Ligustrazine exerts neuroprotective effects via circ_0008146/miR-709/Cx3cr1 axis to inhibit cell apoptosis and inflammation after cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury

Naoxintong capsule attenuates heart damage after ischemic stroke via Nuclear factor-κB / Pyrin domain-containing protein 3 / Caspase-1 signaling

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Ischemic stroke (IS) is a major cause of mortality. Inflammation exerts an essential part of brain-heart communication after IS. Naoxintong capsule (NXT), derived from the classical Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) formulation Bu-Yang-Huan-Wu-Tang, are extensively employed in China to manage IS, myocardial infarction (MI), and atherosclerosis. Previous clinical studies have demonstrated the protective effects of NXT in anti-atherosclerosis, cerebral infarction, angina, and acute coronary syndrome. However, the potential therapeutic mechanism of NXT for IS remains unknown.

AIM OF THE STUDY

This study aims to investigate a potential mechanism for enhancing brain-heart interaction following an ischemic stroke.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

C57BL/6J mice underwent permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) for durations of 6, 12, and 24 h. The effects of NXT on the brain were observed via TTC, Nissl and TUNEL staining, immunofluorescence staining, and Zea-Longa scores. Simultaneously, the effects of NXT on the heart were evaluated via H&E staining and echocardiography. Inflammatory factors in heart and serum were determined via ELISA or luminex liquid suspension chip detection. Network pharmacology predicted the targets and signaling pathways of NXT. The binding affinity between potential targets and active compounds of NXT was assessed through molecular docking. The expression levels of IκBα, IKKβ, NF-κB, NLRP3, and caspase-1 were evaluated via Western blotting.

RESULTS

The Zea-Longa scores, infarct rate, and the rate of apoptosis in the brain at 6, 12, and 24 h of MCAO mice were markedly decreased by NXT. Additionally, they clearly enhanced the NeuN positive rate and prevented microglia from activating at 24 h. NXT significantly reduced the level of myocardial injury biomarkers (Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and Creatine kinase isoenzyme MB (CK-MB) at 24 h, N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-pro BNP) at 6, 12, and 24 h), improved ejection fraction, fractional shortening, stroke volume, and cardiac output at 24 h. The levels of MIP-1α in cardiac tissue and IL-1β in serum were both markedly lowered by NXT. Furthermore, the NF-κB/NLRP3/caspase-1 signaling pathways may be potential mechanisms of NXT. Molecular docking indicated that IKKβ, IκBα, NF-κB, NLRP3, and caspase-1 may serve as potential targets for the action of representative active ingredients in NXT. NXT could reduce the expression levels of IKKβ, NF-κB, NLRP3, and caspase-1 in brain and heart tissues while increasing the expression of IκBα.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study illustrates that NXT efficiently attenuated inflammation in the brain and heart by blocking the NF-κB/NLRP3/caspase-1 signaling pathway. These findings provide appealing insights into the multi-organ perspective on human health via identifying shared inflammatory impacts and heart-brain linkages.

Exploring the mechanism of Taohong Siwu Decoction in treating ischemic stroke injury via the circDnajc1/miR-27a-5p/C1qc signaling axis

BACKGROUND

Ischemic stroke (IS) is the most prevalent type of cerebrovascular disease. Taohong Siwu Decoction (THSWD) has been demonstrated to have neuroprotective benefits during Cerebral Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury (CIRI). Whether THSWD mitigates CIRI by modulating the circDnajc1/miR-27a-5p/C1qc signaling axis is not known.

OBJECTIVE

Examine how THSWD provides neuroprotective benefits in reducing the damage wrought by IS.

METHODS

We employed middle cerebral artery occlusion/reperfusion (MCAO/R) rat model and oxygen glucose deprivation/re-oxygenation (OGD/R) in vitro model. Reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), Western blot (WB), and immunofluorescence analyses (IF) were utilized to detect microglial activation markers TMEM119, CD11b, and Iba1, inflammatory mediators CCL2, CCL6, IL1, IL6, IL10, and TNF-α, as well as circDnajc1, miR-27a-5p, C1qc, C3, and C5aR.

CONCLUSION

Our data suggest that THSWD can mitigate inflammatory response, inhibit microglial activation and neuron apoptosis, and exert neuroprotective effects by regulating the circDnajc1/miR-27a-5p/C1qc signaling axis.

Circ_0008146 Exacerbates Ferroptosis via Regulating the miR-342-5p/ACSL4 Axis After Cerebral Ischemic/Reperfusion

Purpose

Acute ischemic stroke (AIS) has seriously threatened people's health worldwide and there is an urge need for early diagnosis and effective treatment of AIS. This research intended to clarify the regulatory role of circ_0008146/miR-342-5p/ACSL4 axis in AIS.

Methods

High-throughput small RNA sequencing analysis was adapted to identify differentially expressed miRNAs between the AIS and control group. The circ_0008146, miR-342-5p, and ACSL4 levels were detected by qRT-PCR. Middle cerebral artery occlusion/reperfusion (MCAO/R) models were constructed in C57BL/6J mice. Assay kits were used to determine Fe2+ levels and a battery of oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation indicators, including ROS, MDA, LPO, SOD and GSH/GSSG ratio. The protein levels of ACSL4 were measured by Western blot. The behavioral function was assessed using neurobehavioral tests. TTC staining was employed to visualize infarction size. Nissl staining was adapted to detect histopathological changes. Receiver operating characteristic curve and correlation analysis were applied to investigate the clinical value and association of miR-342-5p and ACSL4.

Results

A total of 44 AIS patients and 49 healthy controls were enrolled in our study. The small RNA sequencing unveiled a significant decrease in miR-342-5p levels in AIS patients. MiR-342-5p inhibited oxidative stress and RSL3-induced ferroptosis after cerebral ischemic/reperfusion injury in vivo by targeting ferroptosis-related gene ACSL4. Circ_0008146 acted as a sponge of miR-342-5p, and overexpression of circ_0008146 increased neurological deficits and brain injury in mice. Circ_0008146 contributed to ferroptosis in cerebral infarction via sponging miR-342-5p to regulate ACSL4. Plasma miR-342-5p and ACSL4 demonstrated significant correlation and good diagnostic value for AIS patients.

Conclusion

This study provides the first in vivo evidence to show that circ_0008146 exacerbates neuronal ferroptosis after AIS via the miR-342-5p/ACSL4 axis. Furthermore, miR-342-5p/ACSL4 axis holds promise as a viable therapeutic target and practical biomarkers for AIS patients.

Bibliometric analysis of research progress on tetramethylpyrazine and its effects on ischemia-reperfusion injury

In recent decades, natural products have attracted worldwide attention and become one of the most important resources for pharmacological industries and medical sciences to identify novel drug candidates for disease treatment. Tetramethylpyrazine (TMP) is an alkaloid extracted from Ligusticum chuanxiong Hort., which has shown great therapeutic potential in cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, liver and renal injury, as well as cancer. In this review, we analyzed 1270 papers published on the Web of Science Core Collection from 2002 to 2022 and found that TMP exerted significant protective effects on ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury that is the cause of pathological damages in a variety of conditions, such as ischemic stroke, myocardial infarction, acute kidney injury, and liver transplantation. TMP is limited in clinical applications to some extent due to its rapid metabolism, a short biological half-life and poor bioavailability. Obviously, the structural modification, administration methods and dosage forms of TMP need to be further investigated in order to improve its bioavailability. This review summarizes the clinical applications of TMP, elucidates its potential mechanisms in protecting I/R injury, provides strategies to improve bioavailability, which presents a comprehensive understanding of the important compound. Hopefully, the information and knowledge from this review can help researchers and physicians to better improve the applications of TMP in the clinic.

Circular RNAs: Regulators of endothelial cell dysfunction in atherosclerosis

Endothelial cell (EC) dysfunction is associated with atherosclerosis. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are covalently closed loops formed by back-splicing, are highly expressed in a tissue-specific or cell-specific manner, and regulate ECs mainly through miRNAs (mircoRNAs) or protein sponges. This review describes the regulatory mechanisms and physiological functions of circRNAs, as well as the differential expression of circRNAs in aberrant ECs. This review focuses on their roles in inflammation, proliferation, migration, angiogenesis, apoptosis, senescence, and autophagy in ECs from the perspective of signaling pathways, such as nuclear factor κB (NF-κB), nucleotide-binding domain, leucine-rich-repeat family, pyrin-domain-containing 3 (NLRP3)/caspase-1, Janus kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK/STAT), and phosphoinositide-3 kinase/protein kinase B (PI3K/Akt). Finally, we address the issues and recent advances in circRNAs as well as circRNA-mediated regulation of ECs to improve our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the progression of atherosclerosis and provide a reference for studies on circRNAs that regulate EC dysfunction and thus affect atherosclerosis.

Role of traditional Chinese medicine monomers in cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury:a review of the mechanism

Ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury is a pathological process wherein reperfusion of an ischemic organ or tissue exacerbates the injury, posing a significant health threat and economic burden to patients and their families. I/R triggers a multitude of physiological and pathological events, such as inflammatory responses, oxidative stress, neuronal cell death, and disruption of the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Hence, the development of effective therapeutic strategies targeting the pathological processes resulting from I/R is crucial for the rehabilitation and long-term enhancement of the quality of life in patients with cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury (CIRI). Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) monomers refer to bioactive compounds extracted from Chinese herbal medicine, possessing anti-inflammatory and antioxidative effects, and the ability to modulate programmed cell death (PCD). TCM monomers have emerged as promising candidates for the treatment of CIRI and its subsequent complications. Preclinical studies have demonstrated that TCM monomers can enhance the recovery of neurological function following CIRI by mitigating oxidative stress, suppressing inflammatory responses, reducing neuronal cell death and functional impairment, as well as minimizing cerebral infarction volume. The neuroprotective effects of TCM monomers on CIRI have been extensively investigated, and a comprehensive understanding of their mechanisms can pave the way for novel approaches to I/R treatment. This review aims to update and summarize evidence of the protective effects of TCMs in CIRI, with a focus on their role in modulating oxidative stress, inflammation, PCD, glutamate excitotoxicity, Ca2+ overload, as well as promoting blood-brain barrier repairment and angiogenesis. The main objective is to underscore the significant contribution of TCM monomers in alleviating CIRI.

Anti-apoptosis effect of traditional Chinese medicine in the treatment of cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury

Cerebral ischemia, one of the leading causes of neurological dysfunction of brain cells, muscle dysfunction, and death, brings great harm and challenges to individual health, families, and society. Blood flow disruption causes decreased glucose and oxygen, insufficient to maintain normal brain tissue metabolism, resulting in intracellular calcium overload, oxidative stress, neurotoxicity of excitatory amino acids, and inflammation, ultimately leading to neuronal cell necrosis, apoptosis, or neurological abnormalities. This paper summarizes the specific mechanism of cell injury that apoptosis triggered by reperfusion after cerebral ischemia, the related proteins involved in apoptosis, and the experimental progress of herbal medicine treatment through searching, analyzing, and summarizing the PubMed and Web Of Science databases, which includes active ingredients of herbal medicine, prescriptions, Chinese patent medicines, and herbal extracts, providing a new target or new strategy for drug treatment, and providing a reference for future experimental directions and using them to develop suitable small molecule drugs for clinical application. With the research of anti-apoptosis as the core, it is important to find highly effective, low toxicity, safe and cheap compounds from natural plants and animals with abundant resources to prevent and treat Cerebral ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury (CIR) and solve human suffering. In addition, understanding and summarizing the apoptotic mechanism of cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury, the microscopic mechanism of CIR treatment, and the cellular pathways involved will help to develop new drugs.