Effect of samul-tang on female fertility via RAS signaling pathway in ovaries of aged mice

A Systematic Review of In Vivo Studies of the Efficacy of Herbal Medicines for Anti-Aging in the Last Five Years

Background: The world’s population is rapidly aging, and attention to and research on the increase in life expectancy and age-related diseases are needed. This study aimed to review the in vivo studies on the anti-aging effects of herbal medicines. Methods: In vivo studies of single or complex herbal medicines for anti-aging that were published in the last five years were included in this review. The following databases were used: PubMed, Scopus, ScienceDirect, Web of Science and EMBASE. Results: A total of 41 studies were considered eligible for the review. The articles were classified into body organs and functions, experimental country, herbal medicine, extraction method, administration route, dosage, duration, animal model, aging-induced method, sex, number of animals per group, and outcomes and mechanisms A single herbal extract was used in a total of 21 studies including Alpinia oxyphylla Miq., Acanthopanax senticosus and Lyceum barbarum, and a multi-compound herbal prescription was used in a total of 20 studies, including Modified Qiongyu paste, Wuzi Yanzong recipe, etc. Each herbal medicine had anti-aging effects on learning and memory, cognition, emotion, internal organs, gastrointestinal tracts, sexual functions, musculoskeletal function and so on. The common mechanisms of action were antioxidant and anti-inflammatory, and various effects and mechanisms for each organ and function were identified. Conclusions: Herbal medicine exhibited beneficial effects on anti-aging in various parts of the body and its function. Further investigation of the appropriate herbal medicine prescriptions and their components is recommended.

Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment Ameliorates the Decline in Oocyte Quality and Improves the Fertility of Aged Female Mice

The age-related decay in oocyte quality contributes to the gradual decline in fertility and the final occurrence of natural sterility. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effects of the hyperbaric oxygen treatment (HBOT) on oocyte quality in aging mouse oocyte. Eight- and forty-week-old female C57BL/6 J mice were treated with HBO for 10 days, and the quality of oocytes was analyzed. The results revealed that HBOT improved the age-related serum AMH levels. While compared with untreated aged mice, HBOT showed reduced follicular apoptosis and improved oocyte maturation, fertilization, and blastocyst formation in aged mice. HBO triggered changes in the microRNA expression in the ovaries of aged mice. In this study, 27 DEGs were identified in the HBOT mouse ovarian tissues, of which 9 were upregulated and 18 were downregulated. Notably, KEGG analysis revealed that these genes involved in different biological processes differed significantly in the ovary. Among these, the PI3K-Akt signaling was the most prominent pathway that controlled the recruitment and growth of primordial follicles. The calcium signaling pathway was found to be involved during the peri-implantation period. These results suggest that HBOT can be applied to improve the quality of oocytes, and it could be a potential clinical application to improve the fertility of aged female.

Restoration of miR-223-3p expression in aged mouse uteri with Samul-tang administration

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusion

A combination containing natural extracts of clove, Sophora flower bud, and yam improves fertility in aged female mice via multiple mechanisms

INTRODUCTION

With society development, the age at which women choose to have children has been gradually delayed. To improve the reduced fertility in women at advanced maternal age, we developed a combination containing natural extracts from clove, Sophora flower bud and Chinese yam with a mass ratio 15:6:10 and named it as DACHAO.

METHODS AND RESULTS

We then gavage DACHAO at a dose of 310 mg/kg BW to female mice at 10 month of age and investigated its effects on ovarian functions. Using MitoTracker probes, ROS, and JC-1 staining, we found that DACHAO treatment improved mitochondria functions in oocytes from aged mice. We also observed increased blastocyst formation when mature oocytes from control and DACHAO treated mice were for IVF and in vitro embryo culture. Cell counting and TUNEL assay further revealed increased cell numbers and decreased apoptosis in blastocysts of DACHAO group. After control or DACHAO treated mice being mated with fertile male mice, fertility test revealed a greater first litter size in the DACHAO group. Further studies demonstrated that DACHAO treatment could alleviate the retarded ovarian function in aged mice via changes in serum hormone levels, over-expression of antioxidant factors, under-expression of inflammation-related factors, and reduced apoptosis in the ovaries.

DISCUSSION

Thus, the new combination DACHAO will be a good choice in clinic to improve ovarian functions for women at advanced maternal age.