RESULTS Combination treatment with catalpol and rhein significantly alleviated the clinical disability and neurological dysfunction of mice with EAE. Catalpol and rhein treatment also reduced the infiltration of pro-inflammatory T cells into pathological lesions; significantly increased the expression of the anti-inflammatory factors GATA3, Foxp3, IL-4, and IL-10; and significantly decreased the expression of the pro-inflammatory factors T-bet, ROR-γt, IL-2, and IL-17A. CONCLUSION Catalpol and rhein reduced the neurological disabilities of mice with EAE, at least in part by rebalancing the pro- and anti-inflammatory environment in the brains and spinal cords.OBJECTIVE To examine the role of KSOP1009 (a modified formulation of Suhexiang Wan essential oil) in an animal model of Parkinson's disease (PD) induced by 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) injection. METHODS Cell toxicity, apoptosis, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels were analyzed in the human neuroblastoma cell line SH-SY5Y. After that, changes in animal behavior and tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) protein levels in the substantia nigra (SN) of MPTP-injected mice were examined. Three different doses of KSOP1009 (30, 100, and 300 mg/kg, n = 8 for each group) were administered daily for 7 d before MPTP injection and 14 d after MPTP injection, totaling 21 d. RESULTS MPP+, the active metabolite of MPTP, decreased the viability of SH-SY5Y cells, whereas KSOP1009 alleviated MPP+-induced cytotoxicity. KSOP1009 (10 and 50 mg/mL) reduced MPP+-induced ROS generation compared with the control group. Treatment with 1 mM MPP+ increased the percentage of depolarized/live cells, whereas KSOP1009 intake urons and dopamine levels in the brain of MPTP-treated mice. CONCLUSION KSOP1009 protected mice against MPTP-induced toxicity by decreasing ROS formation and restoring mitochondrial function.OBJECTIVE To observe the effects of New Dayuan powder (NDYP) on Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) biofilms and the embedded bacteria in vitro. METHODS 2,3-Bis-(2-methoxy-4-nitro-5-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium-5-carboxanilide (XTT) assays were used to study the effects of NDYP on developing MRSA biofilms 100 μL of bacterial culture and 100 μL drug solution were added to wells of 96-well plates. After 24 h of incubation, the plates were washed and XTT-phenazine methyl sulfate (PMS) was added to enable counting of the number of live bacteria in biofilms using a microplate reader. XTT assays were also used to explore the effects of NDYP on mature MRSA biofilms 100 μL of bacterial culture were added to wells of 96-well plates. Bacteria were cultured in the plates for 24 h, and then drug solution was added. The plates were cultured for another 24 h, and then XTT-PMS was added to detect the number of live bacteria in the biofilms. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to observe the effects of NDYP on mature MRSA biofilms washed and sterilized glass coverslips were added to 24-well plates. selleck chemicals llc Bacterial culture was added. After 24 h of incubation, drug solution was added. After another 24 h of incubation, the samples were observed by SEM. RESULTS XTT assays showed that the number of live bacteria in both developing and mature MRSA biofilms decreased significantly (P less then 0.01) after the administration of NDYP. SEM images showed that NDYP could destroy the structure of the bacteria and resulted in uneven thickness of MRSA biofilms. CONCLUSION In vitro, NDYP has obvious inhibitory effects on the formation of MRSA biofilms and on mature biofilms.OBJECTIVE To evaluate the efficacy of Renshen Sanqi Chuanxiong formula (RSCF) for preventing vascular aging, and to investigate the possible molecular mechanism underlying the actions of RSCF. METHODS Potentially active components and their relatively direct targets were identified by combining drug-likeness (DL) screening using a target identification process. Vascular aging-associated targets for RSCF were obtained by selecting common genes not only from potential targets but also from human vascular aging-associated genes. Cytoscape 3.2.1 software was employed to visualize the complex compound-target and target-function networks. Biological process and molecular function were assessed, and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes and pathway enrichment analyses were performed using ClueGO. Pathways directly associated with vascular aging were integrated into a ""vascular aging-related"" pathway. RESULTS Altogether, 122 potentially active components of RSCF were identified through DL screening, and theiruggested that many components act synergistically on common targets to delay vascular aging, and each target is involved in multiple functional modules. The ClueGO analysis indicated that most of the targets were connected to the HIF-1 signaling pathway, FOXO signaling pathway, and thyroid hormone signaling pathway.OBJECTIVE To investigate the phytochemicals and in vitro antioxidant, antimicrobial and cytotoxic potential of Rumex dentatus (R. dentatus) leaf extracts. METHODS The total phenolics and flavonoids content of R. dentatus extracts were evaluated by the Folin-Ciocalteu and aluminum chloride colorimetric methods respectively. Antioxidant potential of studied plant extracts was assessed through 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging capacity, total reducing power and total antioxidant methods. Moreover, antibacterial and antifungal capacity was also evaluated by disc diffusion method against six clinically isolated multi-drug resistant bacterial strains as well as six fungal isolates. Further, cell cytotoxicity was also evaluated through 3-(4, 5-dimethylthiazolyl-2)-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay. RESULTS Ethanol extract showed highest total phenolic [(38.9 ± 1.5) μg gallic acid equivalent/mg] and total flavonoids [(17.2 ± 1.9) μg quercetin equivalent /mg] contents. Antioxidant assays indicated that ethanol and methanol extracts possess potent antioxidant potential. Moreover, it was observed that ethanol and hexane extracts have the potential to inhibit most of the tested multi-drug resistant bacterial strains while methanol, chloroform and hexane extracts could inhibit the growth of pathogenic fungal strains successfully. Among all the studied extracts, ethanolic extract showed highest cytotoxicity against MCF-7 cell line then Hep-2 and DU-145 cell lines by MTT assay with lowest IC50 of 47.3 μg/mL. CONCLUSION These results suggest that R. dentatus could be a potent alternative candidate for treatment of microbial infections and for breast cancer treatment.