels (ISVs) injured by VRI. Angiogenesis effects of DBT on ISVs were better than single herbs. AMR extract, Total Saponins of AMR, Polysaccharide of ASR, ferulic acid, calycosin and calycosin-7-glucoside could be effective ingredients for angiogenisis. For endothelium functions, Lysoph-Osphatidyl choline was used to damage rat endothelial function of thoracic aorta. The results showed DBT and its single herbs could improve endothelial dysfunctions in dose-dependence. Both ferulic acid and calycosin-7-glucoside could also improve endothelium dysfunction in dose dependence. Therefore, compatibility of DBT was reasonable. Compared with single herbs, DBT could promote dissolution of effective ingredients, enhance angiogenesis and relieve endothelial dysfunction.

Study on the HPLC Chromatograms and Pro-Angiogenesis Activities of the Flowers of Panax notoginseng

Panax notoginseng is often used to promote blood circulation for the intervention of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), while the flower of Panax notoginseng (PF) is used in folk remedies for the amelioration of hypertension in the Yunnan Province of China as a tea and is increasing in popularity throughout Asia. Previous studies on the Panax notoginseng were mainly focused on the root such that limited research on the flower cannot feed the need of increasing consumption and the products quality and pharmacological profile remains to be well characterized. In this study, chromatographic fingerprints and angiogenesis activities of different batches of commercial PF decoction were determined and then multiple regression analysis was performed to analyze their spectrum-effect relationships. The results of chromatographic fingerprints and zebrafish angiogenesis bioassay indicated the significant heterogeneities in the twelve batches of commercial PF products. Multiple regression analysis on the spectrums-activities relationship provided clues on the bioactive chemical markers of PF that may be developed as quality standards of PF.

Dalbergia odorifera extract promotes angiogenesis through upregulation of VEGFRs and PI3K/MAPK signaling pathways

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE The heart wood of Dalbergia odorifera is a Chinese herbal medicine commonly used for the treatment of various ischemic diseases in Chinese medicine practice. AIM OF THE STUDY In this study, therapeutic angiogenesis effects of the Dalbergia odorifera extract (DOE) were investigated on transgenic zebrafish in vivo and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) in vitro. MATERIALS AND METHODS The pro-angiogenic effects of DOE on zebrafish were examined by subintestinal vessels (SIVs) sprouting assay and intersegmental vessels (ISVs) injury assay. And the pro-angiogenic effects of DOE on HUVECs were examined by MTT, scratch assay, protein chip and western blot. RESULTS In the in vivo studies, we found that DOE was able to dose-dependently promote angiogenesis in zebrafish SIVs area. In addition, DOE could also restore the injury in zebrafish ISVs area and upregulate the reduced mRNA expression of VEGFRs including kdr, kdrl and flt-1 induced by VEGF receptor kinase inhibitor II (VRI). In the in vitro studies, we observed that DOE promoted the proliferation, migration of HUVECs and also restored the injury induced by VRI. Moreover, protein chip and western blot experiments showed the PI3K/MAPK cell proliferation/migration pathway were activated by DOE. CONCLUSIONS DOE has a therapeutic effects on angiogenesis, and its mechanism may be related to adjusting the VEGFRs mRNA and activation of PI3K/MAPK signaling pathway. These results suggest a strong potential for Dalbergia odorifera to be developed as an angiogenesis-promoting therapeutic.