scholarly journals Adhatoda Vasica: a potential ayurvedic intervention against COVID-19 associated impaired immune response and hypoxia-inflammation phenotype

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atish Gheware ◽  
Dhwani Dholakia ◽  
S. Kannan ◽  
Lipsa Panda ◽  
Vivek Anand ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: The importance of hypoxia inducible factor-1 α (HIF-1α) stabilization in uncontrolled infection and inflammation is widely accepted. Several inhibitors of HIF signalling are in clinical trials for malignancy, ischemia and inflammatory diseases. Increased hypoxia is being reported to be an important modifier for several pathological features of COVID-19 such as impaired immunity, hyper-inflammation, thrombosis, lung injury and sepsis. Methods: In this study we tested the effect of whole aqueous extract Adhatoda Vasica (AV), that our group has shown to have anti-hypoxic and anti-inflammatory effects, on various outcomes of hypoxic response. Effects of AV were assessed in preclinical mouse models of pulmonary fibrosis, bacterial sepsis and siRNA induced hypoxia-thrombosis phenotype. Therapeutic relevance of AV in current pandemic were also examined through transcriptome and molecular docking analysis. Results: Oral administration AV extract attenuated the increased levels of airway inflammation, collagen content, transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), IL-6, HIF-1α and improved the overall survival rate in bleomycin treated and Cecum Ligation and Puncture (CLP) induced mice. AV treatment also rescued the prolyl hydroxylase domain 2 (phd2) siRNA induced HIF-1α and associated blood coagulation phenotypes in mice. Transcriptome analysis of lungs of AV treated naïve mice reveal downregulation of hypoxia, inflammation, TGF-β1 and angiogenesis and upregulation of adaptive immunity related genes. These genes and pathways show opposite expression in transcriptome of BALF and PBMCs of SARS-CoV2 infected patient. Molecular docking of AV constituents presents in extract reveal many molecules with low binding energy (≤ -8) to multiple SARS-CoV2 and host target proteins that are relevant in viral entry and replication. Conclusion: Our results provide a scientific rationale for this ayurvedic herbal medicine in ameliorating the anti-inflammatory and anti-HIF-1α effect for potential use in management of COVID19 patients.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atish Prabhakar Gheware ◽  
Dhwani Dholakia ◽  
S Kanan ◽  
Lipsa Panda ◽  
Vivek Anand ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: The importance of hypoxia inducible factor-1 α (HIF-1α) stabilization in uncontrolled infection and inflammation is widely accepted. Several inhibitors of HIF signalling are in clinical trials for malignancy, ischemia and inflammatory diseases. Increased hypoxia is being reported to be an important modifier for several pathological features of COVID-19 such as impaired immunity, hyper-inflammation, thrombosis, lung injury and sepsis. Methods: In this study we tested the effect of whole aqueous extract Adhatoda Vasica (AV), that our group has shown to have anti-hypoxic and anti-inflammatory effects, on various outcomes of hypoxic response. Effects of AV were assessed in preclinical mouse models of pulmonary fibrosis, bacterial sepsis and siRNA induced hypoxia-thrombosis phenotype. Therapeutic relevance of AV in current pandemic were also examined through transcriptome and molecular docking analysis. Results: Oral administration AV extract attenuated the increased levels of airway inflammation, collagen content, transforming growth factor-b1 (TGF-b1), IL-6, HIF-1α and improved the overall survival rate in bleomycin treated and Cecum Ligation and Puncture (CLP) induced mice. AV treatment also rescued the prolyl hydroxylase domain 2 (phd2) siRNA induced HIF-1α and associated blood coagulation phenotypes in mice. Transcriptome analysis of lungs of AV treated naïve mice reveal downregulation of hypoxia, inflammation, TGF-b1 and angiogenesis and upregulation of adaptive immunity related genes. These genes and pathways show opposite expression in transcriptome of BALF and PBMCs of SARS-CoV2 infected patient. Molecular docking of AV constituents presents in extract reveal many molecules with low binding energy (≤ -8) to multiple SARS-CoV2 and host target proteins that are relevant in viral entry and replication. Conclusion: Our results provide a scientific rationale for this ayurvedic herbal medicine in ameliorating the hypoxia-hyperinflammation features which could be useful against SARS-CoV-2 infection.


2014 ◽  
Vol 82 (9) ◽  
pp. 3678-3686 ◽  
Author(s):  
César Echeverría ◽  
Ignacio Montorfano ◽  
Pablo Tapia ◽  
Claudia Riedel ◽  
Claudio Cabello-Verrugio ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTDuring endotoxemia-induced inflammatory disease, bacterial endotoxins circulate in the bloodstream and interact with endothelial cells (ECs), inducing dysfunction of the ECs. We previously reported that endotoxins induce the conversion of ECs into activated fibroblasts. Through endotoxin-induced endothelial fibrosis, ECs change their morphology and their protein expression pattern, thereby suppressing endothelial markers and upregulating fibrotic proteins. The most commonly used fibrotic inducers are transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1) and TGF-β2. However, whether TGF-β1 and TGF-β2 participate in endotoxin-induced endothelial fibrosis remains unknown. We have shown that the endotoxin-induced endothelial fibrosis process is dependent on the TGF-β receptor, ALK5, and the activation of Smad3, a protein that is activated by ALK5 activation, thus suggesting that endotoxin elicits TGF-β production to mediate endotoxin-induced endothelial fibrosis. Therefore, we investigated the dependence of endotoxin-induced endothelial fibrosis on the expression of TGF-β1 and TGF-β2. Endotoxin-treated ECs induced the expression and secretion of TGF-β1 and TGF-β2. TGF-β1 and TGF-β2 downregulation inhibited the endotoxin-induced changes in the endothelial marker VE-cadherin and in the fibrotic proteins α-SMA and fibronectin. Thus, endotoxin induces the production of TGF-β1 and TGF-β2 as a mechanism to promote endotoxin-induced endothelial fibrosis. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report showing that endotoxin induces endothelial fibrosis via TGF-β secretion, which represents an emerging source of vascular dysfunction. These findings contribute to understanding the molecular mechanism of endotoxin-induced endothelial fibrosis, which could be useful in the treatment of inflammatory diseases.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi-Ting Chen ◽  
Tso-Wen Wang ◽  
Tsung-Hao Chang ◽  
Teng-Po Hsu ◽  
Jhih-Ying Chi ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTPancreatic cancer is refractory and characterized by extensively surrounding- and intra-tumor fibrotic reactions that are contributed by activated pancreatic stellate cells (PSCs). Activation of PSCs plays a pivotal role for developing fibrotic reactions to affect themselves or pancreatic cancer cells (PCCs). In the current study, we demonstrated that hepatoma-derived growth factor (HDGF) was secreted from transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1)-treated PSCs. We found that HDGF contributed to anti-apoptosis of PSCs and led to synthesis and depositions of extracellular matrix proteins for stabilizing PSCs/PCCs tumor foci. CCAAT/enhancer binding protein δ (CEBPD) responds to TGF-β1 through a reciprocal loop regulation and further activated hypoxia inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) contributed to up-regulation ofHDGFgene. It agrees with the observation that severe stromal growth positively correlated with stromal HDGF and CEBPD in pancreatic cancer specimens. Collectively, the identification of TGF-β1-activated CEBPD/HIF-1α/HDGF axis provides new insights for the novel discoveries of HDGF in anti-apoptosis and pro-fibrosis of PSCs and outgrowth of pancreatic cancer cells.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (8) ◽  
pp. 3922
Author(s):  
Edoardo Troncone ◽  
Irene Marafini ◽  
Carmine Stolfi ◽  
Giovanni Monteleone

In physiological conditions, the human intestinal mucosa is massively infiltrated with various subsets of immune cells, the activity of which is tightly regulated by several counter-regulatory factors. One of these factors is transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), a cytokine produced by multiple cell types and targeting virtually all the intestinal mucosal cells. Binding of TGF-β1 to its receptors triggers Smad2/3 signaling, thus culminating in the attenuation/suppression of immune–inflammatory responses. In patients with Crohn’s disease and patients with ulcerative colitis, the major human inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), and in mice with IBD-like colitis, there is defective TGF-β1/Smad signaling due to high levels of the intracellular inhibitor Smad7. Pharmacological inhibition of Smad7 restores TGF-β1 function, thereby reducing inflammatory pathways in patients with IBD and colitic mice. On the other hand, transgenic over-expression of Smad7 in T cells exacerbates colitis in various mouse models of IBD. Smad7 is also over-expressed in other inflammatory disorders of the gut, such as refractory celiac disease, necrotizing enterocolitis and cytomegalovirus-induced colitis, even though evidence is still scarce and mainly descriptive. Furthermore, Smad7 has been involved in colon carcinogenesis through complex and heterogeneous mechanisms, and Smad7 polymorphisms could influence cancer prognosis. In this article, we review the data about the expression and role of Smad7 in intestinal inflammation and cancer.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rujie Huo ◽  
Xinli Tian ◽  
Qin Chang ◽  
Dai Liu ◽  
Chen Wang ◽  
...  

Abstract Background and objective TGF-β1 is a key cytokine involved in airway inflammation and airway remodeling in asthma, owing to its anti-inflammatory and profibrotic effects. In our previous study, we found that the knockdown of cytosolic β-catenin mitigated the profibrogenic effect of TGF-β1 without affecting its anti-inflammatory effect. However, the exact role of targeting β-catenin in asthma is not yet fully demonstrated. In the present study, we investigated the effect and mechanism of targeting β-catenin in OVA-challenged asthmatic rats with airway inflammation and remodeling features. Methods We integrated experimental asthma model and asthma related cell model to explore the effect of targeting β-catenin on airway inflammation and remodeling of asthma. Results Blocking β-catenin with ICG001, a small molecule inhibitor of β-catenin/TCF via binding to CBP, attenuated airway inflammation by increasing the level of the anti-inflammatory cytokines IL-10, IL-35, and reducing the level of proinflammation cytokine IL-17. Suppressing β-catenin with ICG001 has an inhibitory effect on airway remodeling via reducing the level of TGF-β1 and the expression of MMP-7 and Snail, upregulating expression of E-cadherin, downregulating expressions of α-SMA and Fn. Inhibiting β-catenin with ICG001 suppressed TGF-β1-induced proliferation and activation of lung fibroblast (CCC-REPF-1) cells, and blocked TGF-β1-induced, blocked TGF-β1 induced EMT of alveolar type II epithelial (RLE-6TN) cells. Conclusions Blockade of β-catenin/TCF not only prevents TGF-β1 induced EMT and profibrogenic effects involved in pathological remodeling of airway, but also alleviates airway inflammation in asthma by balancing proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokine.


2021 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hong-Mou Shih ◽  
Szu-Yu Pan ◽  
Chih-Jen Wu ◽  
Yu-Hsiang Chou ◽  
Chun-Yuan Chen ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Renal erythropoietin (EPO)-producing (REP) cells produce EPO through hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) 2α-activated gene transcription. Insufficient EPO production leads to anemia in patients with chronic kidney disease. Although recombinant EPO is effective to improve anemia, no reliable REP cell lines limit further progress of research and development of novel treatment. Methods We screened Epo mRNA expression in mouse fibroblast cell lines. Small interfering RNA specific for HIF1α or HIF2α was transfected to study Epo expression in C3H10T1/2 cells. The effect of transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) on HIF-EPO axis was studied in C3H10T1/2 cells and mice. Results Similar to mouse REP pericytes, C3H10T1/2 cells differentiated to α-smooth muscle actin+ myofibroblasts after exposure to TGF-β1. Specific HIF knockdown demonstrated the role of HIF2α in hypoxia-induced Epo expression. Sustained TGF-β1 exposure increased neither DNA methyltransferase nor methylation of Epas1 and Epo genes. However, TGF-β1 repressed HIF2α-encoding Epas1 promptly through activating activin receptor-like kinase-5 (ALK5), thereby decreasing Epo induction by hypoxia and prolyl hydroxylase domain inhibitor roxadustat. In mice with pro-fibrotic injury induced by ureteral obstruction, upregulation of Tgfb1 was accompanied with downregulation of Epas1 and Epo in injured kidneys and myofibroblasts, which were reversed by ALK5 inhibitor SB431542. Conclusion C3H10T1/2 cells possessed the property of HIF2α-dependent Epo expression in REP pericytes. TGF-β1 induced not only the transition to myofibroblasts but also a repressive effect on Epas1-Epo axis in C3H10T1/2 cells. The repressive effect of TGF-β1 on Epas1-Epo axis was confirmed in REP pericytes in vivo. Inhibition of TGF-β1-ALK5 signaling might provide a novel treatment to rescue EPO expression in REP pericytes of injured kidney.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (6) ◽  
pp. 2952
Author(s):  
Tzu-Yu Hou ◽  
Shi-Bei Wu ◽  
Hui-Chuan Kau ◽  
Chieh-Chih Tsai

Transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1)-induced myofibroblast transdifferentiation from orbital fibroblasts is known to dominate tissue remodeling and fibrosis in Graves’ ophthalmopathy (GO). However, the signaling pathways through which TGF-β1 activates Graves’ orbital fibroblasts remain unclear. This study investigated the role of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway in TGF-β1-induced myofibroblast transdifferentiation in human Graves’ orbital fibroblasts. The MAPK pathway was assessed by measuring the phosphorylation of p38, c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), and extracellular-signal-regulated kinase (ERK) by Western blots. The expression of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), and fibronectin representing fibrogenesis was estimated. The activities of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases (TIMPs) responsible for extracellular matrix (ECM) metabolism were analyzed. Specific pharmacologic kinase inhibitors were used to confirm the involvement of the MAPK pathway. After treatment with TGF-β1, the phosphorylation levels of p38 and JNK, but not ERK, were increased. CTGF, α-SMA, and fibronectin, as well as TIMP-1 and TIMP-3, were upregulated, whereas the activities of MMP-2/-9 were inhibited. The effects of TGF-β1 on the expression of these factors were eliminated by p38 and JNK inhibitors. The results suggested that TGF-β1 could induce myofibroblast transdifferentiation in human Graves’ orbital fibroblasts through the p38 and JNK pathways.


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