The influence of compatibility of processed radix Aconiti Kusnezoffii on the pharmacokinetic of four components in Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch

Formation of a traditional Chinese medicine self-assembly nanostrategy and its application in cancer: a promising treatment

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been used for centuries to prevent and treat a variety of illnesses, and its popularity is increasing worldwide. However, the clinical applications of natural active components in TCM are hindered by the poor solubility and low bioavailability of these compounds. To address these issues, Chinese medicine self-assembly nanostrategy (CSAN) is being developed. Many active components of TCM possess self-assembly properties, allowing them to form nanoparticles (NPs) through various noncovalent forces. Self-assembled NPs (SANs) are also present in TCM decoctions, and they are closely linked to the therapeutic effects of these remedies. SAN is gaining popularity in the nano research field due to its simplicity, eco-friendliness, and enhanced biodegradability and biocompatibility compared to traditional nano preparation methods. The self-assembly of active ingredients from TCM that exhibit antitumour effects or are combined with other antitumour drugs has generated considerable interest in the field of cancer therapeutics. This paper provides a review of the principles and forms of CSAN, as well as an overview of recent reports on TCM that can be used for self-assembly. Additionally, the application of CSAN in various cancer diseases is summarized, and finally, a concluding summary and thoughts are proposed. We strongly believe that CSAN has the potential to offer fresh strategies and perspectives for the modernization of TCM.

Chemical analysis of the Chinese herbal medicine licorice (Gan-Cao): An update review

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Licorice, called Gan-Cao in China, is one of the most popular traditional herbal medicines. It is derived from the dried roots and rhizomes of Glycyrrhiza uralensis, G. glabra, and G. inflata. Licorice is recorded in the pharmacopoeias of China, Japan, US, and Europe.

AIM

This review updates research progress of licorice from the perspectives of chemical analysis, quality evaluation, drug metabolism, and pharmacokinetic studies from 2009 to April 2022.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Both English and Chinese literatures were collected from databases including PubMed, Elsevier, Web of Science, and CNKI (Chinese). Licorice, extraction, structural characterization/identification, quality control, metabolism, and pharmacokinetics were used as keywords.

RESULTS

Newly developed analytical methods, including LC/UV, 2DLC, LC/MS, GC/MS, and mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) for chemical analysis of licorice were summarized.

CONCLUSION

This review provides a comprehensive summary on chemical analysis of licorice.

Comparative study on the main active components of Baoyuan decoction in plasma and urine of normal and heart failure rats

The global morbidity and mortality of heart failure has been increasing in recent years. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) was increasingly used to treat cardiovascular diseases. Baoyuan decoction (BYD) was a famous classical prescription in China. Modern pharmacological studies showed that it had obvious therapeutic effects on cardiovascular diseases, but its pathological pharmacokinetic studies were unclear. In this research, the absorption of 16 bioactive components in plasma and the excretion of 9 representative components in urine of control rats and isoproterenol (ISO)-induced heart failure rats were studied using the large-volume direct-injection LC-MS method established by our research group. The results indicated that flavonoid constituents exhibited quicker absorption and elimination than saponin constituents after oral administration of BYD. The half-life period of some bioactive compounds in the model group was increased, which contributed to the longer therapeutic effect. The cumulative excretion rate of major flavonoid components of BYD decreased significantly in the ISO-induced heart failure rats.

Pharmacokinetics/pharmacometabolomics-pharmacodynamics reveals the synergistic mechanism of a multicomponent herbal formula, Baoyuan decoction against cardiac hypertrophy

Multicomponent herbal formulas (MCHFs) have earned a wide reputation for their definite efficacy in preventing or treating chronic complex diseases. However, holistic elucidation of the causal relationship between the bioavailable ingredients of MCHFs and their multitarget interactions is very challenging. To solve this problem, pharmacokinetics/pharmacometabolomics-pharmacodynamics (PK/PM-PD) combined with a multivariate biological correlation-network strategy was developed and applied to a classic MCHF, Baoyuan decoction (BYD), to clarify its active components and synergistic mechanism against cardiac hypertrophy (CH). First, multiple plasma metabolic biomarkers for β-adrenergic agonist-induced CH rats were identified by using untargeted metabolomic profiling, and then, these CH-associated endogenous metabolites and the absorbed BYD-compounds in plasma at different treatment stages after oral administration of BYD were analyzed by using targeted PK and PM. Second, the dynamic relationship of BYD-related compounds and CH-associated endogenous metabolites and signaling pathways was built by using multivariate and bioinformatic correlation analysis. Finally, metabolic-related PD indicators were predicted and further verified by biological tests. The results demonstrated that the bioavailable BYD-compounds, such as saponins and flavonoids, presented differentiated and distinctive metabolic features and showed positive or negative correlations with various CH-altered metabolites and PD-indicators related to gut microbiota metabolism, amino acid metabolism, lipid metabolism, energy homeostasis, and oxidative stress at different treatment stages. This study provides a novel strategy for investigating the dynamic interaction between BYD and the biosystem, providing unique insight for disclosing the active components and synergistic mechanisms of BYD against CH, which also supplies a reference for other MCHF related research.

Study on the Plasma Protein Binding Rate and Compatibility Regularity of the Constituents Migrating to Blood of Simiao Yong'an Decoction

OBJECTIVE

To study the compatibility regularity of Simiao Yong'an decoction by determining the plasma protein binding rate with the constituents in Simiao Yong'an decoction and to preliminarily clarify the effects of the compatibility on the plasma protein binding rate of different components.

METHODS

Based on the equilibrium dialysis method, high-performance liquid chromatography was used to determine the contents of six constituents, which were divided into a single group and combination groups, in Simiao Yong'an decoction in the internal and external dialysis solutions. The obtained plasma protein binding rate through calculations was an index to evaluate the binding of the above components to plasma protein in different conditions.

RESULTS

Harpagide, harpagoside, sweroside and loganin showed low plasma protein binding rates, ferulic acid exhibited a moderate plasma protein binding rate, and glycyrrhizic acid showed a high plasma protein binding rate. The compatibility study showed that glycyrrhizic acid promoted the binding of ferulic acid to plasma protein. Glycyrrhizic acid and ferulic acid were the key compounds to promote the binding of harpagide to plasma protein. Glycyrrhizic acid, harpagide, harpagoside and loganin had a significant inhibitory effects on the binding of sweroside to plasma protein. The plasma protein binding capacities of harpagoside and loganin were reduced by the other five constituents. Glycyrrhizic acid had the strongest plasma protein binding effect, and the binding effect was not affected by other components.

CONCLUSION

This study explores the effects of compound compatibility on effective components from the perspective of plasma protein binding by high-performance liquid chromatography combined with the equilibrium dialysis method, and lays a foundation for clarifying the compatibility rule of Simiao Yong'an decoction and also provides a new idea for the study of the compatibility of traditional Chinese medicine formulas.

Optimization of the traditional processing method for precision detoxification of CaoWu through biomimetic linking kinetics and human toxicokinetics of aconitine as toxic target marker

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

CaoWu (Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix), well known for its high toxicity leading to fatal ventricular arrhythmias, is detoxified by HeZi (Terminalia Chebula Retz) decoction to prepare ZhiCaoWu (Aconiti Kusnezoffii Radix Preparata) as one part of ingredients of NaRu-3 pill which is used for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Aconitine (AC) is a highly toxic alkaloid of CaoWu and it is used as toxic target marker for the quality control (QC) of ZhiCaoWu. In the traditional processing method, the vanish of astringent or spicy feeling in tongue is the important detoxification indicator of ZhiCaoWu. However, how CaoWu is detoxified to ZhiCaoWu and whether the appropriate content of AC in ZhiCaoWu can be efficiently perceived after the empirical detoxification still lack factual basis.

AIM OF THE STUDY

The present study aimed to optimize the traditional processing method for precision detoxification of CaoWu through biomimetic linking kinetics and human toxicokinetics (TK) of AC, with a view of providing insights into the changes of toxic target marker.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

CaoWu medicinal slices (Mes) and coarse powder (Cop) were processed by blank HeZi decoction through the soaking method for 7 days. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used for the analysis of the samples. The acidity of blank HeZi decoction and HeZi processing decoction was directly determined by pH meter. The non-compartment analysis (NCA) was used to have an intuitive appreciation for AC and pH changes in HeZi processing decoction while the compartment model method was used to build the biomimetic linking kinetics model with the covariate. The inter-species scaling of animal TK parameters was conducted to predict human AC TK profiles. The possible uptake ways of AC (rapid-release or extended-release) for humans were attempted to assess the poisoning risk of AC in NaRu-3 pill. Based on the target content of AC in ZhiCaoWu, the biomimetic linking kinetics model was explored to optimize the traditional processing detoxification method of CaoWu. The assays of determining inflammatory cytokines in lipopolysaccharides (LPS)-induced RAW264.7 cells were performed to investigate the inflammatory modulation effects of AC in vitro.

RESULTS

ZhiCaoWu was prepared by eliminating redundant AC in CaoWu through the repeatable replacement of HeZi processing decoction in which its acidity (pH) was affected. AC-pH changes in HeZi processing decoction were adequately depicted by a biomimetic linking kinetics model whose predictive power was determined by comparing the predictions of AC in ZhiCaoWu with the reported data. Rapid-release AC at the converted dose of 111.1 and 417.6 μg (0.011 and 0.042% of AC in NaRu-3 pill) reached maximum blood concentrations of 26.1 and 98.1 ng/mL at 0.3 h, in comparison with minimum human lethal concentration (100 ng/mL). Achieving the target content of AC (0.04%) in ZhiCaoWu or AC (0.011%) in NaRu-3 pill to precisely control the poisoning risk, the potential optimized protocols were that the processing time at 0.2-0.8% of AC in CaoWu was 2.0-4.4 days for Cop and 2.7-6.2 days for Mes. Correspondingly, pH values in HeZi processing decoction were 3.95 and 3.77 for Cop and Mes, respectively. Meanwhile, Lipopolysaccharides (LPS)-induced RAW264.7 cells were exposed to 0, 20, and 200 μM of AC for 12 h and AC at 20 μM enhanced the levels of IL-6, IL-10 and TNF-α.

CONCLUSIONS

Thus, for the first time, a biomimetic linking kinetics model was built to optimize the traditional detoxification method. Moreover, pH changes could be developed as surrogate endpoint for guiding the processing detoxification of CaoWu. Notably, setting the content limit of AC (0.011%) was very rational to control the poisoning risk of NaRu-3 pill. In addition, it was possible that there existed the more complex mechanisms of AC for inflammatory modulation in vitro.

Potential synergic mechanism of Wutou-Gancao herb-pair by inhibiting efflux transporter P-glycoprotein

Wutou-Gancao herb-pair is extensively used to attenuate the toxicity and enhance the efficacy of aconite. In this study, potential synergic mechanism of the herb pair was investigated by utilizing multiple approaches. In silico and in vitro Caco-2 cell models were applied to study the potential binding mode of bioactive ingredients existing in liquorice with P-glycoprotein (P-gp), as well as the inhibition effects on P-gp. Additionally, anti-inflammatory activity of aconitine (AC) combined with active ingredients of liquorice, as well as pharmacokinetic patterns of AC after co-administration was investigated. Anti-inflammatory effect of AC (1 mg/kg) in rats was enhanced in combination with bioactive ingredients of liquorice (10 mg/kg). In the meanwhile, the exposure of AC in vivo was altered, in terms of Cmax and AUC. For instance, the Cmax and AUC were increased to 1.9 and 1.3 folds, respectively, when used in combination with liquiritigenin. The in silico study revealed the potential binding mode with outward facing conformation of P-gp. The resulting data obtained from transport of rhodamine-123 (Rh-123) across Caco-2 cell monolayer further indicated that the function of P-gp was inhibited by chemicals in liquorice. The synergic effect was therefore proposed to be attributed to inhibition of P-gp by liquorice since AC has been demonstrated to be the substrate of P-gp. The resuls revealed that potential synergic mechanism of Wutou-Gancao herb-pair by inhibiting function of key efflux transporter P-gp to enhance the exposure of AC in systematic circulation, and further the anti-inflammatory effect, which helps clarify the compatibility rationale of these two herbs.

A simple method for evaluation pharmacokinetics of glycyrrhetinic acid and potential drug-drug interaction between herbal ingredients

A simple validated high performance liquid chromatography method was developed for the evaluation of the effect of three kinds of active ingredients in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) on the pharmacokinetics of glycyrrhetinic acid (GA),a kind of active component from the most commonly used TCM licorice. Our results revealed that all of the calibration curves displayed good linearity. Intra- and inter-day precision for GA ranged from 2.54 to 3.98% and from 4.95 to 7.08%, respectively. The recovery rates for GA were determined to be 96.3–106.4%. All the samples showed satisfactory precision and accuracy in various stability tests. Plasma pharmacokinetic parameters including area under the concentration-time curve (AUC), elimination half-life (t_1/2), time to peak concentration(T_max) and peak concentration C_max were calculated. No significant difference was found as compared the groups administrating GA with and without other ingredients from TCM.

Influence of Jiegeng on Pharmacokinetic Properties of Flavonoids and Saponins in Gancao

Jiegeng Gancao decoction, which is composed of Jiegeng and Gancao at a weight ratio of 1:2, was widely used for treating pharyngalgia and cough for thousands of years. Our previous work indicated that Gancao could increase the systemic exposure of platycodin D and deapio-platycodin D, two main components in Jiegeng. However, whether Jiegeng could alter the pharmacokinetics of the main compounds in Gancao is still unknown. Thus, the purpose of this study was to compare the oral pharmacokinetics of flavonoids and saponins from Gancao alone vs. after co-administration with Jiegeng. Furthermore, Caco-2 cell transport and fecal hydrolysis were investigated to explain the altered pharmacokinetic properties. Pharmacokinetics results suggested that the bioavailability of liquiritin, isoliquiritin, glycyrrhizin and its metabolite, glycyrrhetinic acid, could be improved while bioavailability of liquiritigenin and isoliquiritigenin deteriorated when co-administered with Jiegeng. The Caco-2 transport study showed no significant difference of the P_app values of the main components in Jiegeng Gancao decoction when compared with those in Gancao decoction (p > 0.05). The in vitro metabolism study suggested that saponins and flavonoids glycosides in Gancao were influenced and the metabolic characteristics of most ingredients were consistent with pharmacokinetic results, such as liquiritin and glycyrrhetinic acid. The hydrolysis of liquiritigenin and glycyrrhizin observed with fecal lysate in vitro appeared consistent with the oral pharmacokinetics. Based on experiments, the pharmacokinetic profiles of six components in Gancao were influenced by Jiegeng. The metabolic process might partially contribute to the altered pharmacokinetic behavior. The metabolism of some components of Gancao appeared to be inhibited when coadministered with Jiegeng, possibly by the Jiegeng constituent platycodin.

Effects of Chinese herbal medicines on the occurrence of diabetic retinopathy in type 2 diabetes patients and protection of ARPE-19 retina cells by inhibiting oxidative stress

Diabetic retinopathy is a microvascular complication of type 2 diabetes and the leading cause of acquired blindness. In Taiwan, Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) is a popular adjunctive therapy. In this study, we investigated the CHM prescription patterns and their effects. We identified 23,701 subjects with type 2 diabetes in a database, and after matching for age and gender, 6,948 patients each were assigned to CHM and non-CHM groups. In the female subgroups, the cumulative retinopathy probability was lower for the CHM users than that for the CHM non-users (P < 0.001, log-rank test). Among the top 10 CHMs, Jia-Wei-Xiao-Yao-San (JWXYS; 52.9%), Shu-Jing-Huo-Xue-Tang (SJHXT; 45.1%), and Ge-Gen-Tang (GGT; 43.7%) were the most common herbal formulas. Yan-Hu-Suo (48.1%), Ge-Gen (42.1%), and Huang-Qin (HQin; 40.1%) were the most common single herbs. CHM network analysis showed that JWXYS was the core CHM of cluster 1. JWXYS, DS, XF, and SZRT exhibited both of the reductions of H₂O₂-induced phosphorylation of p38 MAPK and p44/42 MAPK (Erk1/2) in human ARPE-19 retina cells. In cluster 2, SJHXT was the core CHM. SJHXT and NX showed both of the phosphorylation reductions. In cluster 3, GGT was the core CHM, and it reduced the phosphorylation of both MAPKs. In cluster 4, HQin was the core CHM, and it also reduced the phosphorylation of both MAPKs. Our study suggests that adjunctive CHM therapy may reduce diabetic retinopathy via antioxidant activity of the herbs and provides information on core CHM treatments for further scientific investigations or therapeutic interventions.

Investigation of selective inhibitory effects of glycyrol on human CYP 1A1 and 2C9

1. Glycyrol is a coumarin derivative isolated from the roots of Glycyrrhiza uralensis called Gamcho in Korea and commonly used as a sweetener in oriental medicine. Glycyrol shows several biological activities, including anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, anti-angiogenic, and anti-allergenic properties. Although there have been studies on the biological effects of glycyrol, the inhibitory effects of glycyrol on cytochrome P450 (CYP) activities have not been investigated. 2. We investigated the inhibitory effects of glycyrol on the activities of CYP isoforms using a cocktail of probe substrates in pooled human liver microsome (HLM) and human recombinant cDNA-expressed CYPs. Glycyrol strongly inhibited CYP1A-mediated phenacetin O-deethylation and CYP2C9-mediated diclofenac 4'-hydroxylation in HLMs, which were the result of competitive inhibition as revealed by a Dixon plot. In addition, glycyrol showed selective inhibition of CYP1A1- and CYP1A2-catalyzed phenacetin O-deethylase activity with a half-maximal inhibitory concentration of (IC50) 1.3 and 16.1 μM in human recombinant cDNA-expressed CYP1A1 and CYP1A2, respectively. 3. Glycyrol decreased CYP2C9-catalyzed diclofenac 4'-hydroxylation activity with IC50 values of 0.67 μM in human recombinant cDNA-expressed CYP2C9. This is the first investigation of competitive inhibitory effects on CYP1A1 and CYP2C9 in HLMs.