scholarly journals Effect of BuShen JiangZhi Recipe on Atherosclerosis in ApoE−/- Mice by Regulating the Expression of Anpep via mmu_circRNA_22187

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Li Yan ◽  
Qingling Jia ◽  
Hui Cao ◽  
Pingyi He ◽  
Sanli Xing ◽  
...  

The BuShen JiangZhi (BSJZ) recipe is a Chinese medicine compound with the effect of tonifying the kidney, replenishing essence, and lowering blood fat to unblock vessels. The purpose of this study is to explore whether the mechanism of BSJZ for effective intervention in the treatment of AS is related to mmu_circRNA_22187 and aminopeptidase N (Anpep). ApoE-/- mice were induced by a high-fat diet to replicate the AS model. 24 ApoE-/- mice were randomly divided into model group (group M), BSJZ group (group BS), and 12 C57BL/6 mice of the same genetic background and same weeks of age as the normal control group (group C). Mice in the BS group were given an aqueous solution of BSJZ by gavage, while mice in groups C and M were given the same volume of distilled water. HE and Oil Red O staining were used to detect the pathomorphology and lipid accumulation of mouse aortic sinus. Arraystar version 2.0 mouse circRNA chip was used to scan with Agilent Scanner G2505C, and the differential circRNAs expression profile of mice aorta was obtained. Scatter plot, volcano plot, and cluster map, respectively, visualized the differentially expressed circRNAs, as well as the types of circRNAs and the chromosomes’ distribution, screened and compared the differentially expressed circRNAs intersection between groups by Venny software, and then combined ceRNA bioinformatics analysis to construct a ceRNA network. The results showed that BSJZ could significantly reduce the area of AS plaque and lipid accumulation in the aortic sinus of ApoE-/- mice induced by a high-fat diet. The bioinformatics analysis showed that mmu_circRNA_22187 may be a key circRNA of BSJZ intervention in the treatment of AS. Compared with group C, the expressions of Anpep mRNA and protein were upregulated in group M. After the intervention of BSJZ, the expressions of Anpep mRNA and protein were downregulated. Therefore, BSJZ could effectively treat AS which might be related to the regulation of mmu_circRNA_22187 and Anpep.

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiaxin Zhang ◽  
Haixia Du ◽  
Menglan Shen ◽  
Zhengqi Zhao ◽  
Xinmiao Ye

Kangtaizhi granule (KTZG) is a Chinese medicine compound prescription and has been proven to be effective in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) treatment clinically. However, the underlying mechanisms under this efficacy are rather elusive. In the present study, network pharmacology and HPLC analysis were performed to identify the chemicals of KTZG and related target pathways for NAFLD treatment. Network pharmacology screened 42 compounds and 79 related targets related to NAFLD; HPLC analysis also confirmed six compounds in KTZG. Further experiments were also performed. In an in vivo study, SD rats were randomly divided into five groups: control (rats fed with normal diet), NAFLD (rats fed with high-fat diet), and KTZG 0.75, 1.5, and 3 groups (NAFLD rats treated with KTZG 0.75, 1.5, and 3 g/kg, respectively). Serum lipids were biochemically determined; hepatic steatosis and lipid accumulation were evaluated with HE and oil red O staining. In an in vitro study, HepG2 cells were incubated with 1 mM FFA to induce lipid accumulation with or without KTZG treatment. MTT assay, intracellular TG level, oil red O staining, and glucose uptake in cells were detected. Western blotting and immunohistochemical and immunofluorescence staining were also performed to determine the expression of lipid-related genes PPAR-γ, SREBP-1, p-AKT, FAS, and SIRT1 and genes in the AMPK/mTOR signaling pathway. In high-fat diet-fed rats, KTZG treatment significantly improved liver organ index and serum lipid contents of TG, TC, LDL-C, HDL-C, ALT, and AST significantly; HE and oil red O staining also showed that KTZG alleviated hepatic steatosis and liver lipid accumulation. In FFA-treated HepG2 cells, KTZG treatment decreased the intracellular TG levels, lipid accumulation, and attenuated glucose uptake significantly. More importantly, lipid-related genes PPAR-γ, SREBP-1, p-AKT, FAS, and SIRT1 expressions were ameliorated with KTZG treatment in high-fat diet-fed rats and FFA-induced HepG2 cells. The p-AMPK and p-mTOR expressions in the AMPK/mTOR signaling pathway were also modified with KTZG treatment in high-fat diet-fed rats and HepG2 cells. These results indicated that KTZG effectively ameliorated lipid accumulation and hepatic steatosis to prevent NAFLD in high-fat diet-fed rats and FFA-induced HepG2 cells, and this effect was associated with the AMPK/mTOR signaling pathway. Our results suggested that KTZG might be a potential therapeutic agent for the prevention of NAFLD.


2004 ◽  
Vol 48 (10) ◽  
pp. 3655-3661 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liisa Törmäkangas ◽  
Hannu Alakärppä ◽  
Denise Bem David ◽  
Maija Leinonen ◽  
Pekka Saikku

ABSTRACT Chronic Chlamydia pneumoniae infections have been associated with atherosclerosis, but clear knowledge about how these infections should be treated is lacking. We studied the effect of a new ketolide antibiotic, telithromycin, on chronic C. pneumoniae lung infection. Female C57BL/6J mice on a 0.2% cholesterol diet were inoculated intranasally with C. pneumoniae either two or three times every fourth week. Telithromycin was given to the mice subcutaneously at 75 mg/kg of body weight once daily for 5 or 10 days, starting at 3 days after the last inoculation. Samples were taken at 4 and 12 weeks after the last inoculation. The presence of C. pneumoniae DNA in lung tissue was demonstrated by PCR and the detection of lipid accumulation in the aortic sinus by Oil-Red-O staining. C. pneumoniae DNA positivity and inflammatory reactions in the lung tissue of the mice inoculated twice were significantly affected by treatment after both inoculations or only after the second inoculation at 12 weeks. Intimal lipid accumulation in the aortic sinus was also slightly but significantly less abundant in the mice treated after both inoculations compared to the levels in those treated only after the second inoculation for 10 days (geometric means, 823 and 4,324 μm2, respectively; P = 0.033). No differences between the infected, untreated controls and the group inoculated three times and treated for 5 days were seen. We conclude that telithromycin is effective in preventing the development of chronic C. pneumoniae infection and intimal lipid accumulation in C56BL/6J mice when the treatment is given after each inoculation.


Nutrients ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 1628 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qing-Qing Min ◽  
Li-Qiang Qin ◽  
Zhen-Zhen Sun ◽  
Wen-Ting Zuo ◽  
Lin Zhao ◽  
...  

Metformin (Met) and lactoferrin (Lf) both exhibit beneficial effects on body weight management and lipid accumulation. However, the synergistical action of Met and Lf remains unclear. In this study, 64 mice were divided into five groups, namely, the control group, high-fat diet (HFD group), HFD with Met (Met group), Lf (Lf group), and a combination of Met and Lf (Met + Lf group). Met (200 mg/kg body weight) and Lf (2 g/100 mL) were administrated in drinking water. The experiment lasted for 12 weeks. Body weight, serum, and hepatic lipids were determined. Histology of the liver and perirenal fat was observed. Protein expression related to hepatic lipid metabolism was also measured. HFD significantly increased body weight, visceral fat weight, and lipid profiles, which lead to obesity and dyslipidemia in mice. Compared with the HFD group, the treatments significantly decreased body weight and Lee’s index (body mass index of mice) with the lowest values in the Met + Lf group. The treatments also decreased the weight of visceral fat, and improved circulating lipid profile and the ability for regulating glucose intake. The adipocyte size and serum TC level were significantly lower in the Met + Lf group as compared with those in the Met or Lf group. The treatments alleviated hepatic lipid accumulation, especially in the Met + Lf group. For protein expression, the p-AMPK/AMPK ratio, a key kinase-regulating cellular energy homeostasis, was significantly higher in the Met + Lf group than the ratio in the HFD group. Similarly, the treatments significantly downregulated the protein expression of lipogenic enzymes (FAS, ACC, and SREBP-1) and upregulated the protein expression of lipolytic enzyme (ATGL). The protein expression of HMGCoAR, which is an important rate limiting enzyme in cholesterol biosynthesis, was only significantly lower in the Met + Lf group than in the HFD group. In conclusion, Met and Lf, either alone or in combination, prevented HFD-induced obesity and improved lipid metabolism.


Author(s):  
Jianbo Zhang ◽  
Qiyu Shi ◽  
Yamin Hu ◽  
Xiaohong Li

BACKGROUND: Diabetes mellitus (DM) abolishes the antithrombotic effect of Clopidogrel. Here, we investigated the synergistic effect of Silibinin on Clopidogrel-mediated atherosclerosis treatment in diabetic mice. METHODS: ApoE–/– mice were fed with high-fat diet (HFD) to establish the atherosclerotic model with diabetes. Animals were treated with Clopidogrel, Silibinin, or the combined to evaluate the protective effects on atherosclerosis and diabetes through Oil-red-O staining, qRT-PCR, Western blot, and metabolic measurements. Platelet activation and aggregation ex vivo assays were performed to detect the anti-thrombotic effect of different administrations. RESULTS: Silibinin significantly enhanced the inhibitory effect of Clopidogrel on atherosclerosis in DM mice. Co-administration of Silibinin with Clopidogrel remarkedly reduced the aortic lesion, inflammation, and endothelial dysfunction in aorta roots, and diabetic symptoms were significantly improved by the Silibinin-Clopidogrel treatment in HFD-fed ApoE–/– mice. Interestingly, the anti-thrombotic effect of Clopidogrel was further augmented by the Silibinin treatment in atherosclerotic mice. CONCLUSION: In atherosclerotic mouse model, Silibinin significantly improves the effect of Clopidogrel on atherosclerosis.


2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 1136-1148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guoyou Chen ◽  
Guozhu Ye ◽  
Xinbo Zhang ◽  
Xiaoxiao Liu ◽  
Yingfeng Tu ◽  
...  

Background/Aims: Abdominal obesity is recognized as the main reason of metabolic syndrome, which is closely related to disordered skeletal and/or abdominal muscle metabolic functions. Metabolomics is a comprehensive assessment system in biological metabolites. The aim of our present study is to investigate the diet-induced metabolic risk factors by metabolic in the abdominal muscles and clarify the relationship between atheroprotective effects of Resveratrol (Rev) and abdominal muscles metabolic components during the development of atherosclerosis. Methods: The mice were randomly divided into three groups including normal group (N), high fat diet (HFD or H) group and high fat diet with Rev treated group (HR). GC-MS combined with pattern recognition approaches were employed to obtain comprehensive metabolic signatures and related differential metabolites after 24 week HFD feeding. Oil Red O staining and Electron microscopy technology (EMT) were employed to detect the size of fatty plaques and intracellular lipid accumulation, respectively. Results: The result indicated that 22 types of metabolites in the abdominal muscles were obviously altered by HFD feeding group. Moreover, Rev treatment obviously increased 11 different kinds of metabolites, most of which were involved in the carbohydrate, amino acid and lipid metabolisms. Importantly, these elevated different metabolites were involved in pathways mainly related to galactose metabolism, alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism, glyoxylate and dicarboxylate metabolism in abdominal muscles. Oil Red O staining and Electron microscopy showed less lipid accumulation in the lesions and decreased intracellular lipid deposition in the foam cells in HR group. Conclusions: We concluded that Rev produced a beneficial effect partially by modulating multiple metabolism pathways and metabolites in the abdominal muscles, which may provide a new protective mechanism of Rev on the progression of atherosclerosis. These notably changed metabolites might be potential biomarkers or therapeutic targets during development of metabolic syndrome and atherosclerosis.


2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 1328-1338
Author(s):  
Yufeng Xing ◽  
Chuantao Zhang ◽  
Fenfen Zhai ◽  
Tianran Zhou ◽  
Xiang Cui ◽  
...  

AbstractCells with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) were studied to determine the mechanism of liver deficiency via the AdipoR2-PPARa pathway. NAFLD cells were randomly divided into a normal control group, blank control group, model group, low dose group, medium dose group, and high dose group. The NAFLD models were established by incubating the cells with linoleic acid (LA) and palmitic acid (PA) (2:1) for 24 h. The test groups were incubated with different doses of Shugan Xiaozhi Fang extract. The pathological changes in cells that accumulated lipids were detected by Oil Red O staining. Malondialdehyde (MDA) and triglyceride (TG) levels were measured. The apoptosis of cells was evaluated by flow cytometry. The levels of AdipoR2, PPARa, CD36, acyl-CoA mRNA, and protein were confirmed by RT- PCR and Western blot. The results of the Oil Red O staining demonstrated that the NAFLD cell model was successfully established. Compared with the model group, the levels of TG and MDA in the groups that received low, medium, and high doses of Shugan Xiaozhi were significantly lower (P<0.01), and a dose effect was evident. In addition, the expression of AdipoR2, PPARa, CD36, acyl-CoA protein, and mRNA in the Shugan Xiaozhi-treated groups was upregulated. Furthermore, the levels of AdipoR2, PPAR, CD36, acyl-CoA protein, and mRNA in all drug treatment groups that were extracted from L-O2 normal human hepatocytes were significantly upregulated (P<0.01). Moreover, the factor pattern of HepG2 human liver carcinoma cells was similar to that of L-O2. The levels of AdipoR, CD36, acyl-CoA, and AdipoR mRNA in the HepG2 low group were increased (P<0.05). AdipoR, PPAR, CD36, and acyl-CoA protein levels and AdipoR mRNA expression were significantly increased in the intermediate dose group and high dose group (P<0.01). Shugan Xiaozhi Fang attenuates hepatic lipid deposition in NAFLD induced by incubating with LA and PA for 24 h, which is associated with the activation of the AdipoR2-PPARα pathway.


Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 2501
Author(s):  
Maihemuti Mijiti ◽  
Ryosuke Mori ◽  
Bingyu Huang ◽  
Kenichiro Tsukamoto ◽  
Keisuke Kiriyama ◽  
...  

Dietary protamine can ameliorate hyperlipidemia; however, the protamine-derived active peptide and its hypolipidemic mechanism of action are unclear. Here, we report the discovery of a novel anti-obesity and hypocholesterolemic peptide, RPR (Arg-Pro-Arg), derived from protamine in mice fed a high-fat diet for 50 days. Serum cholesterol levels were significantly lower in the protamine and RPR groups than in the control group. White adipose tissue weight was significantly decreased in the protamine and RPR groups. The fecal excretion of cholesterol and bile acid was significantly higher in the protamine and RPR groups than in the control group. We also observed a significant decrease in the expression of hepatic SCD1, SREBP1, and adipocyte FAS mRNA, and significantly increased expression of hepatic PPARα and adipocyte PPARγ1 mRNA in the protamine group. These findings demonstrate that the anti-obesity effects of protamine are linked to the upregulation of adipocyte PPARγ1 and hepatic PPARα and the downregulation of hepatic SCD1 via SREBP1 and adipocyte FAS. RPR derived from protamine has a crucial role in the anti-obesity action of protamine by evaluating the effective dose of adipose tissue weight loss.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yilin Liu ◽  
Chunyan Xie ◽  
Zhenya Zhai ◽  
Ze-yuan Deng ◽  
Hugo R. De Jonge ◽  
...  

This study aimed to investigate the effect of uridine on obesity, fat accumulation in liver, and gut microbiota composition in high-fat diet-fed mice.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Takuya Kawamura ◽  
Hiroaki Tanaka ◽  
Ryota Tachibana ◽  
Kento Yoshikawa ◽  
Shintaro Maki ◽  
...  

AbstractWe aimed to investigate the effects of maternal tadalafil therapy on fetal programming of metabolic function in a mouse model of fetal growth restriction (FGR). Pregnant C57BL6 mice were divided into the control, L-NG-nitroarginine methyl ester (L-NAME), and tadalafil + L-NAME groups. Six weeks after birth, the male pups in each group were given a high-fat diet. A glucose tolerance test (GTT) was performed at 15 weeks and the pups were euthanized at 20 weeks. We then assessed the histological changes in the liver and adipose tissue, and the adipocytokine production. We found that the non-alcoholic fatty liver disease activity score was higher in the L-NAME group than in the control group (p < 0.05). Although the M1 macrophage numbers were significantly higher in the L-NAME/high-fat diet group (p < 0.001), maternal tadalafil administration prevented this change. Moreover, the epididymal adipocyte size was significantly larger in the L-NAME group than in the control group. This was also improved by maternal tadalafil administration (p < 0.05). Further, we found that resistin levels were significantly lower in the L-NAME group compared to the control group (p < 0.05). The combination of exposure to maternal L-NAME and a high-fat diet induced glucose impairment and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. However, maternal tadalafil administration prevented these complications. Thus, deleterious fetal programming caused by FGR might be modified by in utero intervention with tadalafil.


Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 302
Author(s):  
Ahtesham Hussain ◽  
Jin Sook Cho ◽  
Jong-Seok Kim ◽  
Young Ik Lee

Background: Currently, obesity is a global health challenge due to its increasing prevalence and associated health risk. It is associated with various metabolic diseases, including diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, stroke, certain forms of cancer, and non-alcoholic liver diseases (NAFLD). Objective: The aim of this study to evaluate the effects of polyphenol enriched herbal complex (Rubus crataegifolius/ellagic acid, Crataegus pinnatifida Bunge/vitexin, chlorogenic acid, Cinnamomum cassiaa/cinnamic acid) on obesity and obesity induced NAFLD in the high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obese mouse model. Methods: Obesity was induced in male C57BL/6 mice using HFD. After 8 weeks, the mice were treated with HFD+ plants extract for 8 weeks. Body weight, food intake weekly, and blood sugar level were measured. After sacrifice, changes in the treated group’s liver weight, fat weight, serum biochemical parameters, hormone levels, and enzyme levels were measured. For histological analysis, tissues were stained with hematoxylin-eosin (H&E) and Oil Red-O. Results: Our results showed that the herbal complex ameliorated body weight and liver weight gain, and decreased total body fat in HFD-fed animals. Post prandial blood glucose (PBG) and fasting blood glucose (FBG) were lower in the herbal complex-treated group than in the HFD control group. Additionally, herbal formulation treatment significantly increased HDL levels in serum and decreased TC, TG, AST, ALT, deposition of fat droplets in the liver, and intima media thickness (IMT) in the aorta. Herbal complex increased serum adiponectin and decreased serum leptin. Herbal complex also increased carnitine palmityl transferase (CPT) activity and significantly decreased enzyme activity of beta-hydroxy beta methyl glutamyl-CoA (HMG-CoA) reductase, and fatty acid synthase (FAS). Conclusions: The results of this study demonstrated that the herbal complex is an effective herbal formulation in the attenuation of obesity and obesity-induced metabolic dysfunction including NAFLD in HFD-induced mouse model.


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