Background and objectives: This study focused on the effects of the combination of baicalin (BC) and gardenoside (GD) (7:3) on blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeability, brain tissue water content, and aquaporin-4 (AQP-4) expression in rats with cerebral ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury. The previous research conducted by the investigators demonstrated that the combination of BC and GD (7:3) has anti-ischemic properties. Further research was conducted to determine the mechanism underlying the reduction in cerebral edema.

Methods: A total of 150 male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to the following groups to receive treatment: sham, I/R, allyl chloride (AC), 30 mg/kg BC/GD, and 60 mg/kg BC/GD groups. Then, neurobehavioral scores were assigned to determine the effectiveness of the treatment. Evans blue (EB) was used to trace the BBB. The dry/wet method was used to evaluate the brain water content. Transmission electron microscopy was performed to examine the ultrastructure of the brain tissue. Immunohistochemistry and western blot were performed to detect the presence of AQP-4 in the hippocampus. Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used to determine the amount of AQP-4 mRNA.

Results: The BBB permeability, brain water content, and AQP-4 expression were significantly greater in the CA1 area of the hippocampus in the I/R group, when compared to the sham group. Furthermore, the endoplasmic reticulum was dilated, and most of the nerve cells underwent degeneration or necrosis. After the BC/GD treatment, the markers improved in a dose-dependent manner.

Conclusions: BC/GD can inhibit the BBB permeability and cerebral edema by reducing the expression of AQP-4 in the CA1 area of the hippocampus in rats after I/R injury, improving the structure of nerve cells and exerting brain-protective effects.

Background and objectives: Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a common geriatric disease with a complex pathogenesis and challenging treatment options. Wuling capsule is a single herbal formula mainly composed of Xylaria nigripes powder, which has sedative and neuroprotective effects on the central nervous system. This study aimed to explore various potential pathways and targets of Wuling capsules for the treatment of AD.

Methods: The anti-AD mechanism of Wuling capsule was systematically analyzed by integrating multiple databases and using network pharmacology. The active ingredients of Wuling capsules were screened through the Pubchem website, the SwissADME database, and a literature search. The related targets of AD were then screened in the GeneCards database. Using Cytoscape software and STRING, the disease-drug-target interaction network and the protein-protein interaction network were visualized, and topological analysis revealed the differences in the effects of different types of compounds.

Results: Fifty-four compounds and 284 targets were screened by network pharmacology. The main active ingredients included quercetin, xylaric acid A-D, lysine, gamma-aminobutyric acid, glutamic acid, other amino acids, trace elements, guanosine, adenosine, etc. The targets in the network cover inflammation, oxidative stress, modulation of chemical synaptic transmission, and other related proteins, including protein kinase B, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and tumor suppressor p53. The enrichment analysis results showed that these pathways include the phosphoinositide-3-kinase/protein kinase B, mitogen-activated protein kinase, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha signaling pathways. We also explored five potential protein functional modules.

Conclusions: This study revealed the multi-target and multi-pathway effects of the drug-ingredient-target-disease network through network pharmacology. This systematic screening strategy provides a new concept and theoretical basis for the treatment of AD with Wuling capsules.

Essential oils (EOs) are natural products with bioactive functions that are obtained from various plant species, including Lavandula angustifolia and plant parts, through extraction methods, such as hydro-distillation, steam distillation and cold pressing, which can be dated back to ancient Egyptian and Greek times. Although various EOs are effective for disease treatment, such as human infectious diseases and mental disorders, the specific pharmacological mechanisms remain unclear due to its complex composition. Previous studies have attempted to recruit pharmaceutical analysis techniques, such as HPLC and MALDI-TOF, in order to elucidate the compositions of EOs. However, these have provided limited information on the mechanism of the bioactive functions of EOs. In recent years, network pharmacology has emerged as a convenient and appropriate approach to study the molecular mechanism of traditional medicines. To date, there is a lack of updated reviews on the recent progress of network pharmacology in the field of interactions between EOs and human diseases. Therefore, the present study scrutinized recent and important literatures in the field of network pharmacology and EOs, aiming to provide a timely yet brief overview of EOs as a potential treatment for diseases via network pharmacology, and facilitating the application of EOs as a complementary medicine and therapy for human diseases.

Advancements in nanomedicine have effectively overcome the issues of solubility, absorption, and cytotoxicity of conventional drugs. In recent years, phytoproducts rich in bioactive constituents have been exploited as green-, herb-, or phytosynthesized metal or nonmetal nanocarriers. Of these, alkaloids, flavonoids, polyphenols, sterols, lignans, tannins, and saponins efficiently contribute to the enhanced stability of such nanocarriers or nanoparticles by reducing metal ions. In addition, phytosynthesized silver and gold nanoparticles have received much interest due to their less hazardous, eco-friendly, and cost-effective properties. Owing to these properties, phytosynthesized silver and gold nanoparticles also have been developed as effective antiviral drug delivery carriers against human immunodeficiency virus, herpes simplex virus, influenza virus, dengue virus, chikungunya virus, hepatitis B virus, bovine diarrhea virus, and foot and mouth disease virus infections. Although experimental studies have shown that such phytonanoparticles can inhibit viral replication in infected cells, the underlying mechanism of their antiviral activities is poorly understood. Importantly, compared to herbal antivirals or metal-based antiviral nanoparticles, the novel approach of phytosynthesis of antiviral nanoparticles seems to be in its infancy. In view of the emerging viral outbreaks and pandemics like coronavirus disease 2019, this area of drug research needs special attention.

Psoralea corylifolia L. (PCL) is widely used in clinical practice and is commonly used in the treatment of osteoporosis, tumors, and dermatosis. However, in recent years, adverse reactions of PCL and its related preparations have been frequently reported, and there are even case reports of acute liver injury caused by taking PCL alone, which seriously affects the safe and rational clinical application of PCL. In this paper, the main chemical components, pharmacology, and toxicology of PCL are analyzed and summarized, and the effect-toxicity relationship of PCL and its main active components are sorted out and compared. On this basis, the active components of PCL for treating osteoporosis and causing hepatotoxicity are further systematically compared and summarized, to clarify its effect-toxicity relationship, reduce the toxicity risk of PCL, increase the benefit/risk ratio and provide evidence for the safe clinical application of PCL.

In order to study the regulating effect of electroacupuncture at specific acupoints on the depression level of drug addicts, we randomly selected 42 drug addicts from Sichuan drug rehabilitation center of women and divided them into treatment group (13), comfort group (10) and control group (19) from April to August 2019. Venous blood was taken before and after treatment, and the serum samples such as Noradrenalin (NA) and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) were systematically detected. At the same time, Beck Depression Scale was used to detect the level of depression before and after treatment. Results showed that the level of depression in the real acupuncture group decreased significantly after treatment (p < 0.05). The contents of NA and BDNF in the serum of the real acupuncture group increased after treatment, but did not reach a significant level. In a word, the combination therapy of electroacupuncture can improve the levels of BDNF and NA in drug addicts and adjust their depression level, which is worthy of clinical promotion.