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2024 Volume 59 Issue 10  Published: 2024-10-12
  • Zong-ru GUO
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0529

    Small molecule drugs comprise multi-dimensional features, and drug creation has to meet requirements such as safety, effectiveness, stability, controllability, and patient compliance. These attributes can be summarized as pharmacological activity and druglikeness, which are implicit in the chemical structure of the drug. Pharmacological activity and adverse reactions are caused by the interaction between drug molecules and on-target or off-target protein. The microstructure of the drug determines the activity/toxicity intensity and selectivity. Pharmacokinetic and physicochemical properties are related to the macroscopic properties of the drug, and the microstructure and macroscopic properties are intertwined and integrated into the molecular structure. Conception and construction of bifunctional molecules are one of routes to achieve "unification of micro and macro" and structurally straighten out the relationship between pharmacodynamics-pharmacokinetics, drug efficacy-adverse reactions (selectivity). This article takes drugs that have been successfully marketed or under clinical trials as examples to explain the structural characteristics of bifunctional molecules from the viewpoint of medicinal chemistry. The productive technical methods include antibody-drug conjugate, proteolysis-targeting chimeras, molecular glues, peptide modifications, and so on. In addition, this overview also classifies covalently binding drugs, transition-state analogs, and prodrugs into the category of bifunctional molecules, emphasizing the importance of bifunctional groups in molecular design and structure optimization.

  • Hong-xuan LI , Ying WANG , Ju-xian WANG
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0403

    Pancreatic cancer is one of the most lethal malignant tumors. While the existing surgical resection and chemotherapy have failed to improve the prognosis of patients well, it is urgent to find safer and more effective therapies to meet the clinical therapeutic needs. Antibody drug conjugate (ADC) is a class of targeted antitumor agents that combines monoclonal antibodies with small molecule cytotoxic drugs via chemical linkers. ADC provided wider therapeutic windows and enhanced pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic properties which depended on their characteristics of high selectivity, high efficacy and low toxicity. In recent years, the successful application of ADC in the treatment of multiple tumors has aroused a research upsurge in ADC for pancreatic cancer. This review summarizes the structure and mechanism of ADC and the current status of ADC for pancreatic cancer in order to provide some references for the future development of ADC for pancreatic cancer.

  • Bo LI , Hai-yan YAN , Yu-huan LI
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0596

    Influenza virus hemagglutinin (HA) is a key factor in the virus's invasion of host cells, involving the binding of the virus to target cells and the fusion of membranes. The proteolytic cleavage and activation of HA by host proteases are prerequisites for the virus to recognize host cells and initiate membrane fusion, and are also essential for viral infection of the host. This article summarizes the proteolytic activation of different subtypes of influenza virus HA by type Ⅱ transmembrane serine proteases, human tissue kallikreins, and other host proteases, and discusses their potential as targets for antiviral therapy.

  • Qing-yang ZHANG , Quan ZHANG , Li-wei HAN
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0438

    Synthetic medicinal chemistry plays a crucial role in the research and development of new drugs. This article overviewed the proposal application and funding of the General Program, Young Scientist Fund and Fund for Less Developed Regions of National Natural Science Foundation of China related to synthetic medicinal chemistry in application codes H3401 and H3407 in 2023. It also analyzed the hotspots of the applied projects of synthetic medicinal chemistry in 2023 and provided suggestions to address the current challenges, which aimed to further exert the role of synthetic medicinal chemistry in the development of new drugs and continuously promote the high-quality development of China's original new drug research.

  • Li-ling HUANG , Yu-qiong KONG , Heng-yuan MA
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0551

    Drug testing involves many analytical instruments and test items, sample pretreatment is tedious, the industry's intelligence level remains low, making drug testing a labour-intensive job. However, in the era of Industry 4.0 intelligent manufacturing, intelligent transformation of the quality control (QC) laboratory has become the focus of industry. At the same time, driven by consistency evaluation of the quality and efficacy of generic drugs and the centralized procurement policies, pharmaceutical companies have intensified their competition, further stimulating the intrinsic demand for laboratory intelligence. Based on the current state and future trends of the pharmaceutical industry, this review discusses the development of a digital and automated QC laboratory. It points out the necessity of transitioning from the traditional centralized laboratory model to an intelligent, distributed quality control model to accommodate continuous manufacturing processes. At the same time, it also analyses the potential challenges in the implementation process and coping strategies, in order to provide relevant practitioners with ideas for building intelligent QC laboratories.

  • Wen-jing BAI , Rong GUO , Lin XIONG , Leng-jing ZHU , Jia-xin LI , Ya-shi WANG , Man LI , Qin HE
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2023-1205

    Pulmonary disease is one of the major threats to human health. However, the current clinical treatment drugs for lung diseases generally have problems such as low lung delivery efficiency, fast clearance rate and obvious toxic side effects. Recently, membrane biomimetic nanocarriers have attracted more and more attention. Due to their advantages of high targeting, long cycle time, good biocompatibility and strong immune escape ability, membrane biomimetic nanocarriers have become a major research hotspot in targeted therapy of lung diseases. In this review, we discuss the main preparation methods of membrane biomimetic nanoparticles, the characteristics of membrane biomimetic nanocarriers from different cell sources and their application in the targeted therapy of lung diseases. At the same time, according to the characteristics of different membranes, the shortcomings, current technical limitations and future prospects are discussed. This review is expected to provide references for the design of membrane biomimetic nanocarriers and their potential applications in the treatment of lung diseases.

  • Zeng-lin YIN , Xi-wei WANG , Jin-jing CHE , Nan LIU , Hui ZHANG , Zeng-ming WANG , Jian-chun LI , Ai-ping ZHENG
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0111

    DNA origami is a powerful technique for generating nanostructures with dynamic properties and intelligent controllability. The precise geometric shapes, high programmability, and excellent biocompatibility make DNA origami nanostructures an emerging drug delivery vehicle. The shape, size of the carrier material, as well as the loading and release of drugs are important factors affecting the bioavailability of drugs. This paper focuses on the controllable design of DNA origami nanostructures, efficient drug loading, and intelligent drug release. It summarizes the cutting-edge applications of DNA origami technology in biomedicine, and discusses areas where researchers can contribute to further advancing the clinical application of DNA origami carriers.

  • Reviews
  • Han LIU , Guo-zhong YANG , Wan-ren DU , Suo-hui ZHANG , Ze-quan ZHOU , Yun-hua GAO
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0530

    As a new transdermal drug delivery system, microneedles can significantly improve skin permeability, enhance drug transdermal delivery, and demonstrate unique advantages in breaking stratum corneum barrier of skin. This feature enables microneedles to demonstrate enormous potential in delivering biotechnology drugs. The traditional delivery method for biotechnology drugs is mainly injection, which brings problems such as pain and skin redness to patients, leading to poor patient compliance. In addition, the production, transportation, and storage of biotechnology drugs require strict low-temperature conditions to maintain their activity and increase cost output. Microneedles, by contrast, have many benefits, providing new avenues and solutions for biomolecular delivery. Accordingly, this review introduced the microneedle drug delivery system for delivery biotechnology drugs, and summarized the research progress of microneedle systems in biotechnology drugs.

  • Yi SHEN , Yi-qi SUN , He-ming LI , Xin-yuan YE , Jin-man DU , Rong-hua BAO , Quan-long ZHANG , Lu-ping QIN , Qiao-yan ZHANG
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0189

    This study aimed to investigate the therapeutic effects of Morinda officinalis iridoid glycosides (MOIG) on bone loss of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) rats, and the mechanism of osteoclast function and activity induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS). RA rats were established by injecting bovin type Ⅱ collagen. The Bio-ethic Committee of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University approved all experimental protocols associated with this study (IACUC-20180410-03). The collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) rats were administered drug by gavage for 8 weeks; the femoral trabecular micro-structure changes were observed in CIA rats by micro-CT; the LPS-induced osteoclasts model further observed the effect and mechanism of anti-inflammatory osteoporosis in vitro. The results indicated that MOIG could markedly increase bone mineral density (BMD) in CIA rats, improve trabecular micro-structure. In vitro studies demonstrated that MOIG could significantly inhibit osteoclastogensis and differentiation, suppress tartrate resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) activity, F-actin ring formation, TNF receptor associated factor 6 (TRAF6) recruitment, and inhibitor of nuclear factor kappa-Bα (IκBα) degradation as well as p65 phosphorylation, thereby repressing nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB) signaling pathway activation. Subsequently, MOIG effectively inhibited osteoclast nuclear factor of activated T-cells c1 (NFATc1) and cellular oncogene Fos (c-Fos) expression, as well as bone resorption related protein activity including matrix metalloprotein 9 (MMP-9) and cathepsin K (CtsK). Meanwhile, MOIG also repressed the phosphorylation expression of Janus activating kinase 2 (JAK2) and signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), thereby inhibiting JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway activation. Moreover, further studies found that MOIG could suppress glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β) activity, and GSK-3β gene silencing could markedly inhibit oetsoclast F-actin ring formation as well as the phosphorylation expression of p65 and STAT3. Of note, compared with GSK-3β gene silencing group, there was no significant difference in the group treated with both MOIG with GSK-3β gene silencing simultaneously. Thus, the results suggested that MOIG may inhibit NF-κB signaling pathway and JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway activation via regulating GSK-3β, thereby alleviating bone destruction in RA.

  • Hai-tao LONG , Xue LEI , Jia-yi CHEN , Jiao MENG , Li-hui SHAO , Zhu-rui LI , Dan-ping CHEN , Zhen-chao WANG , Yue ZHOU , Cheng-peng LI
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0395

    The compound (E)-1-(4-(3-(5-chloro-6-oxo-3, 6-dihydropyridin-1(2H)-yl)-3-oxo-propyl-1-ene-1-yl) phenyl)-3-(4-fluorophenyl) urea (C12), a novel derivative of piperlongumine previously synthesized by our research group, was investigated in this study to examine its effects on human non-small cell lung cancer cell line H1299 in vitro and elucidate its potential mechanism of action. The impact of C12 on the proliferation, migration, and invasion abilities of H1299 cells were assessed using methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) assay, wound healing assay, cloning formation assay, and Transwell assay. Flow cytometry was employed to evaluate the influence of C12 on cell cycle progression, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), and apoptosis induction in H1299 cells. Western blot analysis was conducted to investigate the expression levels of p21, Cyclin B1, CDK1, Bax, Bcl-2, JNK, p-JNK, Erk1/2, p-Erk1/2, p38 and p-p38 proteins for exploring the anti-tumor mechanism underlying C12's actions. The results demonstrated that C12 exerted inhibitory effects on the proliferation, migration, and invasion capacities of H1299 cells in a time-dependent and concentration-dependent manner. Moreover, C12 induced G2/M phase arrest in the cell cycle, reduced MMP levels, elevated ROS production, and triggered apoptotic processes. Flow cytometry analysis revealed that C12 downregulated Cyclin B1 and CDK1 protein expressions, resulting in G2/M phase arrest. C12 also upregulated Bax/Bcl-2 ratio, promoting apoptosis. Furthermore, C12 activated MAPK signaling pathway by enhancing phosphorylation levels of JNK, Erk1/2, and p38 proteins. In conclusion, C12 significantly suppressed proliferation, migration, and invasion capabilities while inducing cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in H1299 cells. These effects may be attributed to activation of the MAPK signaling pathway.

  • Lei LEI , Jia-yu ZHAI , Tian ZHOU , Quan LIU , Shuai-nan LIU , Cai-na LI , Hui CAO , Cun-yu FENG , Min WU , Lei-lei CHEN , Li-ran LEI , Xuan PAN , Zhan-zhu LIU , Yi HUAN , Zhu-fang SHEN
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0410

    G protein-coupled receptor (GPR) 40, as one of GPRs family, plays a potential role in regulating glucose and lipid metabolism. To study the effect of GPR40 novel agonist SZZ15-11 on hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemia and its potential mechanism, spontaneous type 2 diabetic KKAy mice, human hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 cells and murine mature adipocyte 3T3-L1 cells were used. KKAy mice were divided into four groups, vehicle group, TAK group, SZZ (50 mg·kg-1) group and SZZ (100 mg·kg-1) group, with oral gavage of 0.5% sodium carboxymethylcellulose (CMC), 50 mg·kg-1 TAK875, 50 and 100 mg·kg-1 SZZ15-11 respectively for 45 days. Fasting blood glucose, blood triglyceride (TG) and total cholesterol (TC), non-fasting blood glucose were tested. Oral glucose tolerance test and insulin tolerance test were executed. Blood insulin and glucagon were measured via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). After mice′s execution, liver tissue was harvested to test TG and TC content. Then pathological morphology of liver was observed through hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining, and the lipid metabolism relative signal pathway was analyzed by Western blot and RT-PCR. The experiments were approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee of the Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College. At the same time, Akt phosphorylation level in HepG2 cells and adiponectin in 3T3-L1 cells treated with TNFα were measured with Western blot. The results show that SZZ15-11 not only decreased blood glucose and lipid, improved insulin sensitivity, but also increased fasting blood glucagon and promoted insulin secretion after glucose loading in KKAy mice. Additionally, SZZ15-11 alleviated hepatic steatosis and liver dysfunction in KKAy mice. In liver tissue, SZZ15-11 increased AMPKα phosphorylation level and cholesterol metabolism relative gene Abcg8 transcription. In HepG2 cells, SZZ15-11 increased Akt phosphorylation level. In adipocyte 3T3-L1, SZZ15-11 recovered the decreased adiponectin expression by TNFα. This study proved that GPR40 agonist SZZ15-11 could be a candidate compound for regulating glucolipid metabolic disorder.

  • Dong-mei PAN , Sun-kui KE , Qian-hao YIN , Pei-yan YANG , Chao LI , She-fang YE
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0416

    To explore the protective mechanisms of a novel molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) nanozyme in alleviating inflammation-related endothelial cell injury by regulating mitochondrial dynamic, flower like-MoS2 nanosheets were prepared by hydrothermal method, and its antioxidant enzyme-mimic activities were assessed via electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy. It was shown that MoS2 nanosheets had strong scavenging ability for hydroxyl radical (·OH) and singlet reactive oxygen species (1O2) in a dose-dependent manner. Using an in vitro lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced vascular endothelial cell injury model, the protective roles of MoS2 nanozyme on cytotoxicity and apoptosis of endothelial cells were examined by MTT and Annexin V-FITC/PI assay, respectively. Mitochondrial fission/fusion of endothelial cell were observed by Mito-Tracker green probe. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) probe DCFH-DA and superoxide anion probe DHE were used to detect the level of oxidative stress in vitro. Plasmid GFP-LC3 transfection using colocalization analysis was applied to assess the autophagy of endothelial cells. The results showed that MoS2 nanozyme could significantly reduce the cytotoxicity and apoptosis of endothelial cells stimulated by LPS, and prevent the impairment mitochondrial dynamics of endothelial cells, thus maintaining mitochondrial dynamics. In addition, MoS2 nanozyme was also shown to alleviate LPS-mediated endothelial mitochondrial autophagy, thus protecting endothelial cells from inflammatory stress. These results established that MoS2 nanozyme protected endothelial cells injury from inflammatory stress by regulating mitochondrial dynamics and mitochondrial autophagy of endothelial cells, which is expected to expand the use of MoS2 nanozyme in the prevention and treatment of inflammation-related vascular endothelial diseases.

  • Wen ZHOU , Ping JIANG , Wan-xiang YANG , Shao-hua GOU
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0464

    This study focuses on the microenvironment acidification caused by metabolic abnormalities and ion balance disturbances during cardiac ischemia, which can significantly trigger drug resistance and thus limit the therapeutic effect of coronary heart disease. To address this issue, we delve into the potential role of carbonic anhydrase inhibitors in enhancing drug efficacy through pH regulation. First, we evaluated the potential of the carbonic anhydrase inhibitor acetazolamide, in combination with aspirin, in alleviating myocardial hypoxic injury in a cellular model. Through high-throughput screening techniques, we systematically analyzed the synergistic effect of this drug combination and determined the optimal ratio. Next, we modified the structure of aspirin using acetazolamide as the structural basis, aiming to create novel derivatives with stronger myocardial protective activity. Using in vitro and in vivo models of myocardial hypoxic injury, we evaluated the biological activity and therapeutic efficacy of these derived compounds in detail. Animal experiments were approved by the Animal Ethics Committee of Southeast University (Ethics No. 20240109001). The results showed that the structurally modified aspirin derivatives exhibited significant synergistic effects in alleviating myocardial hypoxic injury. This study reveals the mechanism of action of carbonic anhydrase inhibitors in the treatment of coronary heart disease and provides experimental and theoretical evidence for the development of novel coronary heart disease treatment drugs, which has important guiding significance for drug design and coronary heart disease treatment strategies.

  • Jing-jing WANG , Hai-guo YU , Zhi-dan FAN
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0468

    Kawasaki disease (KD) is an acute systemic vasculitis that primarily affects children. If left untreated in the early stages of the disease, it can lead to coronary artery aneurysms or the formation of arterial fistulae, and in severe cases, myocardial infarction. The pathogenesis of KD is related to the infiltration of immune cells into the walls of the coronary arteries. Macrophages play a crucial role in the development of KD by participating in inflammatory responses and neovascularization. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is upregulated in the serum and coronary arteries of patients with KD, promoting inflammation and neovascularization, thereby increasing the risk of aneurysms. Aspirin is one of the standard treatment methods for KD. It exerts anti-inflammatory and anti-thrombotic effects by inhibiting platelet aggregation and reducing inflammatory mediators, thus controlling the acute symptoms of the disease. Animal welfare and experimental procedures follow the regulations of the Animal Ethics Committee of Children′s Hospital of Nanjing Medical University. Single-cell nuclear transcriptome sequencing (snRNA-seq) can provide profound insights into the cellular and molecular landscape of KD. Through snRNA-seq analysis, it was found that aspirin may improve endothelial dysfunction by downregulating VEGF levels in coronary endothelial cells and inhibiting macrophage-mediated proangiogenic signals to endothelial cells, thereby preventing arterial stenosis or aneurysm formation.

  • Wan-wan LÜ , Ke LI , Shi-hong FENG , Yu-wei WEN , Xue-mei QIN , Yu-guang DU , Zhen-yu LI
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0103

    To explore the absorption mechanism of APS-Ⅱ in vivo by establishing M cell model. First, Astragalus polysaccharides (APS) was divided into two different molecular weight polysaccharides APS-Ⅰ (> 2 000 kDa) and APS-Ⅱ (10 kDa) by ultrafiltration, and APS-Ⅱ (10 kDa) was prepared and fluorescently labeled. Meanwhile, M cell model was constructed by Caco-2 cells and Raji cells. The M cell model was treated with transport inhibitors to explore the transport of APS-Ⅱ on M cells. The results show that FITC has been successfully labeled to the end of APS-Ⅱ, and the M cell model was successfully constructed, which found that APS-Ⅱ could be transported by M cells, and four transport inhibitors of 5-(N-ethyl-N-isopropyl) amiloride (EIPA), genistein, dynasore and nocodazole indicated that APS-Ⅱ may enter cells through clathrin and caveolin-mediated endocytosis.

  • Yang CAO , Qian LI , Ya-ling WANG , Wen-hui CUI , Chen-liang QIAN , Xin-xin SI
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0135

    Fragment with some anti-pancreatic cancer activity was identified by screening our internal chemical library. Eighteen compounds in 4 classes were synthesized by systematic modification and their anti-pancreatic cancer activity were evaluated. Ⅱ-1 (IC50 = 6.40 ± 0.34 μmol·L-1) and Ⅱ-2 (IC50 = 7.15 ± 0.51 μmol·L-1) exhibited outstanding activity. Subsequently, the anti-migration ability and invasion ability of Ⅱ-1 was evaluated by wound healing assay and invasion assay, Ⅱ-1 exhibited good anti-migration ability and outstanding anti-invasion ability. Using molecular docking technology and molecular dynamics simulation technology, the potential target was locked on bispecific tyrosine phosphorylation regulates kinase 1A (DYRK1A). By enzyme activity testing, the inhibitory capacity of Ⅱ-1 and Ⅱ-2 was 48% and 32%, respectively.

  • Jie-nan FENG , Yong-xian CHENG
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0399

    Twelve abietane diterpenes were isolated from the 95% ethanol fraction solvated from the aqueous extract of Styrax by using various chromatographic methods, including MCI Gel CHP 20P, Sephadex LH-20, ODS, silica gel, TLC and semi-preparative HPLC. The structures of the isolated compounds were identified by spectroscopy methods (1D, 2D NMR, UV, MS, etc.), and the absolute configuration of the new compound was determined by ECD calculations. Compound 1 is a new compound, which was identified as (4R, 5R, 9S, 10R, 12S)-12-methoxy-neoabietic acid, and compounds 2-12 were isolated from Styrax for the first time.

  • Rui LIU , Jing-xian ZHANG , Qing HU , Jian SUN , Hong YU , Ying-ying RAN , Fan HUANG , Xiu-hong MAO , Shen JI
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0316

    Based on the species-specific peptides of Pheretima and its common counterfeit (Metaphire magna), an identification method was established using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography tandem triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) for quality evaluation of Pheretima and its preparations. Separation was performed on a CORTECS T3 C18 column with 0.1% formic acid and acetonitrile as the mobile phases. Mass spectrometry with multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) using ESI+ mode was used to simultaneously monitor three ion pairs. The results indicated that the method was specific and could distinguish Guang Dilong, Hu Dilong, and M. magna, which were consistent with those of DNA barcode identification. The adulteration test showed that the LOD of peptide M was 1 μg·g-1. Peptide M could be detected when 1% M. magna was added to Guang Dilong, indicating the high sensitivity of the method. Fifty-four batches of commercially available samples contained 35% Guang Dilong, 35% Hu Dilong, and 15% M. magna. No ions were detected in 15% of the samples, and DNA barcode identification revealed that they were mainly from Amynthas, with similar appearance to Hu Dilong. The analysis results of the formulation showed that no peptide ions were detected in 3 batches of Xiaohuoluo pills (3/6) and M. magna were detected in 2 batches of Shenjindan capsules (2/4). The developed method in the study has good specificity, sensitivity, and feasibility, and could be used for quality control of Pheretima and its related preparations. It is of great significance for improving quality standards and regulating the medicinal market of Pheretima.

  • Tian TIAN , Rong SHI , Jia-sheng WU , Tian-ming WANG , Jian-guo LI , Guo-feng XIA , An-ning LI , Yuan-yuan LI , Yue-ming MA
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0361

    Jinqi Jiangtang Capsule (JQJTC) is clinically used for the prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes, but the contents of its main chemical components are not yet clear. In this study, an ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) method was established for the determination of 15 components in JQJTC, including new chlorogenic acid, chlorogenic acid, cryptochlorogenic acid, formononetin, ononin, calycosin, calycosin-7-glucoside, astragaloside Ⅳ, berberine, epiberberine, berberrubine, coptisine, jatrorrhizine, palmatine and magnoflorine. The method was used to determine the contents of 15 components in the capsule and then to investigate the influence of excipients on the contents of the components in JQJTC. The separation was performed on a ACQUITY UPLC BEH C18 column (100 mm × 2.1 mm, 1.7 μm) with a mobile phase consisting of 0.1% acetic acid and 5 mmol·L-1 ammonium acetate (A) and acetonitrile (B) with gradient elution at a flow rate of 0.3 mL·min-1 and a column temperature at 40 ℃. Electron spray ionization was used for mass spectrometry in positive ion mode. The established method meets the requirements of methodology of content determination in Chinese pharmacopoeia. The contents of 15 components in JQJTC varied from high to low. The top 5 contents were berberine, chlorogenic acid, magnoflorine, coptisine, and cryptochlorogenic acid, accounting for 87.31% of the total content. The contents of 10 components, including the alkaloids of coptidis rhizoma (berberine, epiberberine, berberrubine, coptisine, jatrorrhizine, palmatine and magnoflorine) and the organic acids of honeysuckle (new chlorogenic acid, chlorogenic acid, and cryptochlorogenic acid) in the whole formula extract without excipients was significantly lower than that in the capsule. These components accounted for 99.20% of the determined component contents. In this experiment, an accurate, sensitive and efficient UHPLC-MS/MS method for the determination of multi-components in JQJTC was established, which stably and reliably detected the contents of 15 components in the capsule and could provide the basis for more comprehensive quality analysis. It was also found that excipients had an increasing effect on the contents of detected alkaloid and organic acid components, which may be beneficial to the effectiveness of the capsules.

  • De-sheng WANG , Jia-xin FAN , Ri-qing CHENG , Shi-kui WU , Lai-bing WANG , Jia-hao SHI , Ting-ting CHEN , Qin-fang HE , Chang-jin XU , Hui-qing GUO
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0286

    Three-dimensional ordered porous carbon materials exhibit potential application prospects as excellent drug supports in drug delivery systems due to their high specific surface area, tunable pore structure, and excellent biocompatibility. In this study, three-dimensional ordered porous carbon materials were prepared using Acanthopanax senticosus herbal residues as raw material and KOH as activating agent through a one-step pyrolysis method. The prepared carbon-based material was systematically characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, N2 adsorption-desorption and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. The results show that the three-dimensional ordered porous carbon materials prepared with KOH as the activator via pyrolysis possess abundant functional groups, high porosity, and high specific surface area, with a specific surface area of 1 471.6 m2·g-1. The three-dimensional ordered porous carbon materials prepared at 800 ℃ exhibits a high drug loading capacity (78.0%) and drug release rate (86.8%) for 5-fluorouracil. Three-dimensional orderly porous carbon materials show significant application advantages in drug construction, and their high specific surface area and adjustable pore size structure significantly improve the drug load rate and drug release rate, providing a solid foundation for the development of efficient and accurate drug delivery system.

  • Hui-long XU , Nan YANG , Yu-yan HONG , Meng-ting PAN , Yu-chun GUO , Shi-ming FAN , Wen XU
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0070

    Analyze the changes in phenolic components and gene expression profiles of Tetrastigma hemsleyanum leaves with supplemental blue light, and screen differentially expressed genes related to phenolic metabolism, providing a basis for improving the quality of T. hemsleyanum leaves. Using the leaves of T. hemsleyanum under supplemental blue light and visible light as research materials, the content of phenolic components such as neochlorogenic acid, chlorogenic acid, and 3-O-coumaroyl quinic acid was significantly increased by supplemental blue light. A total of 102 949 unigenes were obtained from the transcriptome, including 14 564 differentially expressed unigenes. They can be divided into 52 subclasses by gene ontology (GO) function, kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis showed that these differentially expressed unigenes were significantly enriched in phenolic metabolic pathways such as phenylpropane biosynthesis, flavonoid biosynthesis and isoflavone biosynthesis. A total of 63 differentially expressed unigenes were identified in the pathways related to the biosynthesis of phenolic cpmponents, including 19 key enzymes such as phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL), cinnamyl-alcohol dehydrogenase (CAD), flavonol synthase (FLS), and so on. This study greatly enriched the genetic data information of T. hemsleyanum and laid a foundation for analyzing the mechanism of blue light promoting the biosynthesis of phenols and molecular breeding of T. hemsleyanum.

  • Hong-chao WANG , Zheng-wei XIE , Qi-ao MA , Tie-lin WANG , Guang YANG , Xiao-ting XU , Kai SUN , Xiu-lian CHI
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0338

    Lamiophlomis rotata is an important medicinal plant species endemic to the Tibetan Plateau, which is prone to strong climate change impacts on its habitable range due to the high sensitivity of the Tibetan Plateau to climate change. Accurate quantification of species vulnerability to climate change is essential for assessing species extinction risk and developing effective conservation strategies. Therefore, we carried out the α-shape analysis to determine the habitat of L. rotata. We then carried out the climate-niche factor analysis (CNFA) to assess the vulnerability of L. rotata to climate change based on five climate variables (i.e., mean diurnal range, temperature seasonality, mean temperature of warmest quarter, precipitation of driest month and precipitation of warmest quarter) in the context of two shared socioeconomic pathways (i.e., SSP126 and SSP585) and three global climate models (CMCC-ESM2: Centro Euro-Mediterraneo sui Cambiamenti Climatici-Earth System Model version 2; HadGEM3-GC31-LL: Hadley Global Environment Model version 3-Global Coupled configuration 3.1; IPSL-CM6A-LR: Institut Pierre Simon Laplace-Climate Model version 6) during two different periods (2041-2060 and 2081-2100). The vulnerability of L. rotata to climate change was calculated by integrating the sensitivity and exposure indices of L. rotata to five climate variables. The results showed that L. rotata had the highest vulnerability to the precipitation of warmest quarter. Its vulnerability within its habitat range generally showed a spatial pattern of high value in the southern region and low in the northern region, high in the western region and low in the eastern region. In general, the vulnerability of L. rotata under the SSP585 scenario was higher than that under the SSP126 scenario. The climate data of different global climate models have some influence on the results, while the resulted uncertainty can be reduced by data integration methods. As a result of climate change, the pressure on the survival of L. rotata in the future will be intensified in the low-altitude areas such as the Yarlung Zangbo River, Yigongzangbu River, Zayu River, and Jiaomuzu River, etc., while the highly weathered scree flats or stony alpine meadows in the high-altitude zones, such as the eastern Tanggula Mountain Range, the northern part of Hengduan Mountain Range, and the western part of the Qinling Mountains, may become its refuge. It is necessary to focus on and strengthen the protection and management of L. rotata resources in these vulnerble and critical areas.

  • Ya-xin YU , Li-jun LONG , Chang-zhu LI , Hui-jie ZENG , Zhong-quan QIAO , Si-si LIU , Ying-zi MA
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0405

    The MADS-box gene family is a very important transcriptional regulator gene, which plays a role in the whole growth and development process of plants. The APETALA1 (AP1) gene is considered to play an important regulatory role in the transformation of plant flowering, but also to control the characteristic development of floral organs. Lonicera macranthoides is used as medicine with dry buds and early flowers. Therefore, studying the potential mechanism of AP1 gene in regulating flower organ development can provide a basis for improving its medicinal value by molecular means. To explore the potential mechanism of the AP1 gene in the regulation of floral organ development in L. macranthoides, the full-length cDNA of the AP1 was cloned by reverse transcription PCR (RT-PCR) and named LmMADS4. The results show that the CDS of the LmMADS4 gene is 729 bp and encodes 242 amino acids, and the LmMADS4 protein contains no signal peptide and no transmembrane structure, which is an unstable hydrophilic protein. Through homologous sequence alignment and phylogenetic analysis, LmMADS4 and L. japonica MADS27 protein cluster into one class and are closely related. Finally, the expression pattern and protein interaction pattern of LmMADS4 were analyzed by real-time reverse transcription-PCR (qRT-PCR) and yeast two-hybrid technology. The qRT-PCR showed that LmMADS4 gene was differentially expressed in the stems, leaves and flower bud at different developmental stages, including bud type variety Longhua and common variety Baiyun; and LmMADS4 gene was highly expressed in the flower buds, and with the development of flower buds, LmMADS4 gene was continuously up-regulated in the flower bud variety Longhua, however, the expression level of LmMADS4 in the Baiyun terminal flower bud was lower than that in the late flower bud, but the difference was not significant. The yeast two-hybrid results showed that the bait vector pGBKT7-LmMADS4 was not toxic to yeast strains and had no self-activating activity. LmMADS4 protein interacted with LmSVP1, LmSVP3 and LmSOC1s proteins. This study can provide a theoretical basis for exploring the mechanism of long flower bud stage and corolla non-unfolding at the molecular level and variety improvement of L. macranthoides.

  • Xu HAN , Xiao-wen LI , Feng ZHANG , Lei FANG , Li SHEN
    doi: 10.16438/j.0513-4870.2024-0415

    Three compounds were obtained from the crude extract of the fermentation broth of endophyte Myrothecium roridum IFB-E008 in Trachelospermum jasminoides by silica gel column chromatography, Sephadex LH-20 gel column chromatography and high performance liquid chromatography. They were determined as 3′-iso-isororidin A (1), verrol (2) and N-acetyltryptamine (3), respectively, through HR-MS, 1D and 2D NMR and literature comparison. 3′-iso-isororidin A (1) is a new trichothecene macrolide that has never been reported in the literature. The in vitro cytotoxicity assay showed that compound 2 had certain cytotoxicity against the human gastric cell line SGC-7901 with half inhibition concentration (IC50) of 59.79 μg·mL-1 (158.1 μmol·L-1), while IC50 value of the positive control cisplatin was 6.58 μg·mL-1 (21.9 μmol·L-1).