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Objective: To determine the therapeutic effect of Danggui Shaoyao San with Huangqi on rats with nephrotic syndrome (NS) was discussed, and the scientific connotation of TCM treatment principle was elaborated, so as to provide experimental basis for its clinical application. Methods: The NS rat model was established by iv administration of adriamycin; The rats were divided into model group, Danggui Shaoyao San group, Danggui Shaoyao San with Huangqi group, Huangqi group and positive drug group, with 10 rats in control group; The best dosage ratio of Danggui Shaoyao San and Huangqi was screened by Excel; 24 h urine protein was measured by BCA method; The electrolyte level was detected by automatic biochemical analyzer; In serum Urea nitrogen (BUN), Creatinine (SCr), Total cholesterol (TC), Triglyceride (TG), Total protein (TP), Albumin (ALB), Immunoglobulin M (Ig-M) and Immunoglobulin G (Ig-G) were detected by the kit; hematoxylin-eosin staining was used to observe the renal morphology; The Total water content (TBW), Extracellular water content (ECF) and Intracellular water content (ICF) were measured by experimental animal body composition analyzer. Results: Compared with the model group, the urine protein in the modified Astragalus group of Danggui Shaoyao Powder was significantly decreased (P < 0.01); Urine electrolytes were significantly decreased and serum electrolytes were significantly increased (P < 0.01); Serum BUN, SCR, TC and TG were significantly decreased (P < 0.01), while TP, ALB, TBW and ICF were significantly increased (P < 0.01); The levels of Ig-M and Ig-G were significantly increased (P < 0.01), TBW and ICF were significantly increased, and ECF was significantly decreased (P < 0.01); Histopathology showed that the pathological changes of renal tissue were obviously alleviated; The improvement of each index was better than that of Danggui Shaoyao San group and Huangqi group. Conclusion: Danggui Shaoyao San with Huangqi group can significantly improve the edema, proteinuria, blood lipid and immune function of NS rats, and the effect is better than that of Danggui Shaoyao San group and Huangqi group . It has the best therapeutic effect on NS, which indicates that Huangqi plays a key synergistic effect on Danggui Shaoyao San, which verifies the scientific connotation of "Yiqi Huoxue Lishui " in the treatment of NS.

Background Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most prevalent cancer globally. In the treatment of CRC, surgical resection is commonly adopted, and neoadjuvant chemotherapy or immunotherapy is mainly administered for patients with advanced disease. However, despite the developments in the field of cancer treatment, the mortality rate of CRC has remained high. Therefore, novel treatments for CRC need to be explored. Astragalus membranaceus, commonly known in China as Huangqi (HQ), a traditional Chinese medicine, has been reported to be a potential antitumorigenic agent. This study aimed to investigate the mechanisms of action of HQ. Methods Active ingredients and putative targets of HQ were obtained through a comprehensive search of the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology database. CRC-related targets were retrieved from the GeneCards database and then overlapping targets were acquired. After visualization of the compound-disease network and protein-protein interaction (PPI) network, Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses of the overlapping genes were performed. Additionally, HCT116 cells were treated with the active components of HQ at a 20-µM concentration. Cell Counting Kit-8 was used to detect cell activity, and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction was carried out to detect the expression of genes downstream of the interleukin (IL)-17 signaling pathway. Results A PPI network comprising 177 nodes and 318 edges was obtained. The GO analysis of the overlapping genes showed enrichment in response to lipopolysaccharide and oxidative process. For the KEGG analysis, the AGE-RAGE signaling pathway and inflammation-related pathways, such as the IL-17 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) signaling pathways, were enriched. The in vitro experiments showed that HQ promoted the apoptosis of CRC cells by inhibiting the expression of the CCL2, CXCL8, CXCL10, and PTGS2 genes. Conclusions This study systematically revealed the multitarget mechanism of HQ in CRC through a network pharmacology approach. We verified that HQ promotes CRC cell death via the IL-17 signaling pathway. This finding provides indications for further mechanistic studies and the development of HQ as a potential treatment for CRC patients.

Astragalus membranaceus (AM) is a traditional Chinese medicinal herb, whose cytoprotective effects remain largely unknown. Here, the bacterial endotoxin lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was applied to a human pulmonary type II‑like epithelial lung adenocarcinoma cell line, a human umbilical vein endothelial cell line, and a human bladder carcinoma cell line to construct in vitro models of intracellular oxidative stress. The authors assayed the cellular and mitochondrial cytoprotective effects of varying doses of AM root extract upon these cell lines. The cell lines were cultured as follows: LPS‑only group, four LPS+AM groups treated with various AM concentrations plus LPS, and an untreated control group. Flow cytometry was used to assess apoptosis and cell cycle progression. A 2',7'‑dichlorofluorescein‑diacetate assay was used to quantitate reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation. Mitochondrial membrane potential (Δψmit) was analyzed by Rhodamine 123 assay. Western blotting was performed to detect cleaved caspase‑3, p53, and B cell lymphoma (Bcl)‑2 levels. Across all cell lines, LPS significantly elevated apoptosis rates, shifted cells to S/G2 phase, increased ROS production, reduced Δψmit, upregulated cleaved caspase‑3, upregulated p53, and downregulated Bcl‑2 relative to controls (all P

The rapidly increasing diabetes mellitus (DM) is becoming a major global public health issue. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has a long history of the treatment of DM with good efficacy. Huangqi and Huanglian are one of the most frequently prescribed herbs for DM, and the combination of them occurs frequently in antidiabetic formulae. However, the synergistic mechanism of Huangqi (Radix Astragali) and Huanglian (Rhizoma Coptidis) has not been clearly elucidated. To address this problem, a feasible system pharmacology model based on chemical, pharmacokinetic and pharmacological data was developed via network construction approach to clarify the synergistic mechanisms of these two herbs. Forty-three active ingredients of Huangqi (mainly astragalosides and isoflavonoids) and Huanglian (primarily isoquinoline alkaloids) possessing favorable pharmacokinetic profiles and biological activities were selected, interacting with 50 DM-related targets to provide potential synergistic therapeutic actions. Systematic analysis of the constructed networks revealed that these targets such as GLUT2, NOS2, PTP1B, and IGF1R were mainly involved in PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, insulin resistance, insulin signaling pathway, and HIF-1 signaling pathway, and were mainly located in retina, pancreatic islet, smooth muscle, immunity-related organ tissues, and whole blood. The contribution index of every active ingredient also indicated five compounds, including berberine (BBR), astragaloside IV (AIV), quercetin, palmatine, and astragalus polysaccharides, as the principal components of this herb combination. These results successfully explained the polypharmcological and synergistic mechanisms underlying the efficiency of Huangqi and Huanglian for the treatment of DM and its complications.

Astragalus membranaceus (AM) is a popular “Qi-tonifying” herb with a long history of use as a Traditional Chinese Medicine with multiple biological functions. However, evidence for the effects of AM on exercise performance and physical fatigue is limited. We evaluated the potential beneficial effects of AM on ergogenic and anti-fatigue functions following physiological challenge. Male ICR strain mice were randomly assigned to four groups (n = 10 per group) for treatment: (1) sedentary control and vehicle treatment (vehicle control); (2) exercise training with vehicle treatment (exercise control); and (3) exercise training with AM treatment at 0.615 g/kg/day (Ex-AM1) or (4) 3.075 g/kg/day (Ex-AM5). Both the vehicle and AM were orally administered for 6 weeks. Exercise performance and anti-fatigue function were evaluated by forelimb grip strength, exhaustive swimming time, and levels of serum lactate, ammonia, glucose, and creatine kinase after 15-min swimming exercise. Exercise training combined with AM supplementation increased endurance exercise capacity and increased hepatic and muscle glycogen content. AM reduced exercise-induced accumulation of the byproducts blood lactate and ammonia with acute exercise challenge. Moreover, we found no deleterious effects from AM treatment. Therefore, AM supplementation improved exercise performance and had anti-fatigue effects in mice. It may be an effective ergogenic aid in exercise training.