The desert-dwelling Cistanche herb was first recorded in the "Shen Nong Herbal Classic" and is listed as the top-grade herbal medicine in this publication. The Chinese Pharmacopoeia records that pieces of Cistanche deserticola (CD) and rice wine-steamed Cistanche deserticola (WCD) can be used in the clinic as the main types of decoctions. After being steamed with rice wine, the antiaging and tonifying kidney-yang effects are enhanced. In this study, we detected the chemical content of CD and WCD and the pharmacological mechanism of invigorating kidney-yang deficiency in model rats. Aim. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of CD and WCD on the neuroendocrine-immune function of kidney-yang deficiency in glucocorticoid-overdosed model rats. Materials and methods. Sprague Dawley (SD) rats were selected. The rats were subcutaneously injected with corticosterone water suspension for the glucocorticoid-overdosed model rats. The positive control rats were gavaged with Jinkuishenqi pills and high-, medium-, and low-dose CD/WCD suspensions (1.646 g/(kg day), 5.48 g/(kg day), 2.74 g/(kg day), and 1.37 g/(kg day), respectively); the blank control (BC) and model control (MC) groups were given the same volume of distilled water as those in the drug group for 40 consecutive days at a dose of 1 mL/100 g. After the last administration, the blood was collected from the abdominal aorta, and serum levels of T, CRH, ACTH, CORT, cortisol, IL-10, IL-6, IL-2, TNF-α, and IFN-γ were measured. Organ indexes of the thymus gland and the spleen were calculated. The expression of Bax, Bcl-2, caspase-3, Fas, and FasL in the adrenal gland was measured by immunohistochemistry. The pathological changes in the thymus gland and the adrenal gland were observed by HE staining (×200). T lymphocyte subsets in peripheral blood were detected by flow cytometry, and the expression of CaM mRNA in the hypothalamus and hypophysis tissues was also measured by RT-PCR. Results. Compared with the MC group, the CD and WCD groups exhibited increases in activity, the organ index of the thymus and the spleen, the serum levels of T, CRH, ACTH, CORT, cortisol, IL-2, and IL-10, the ratio of CD4+/CD8+, and the expression of Bcl-2, caspase-3, Fas, FasL, and CaM in the hypophysis tissue. The CD and WCD groups also exhibited reductions in the IL-6, TNF-α, and IFN-γ levels in serum and the expression of CaM mRNA in the hypothalamus. Conclusions. Each dose of CD and WCD could counteract the dysregulated sex hormone and immune factors in glucocorticoid-overdosed model rats, enhancing and restoring the effect of the hypothalamic nerve cells and improving immune function.

This study is aimed to analyze the active ingredients, drug targets, and related pathways in the combination of Salvia miltiorrhiza (SM) and Radix puerariae (RP) in the treatment of cardio-cerebral vascular diseases (CCVDs).

Shikonin (SK) exerts neuroprotective effects; however, to date, its protective effect against chronic cerebral hypoperfusion- (CCH-) induced vascular dementia (VaD) has not been investigated. Therefore, the current study investigated whether SK could mitigate the cognitive deficits caused by CCH. The effects of SK treatment on the PTEN/Akt/CREB/BDNF signaling pathway and apoptosis in hippocampal neurons were examined in a rat model of VaD established via bilateral common carotid artery occlusion (BCCAO). Fifty-two rats were randomly divided into 4 groups: sham, vehicle, SK-L (10 mg/kg SK per day), and SK-H (25 mg/kg SK per day). SK was regularly administered by gavage for 2 weeks. The results of the water maze test revealed that the escape latency in the vehicle group was significantly longer than that in the sham group, and rats in the vehicle group spent a smaller proportion of time in the target quadrant than those in the sham group. SK treatment reduced the escape latencies and increased the proportion of time spent in the target quadrant. Nissl staining showed morphological damage in the CA1 areas of the hippocampus in the vehicle group. SK treatment alleviated the injuries to hippocampal neurons. Western blot analysis showed higher p-PTEN and lower p-Akt, p-CREB, and BDNF expression in the vehicle group than in the sham group. SK administration reversed the upregulation of p-PTEN and the downregulation of p-Akt, p-CREB, and BDNF. The number of terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling- (TUNEL-) positive cells in the hippocampal CA1 region of the vehicle group was significantly increased. Treatment with SK decreased the number of positive cells. Furthermore, as marker proteins of apoptosis, bcl-2 expression was decreased and bax expression was increased; thus, the ratio of bcl-2/bax was decreased in the vehicle group. SK treatment upregulated the expression of bcl-2 and downregulated the expression of bax, thereby elevating the bcl-2/bax ratio. Moreover, the aforementioned effects of SK were dose-dependent. The effect of 25 mg/kg per day was more obvious than that of 10 mg/kg per day. In conclusion, SK inhibited hippocampal neuronal apoptosis to protect against CCH-induced injury by regulating the PTEN/Akt/CREB/BDNF signaling pathway, consequently improving cognitive impairment.

To evaluate the effects and medication safety of Duhuo Jisheng Decoction (DHJSD) alone or as a combination therapy with other interventions on the related clinical index in postmenopausal osteoporosis condition.