[Chuanxiong Rhizoma inhibits brain metastasis of lung cancer through multiple active ingredients acting on multiple targets, pathways and biological functions]

Ligustilide Inhibits the PI3K/AKT Signalling Pathway and Suppresses Cholangiocarcinoma Cell Proliferation, Migration, and Invasion

BACKGROUND

Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels, a renowned traditional Chinese medicine, has gained widespread recognition for its antitumor properties. Further investigation is warranted to determine whether ligustilide (LIG), which is extracted from this plant, can effectively inhibit tumors.

OBJECTIVES

We delved into the impact of LIG on cholangiocarcinoma cells, aiming to unravel the mechanisms underlying its effects.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Cholangiocarcinoma cells (HuccT1 and RBE) were exposed to varying concentrations of LIG (2, 5, 10, 15, 20 μg/mL) for 24, 48, and 72 h. After identifying differentially expressed genes, stable transcription strains were utilized to explore LIG's antitumor mechanism. The inhibitory effects of LIG (5 μg/mL, 48 h) were assessed by CCK-8, colony formation, wound healing, transwell migration, western blotting, and immunofluorescence. In vivo, experiments in NOG mice (Ac, Ac+LIG; five per group) evaluated LIG's antiproliferative efficacy (5 mg/kg, intraperitoneal injection, 18-day period).

RESULTS

LIG significantly inhibited cell proliferation and migration with IC50 5.08 and 5.77 μg/mL in HuccT1 and RBE cell lines at 48h, increased the expression of E-cadherin while decreased N-cadherin and the protein of PI3K/AKT pathway. Silenced NDRG1 (N-Myc downstream- regulated gene 1) attenuated these effects. In vivo, the AC+LIG group (LIG, 5 mg/kg, qd, 18 d) exhibited smaller tumor volumes compared to the Ac group. The expression of Ki-67 was significantly downregulated in the AC+LIG group.

CONCLUSION

For the first time, our study has revealed that LIG holds therapeutic potential for treating cholangiocarcinoma. These findings hold promise for advancing innovative therapeutic approaches in the treatment of cholangiocarcinoma. LIG may serve as a useful patent for treating CCA.

Yangyinghuoxue decoction exerts a treatment effect on hepatic fibrosis by PI3K/AKT pathway in rat model: based on the network pharmacology and molecular docking

BACKGROUND

Yangyinghuoxue decoction (YYHXD) is a Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) compound with satisfactory clinical efficacy in the treatment of hepatic fibrosis (HF). However, the pharmacological molecular mechanisms of YYHXD in the treatment of hepatic fibrosis have not yet been clarified.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the pharmacological mechanisms of YYHXD for the treatment of hepatic fibrosis via network pharmacology analysis combined with experimental verification.

METHODS

First, the bioactive ingredients and potential targets of YYHXD and HF-related targets were retrieved from the online databases and literatures. Next, the "herb-ingredient-target-disease" network and PPI network were constructed for topological analyses and key active compounds and targets screening. Enrichment analyses were performed to identify the critical biological processes and signaling pathways. Then, the molecular docking experiment was performed to initially validate the network pharmacology prediction results. Finally, the antifibrotic effect and pharmacological mechanisms of YYHXD were investigated in CCl4 induced liver fibrosis in rats.

RESULTS

In total, 141 active compounds in YYHXD, 637 YYHXD-related targets and 1598 liver fibrosis-related targets were identified. Among them, 69 overlapped targets were finally obtained. Network analysis screened 5 critical bioactive components and 34 key targets. Functional enrichment analysis indicated that YYHXD obviously influenced biological processes such as oxidative stress, cellular inflammation and hepatocyte apoptosis and signaling pathways such as PI3K-Akt, Apoptosis, and JAK-STAT in the treatment of HF. The molecular docking results suggested that the YYHXD may have a direct impact on the PI3K-Akt signaling pathway. Further, in vivo experiment indicated that YYHXD treatment not only reduced liver injury and protected liver function, but also decrease the apoptosis of hepatic parenchyma cells, reducing inflammatory and attenuating oxidative stress. Moreover, YYHXD significantly attenuated the upregulation of target proteins enriched in PI3K signaling pathway, including P-PI3K, P-Akt1, HSP90, MYC, p53.

CONCLUSIONS

The mechanisms of YYHXD against liver fibrosis were involved in multiple ingredients, multiple targets and multiple signaling pathways. The PI3K/Akt pathway could be the most important pharmacological mechanism of YYHXD therapy for liver fibrosis.