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Introduction: Berberine is derived from rhizoma coptidis, a well-known Traditional Chinese herbal Medicine that has been found to be effective in the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus in recent years. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of berberine on a gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) rat model and the related mechanisms. Methods: GDM was induced in Sprague–Dawley rats using a high-fat diet before and during pregnancy. Berberine (100 mg/kg/day) was administered from the 7th to 20th day of pregnancy. Insulin resistance (IR), glucose tolerance, and maternal, fetal, and placental weight were determined. Liver histopathological analysis, as well as analysis of C-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), inhibitor kappa B kinaseβ (IKKβ), nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB), c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1), and protein kinase B (AKT), was performed at the end of pregnancy. Results: Treatment of GDM rats with berberine markedly decreased IR, the number of dead and absorptive fetuses, maternal body weight gain, and fetal and placental weight compared with GDM without berberine. Furthermore, berberine decreased CRP and TNF-α levels, IKKβ expression, NF-κB P65 nuclear translocation, and changed the phosphorylation of JNK, IRS-1, and AKT in the liver of GDM rats. Conclusions: Berberine improved IR and maternal–fetal outcomes of GDM rats, possibly through modulation of IKK/NF-κB, JNK, and IRS-1/AKT signaling pathways in the liver. Therefore, berberine may be a potential GDM treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: To describe the characteristics of plasma lipid proliferation in cervical cancer and further evaluate the prognostic significance of lipid levels in cervical cancer. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 1713 patients with cervical cancer in our hospital. The preoperative plasma lipid profile, including cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL), of 1713 cervical cancer patients was compared with that of 10,397 healthy women. Then, we evaluated the impact of lipids on overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) in cervical cancer using univariate and multivariate Cox models. Results: While plasma TC, TG, and LDL were significantly higher, HDL was lower in patients with cervical cancer than in healthy women. TG was identified as an independent predictor for RFS and OS among patients with cervical cancer. Further stratified by age, patients with higher TGs showed a significantly worse RFS and OS than those with lower TGs among patients ≥ 50 years old but not among those < 50 years old. Conclusion: Cervical cancer was associated with a disordered lipid profile. Hypertriglyceridemia was an independent poor prognostic indicator for cervical cancer, especially for elderly patients. Strengthening lipid management may be beneficial for improving postoperative OS and RFS in patients with cervical cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]