The American journal of Chinese medicine
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Inflammation regulation is essential for maintaining healthy functions and normal homeostasis of the body. Porphyromonas gingivalis (P. gingivalis) is a gram-negative anaerobic bacterium and a major pathogen that causes oral inflammation and other systemic inflammations. This study aims to examine the anti-inflammatory effects of Agrimonia pilosa Ledeb root extracts (APL-ME) in Porphyromonas gingivalis LPS-induced RAW 264.7 cells and find anti-inflammatory effect compounds of APL-ME. ⋯ However, IL-10 expression was increased by ALP-ME. In addition, protein expressions of COX-2 and iNOS were inhibited APL-ME extracts dose-dependently. According to these results, APL-ME has anti-inflammatory effects in P. gingivalis LPS induced RAW 264.7 cells.
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Bisphenol A (BPA), which is known to be an endocrine-disrupting chemical (EDC), is associated not only with estrogen activity and reproductive toxicity but also with a variety of metabolic disorders. BPA affects glucose tolerance, cholesterol biosynthesis, and fatty acid synthesis. Ginseng is a traditional medicinal plant that has been widely used in East Asia for more than 2000 years, and a number of health effects have been reported. ⋯ KRG inhibited the increase in total fatty acid level by BPA as determined by lipid profiling in the liver of OVX mice. In addition, transcriptome analysis showed that KRG inhibited BPA-induced changes in lipid metabolic process-related genes. Our findings suggest that KRG can regulate BPA-induced changes in lipid metabolism.
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Macrophage autophagy defect is closely related to the progression of atherosclerosis (AS) and is regulated by the triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cell 2 (TREM2). TREM2 is a key factor in the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD), the deficiency of which leads to anomalous autophagy in microglia. However, the role of TREM2 in the autophagy of plaque macrophages is still unclear. ⋯ GP inhibited the progression of AS in ApoE[Formula: see text] mice, reinforced macrophage autophagy, and downregulated TREM2 by inhibiting mTOR signaling. Taken together, augmenting the autophagy levels in plaque macrophages by inhibiting the TREM2/mTOR axis can potentially impede atherosclerotic progression. The promising therapeutic effects of GP seen in this study should be validated in future trials, and the underlying mechanisms have to be elucidated in greater detail.
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Autophagy is an important tightly controlled cellular process that regulates cellular homeostasis and is involved in deciding cell fate such as cell survival and death. The role of autophagy in many intracellular signaling pathways explains its interaction with other different types of cell death, including apoptosis and immunogenic cell death (ICD). The reports showed the complex and intriguing relationship existing between autophagy and immune system signaling pathways. ⋯ Our results revealed Brucine as a novel autophagy regulator, ICD inducer and hitherto undocumented role of autophagy in ICD. Thus, these results imply the importance of Brucine in cancer immunotherapy. Therefore, Brucine may be used as an ICD inducer and improve its application in cancer treatment with minimized toxicity.
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As a long-established medicinal and edible homologous plant, Taraxacum officinale Wigg. is widely distributed in Asia, Europe, and other parts of the world. T. officinale is reported to exert a variety of biological and pharmacological activities, including anticancer, hepatoprotective, and anti-obesity effects. In this study, we evaluated the anti-inflammatory effects of ethanol extracts of T. officinale (A-TOW) by examining the suppression of proinflammatory mediators in LPS-stimulated BV2 and mouse hippocampus. ⋯ In addition, A-TOW regulates heme oxygenase (HO)-1 expression through the nuclear translocation of nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) in BV2 cells. The effects of A-TOW on the over-expression of proinflammatory mediators were partially reversed by transfection of the cells with HO-1 siRNA. These findings suggest that the potent anti-inflammatory activity of T. officinale, possibly through the regulation of Nrf2/HO-1 and NF- κ B signaling pathway.