| After the outbreak of COVID-19 in China, the national health commission of the people’s republic of China distributed guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of COVID-19. Based on that, each region of China made guidelines for traditional Chinese medical treatment of COVID-19 applicable to clinical field. Under the hypothesis that each region’s guideline contains regional characteristics, a comparison was made on pattern identification among each region’s guidelines and central guidelines. At the beginning of the analysis of the cases, opinions on pattern identification vary from region to region, and the diversity is mainly reflected in the early stage of the disease. When the guideline is organized to a certain level due to the accumulation of clinical cases, there is a strong tendency to enumerate various types of pattern identification. It means that as a specific infectious disease progresses, it can appear in various cases due to variables. In some guidelines, disease stages were analyzed by only a limited pathological mechanism, but no regional characteristics were found here. Rather, it may mean that unique characteristics for disease can be derived. |
| In Korean medicine, the "five viscera" theory develops into the theory of homeostasis, in which the dynamic equilibrium state of the yin yang and five elements in the body maintain the balance of the physiological functions. The "five viscera" of the "five elements" can also be referred to as the "functional system," a conceptual system that includes all functional interactions mediated by the organ as well as the organ itself. Nowadays, the structure and function of the organs and tissues in the body are being re-examined, and there is now enough evidence that organs, structures, and their functions that belong to the same "element" are all connected in terms of energy metabolism. The functional system of the "kidney" includes the kidney itself, as well as other components that belong to "water" of the five elements such as bladder, bone, ear, essence, memory, and fear. The authors will discuss the latest findings in science and medicine to expand the understanding of the "Kidney" functional system to the level of molecular physiology. |
| The seeds of Trichosanthes kirilowii (STK) used in traditional Oriental medicine for the treatment of dry cough and constipation have diverse pharmacological activities, including hypolipidemic, antioxidant, immunosuppressive, and anticancer effects. However, the effect of STK on angiogenesis has not been studied yet. In this study, we investigated whether the ethanolic extract of STK (ESTK) can regulate the migration and tube formation of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and explored the underlying mechanism. Results of transwell assay showed that ESTK treatment dose-dependently suppressed the migration of HUVECs. The conditioned medium collected from H1299 human lung cancer cells was used as a chemoattractant. Our observation suggests that ESTK would inhibit the recruitment of endothelial cells into tumors. In addition, ESTK treatment significantly reduced the tube formation of HUVECs. As a molecular mechanism, we found that vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-induced phosphorylation of VEGF receptor 2 (VEGFR2) was completely blocked by ESTK treatment. The expression of angiogenic factors, including VEGFA, fibroblast growth factor 2 (FGF2), angiopoietin, placental growth factor (PGF), platelet derived growth factor (PDGF), angiogenin, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, was commonly decreased by ESTK treatment in H1299 cells, indicating that ESTK would reduce the production of angiogenic factors from cancer cells. Taken together, our results clearly demonstrated that ESTK exhibited anti-angiogenic effects in HUVECs, which provides another possible mechanism underlying the anticancer activities of STK. |
| Atractylodes macrocephala (AM) and Amomum villosum (AV) are the most common herbs in Korean Medicine to treat digestive diseases. In this study, we investigated the cholesterol lowering effects of mixtures of AM and AV extracts on high cholesterol diet (HCD) induced dyslipidemia mouse model. We classified animals into six different groups; Group 1: Normal diet, Group 2: HCD, Group 3: AV extracts : AM extracts (1:1) (200 mg/kg) + HCD, Group 4: AV extracts : AM extracts (1:2) (200 mg/kg) + HCD, Group 5: AV extracts : AM extracts (1:3) (200 mg/kg) + HCD, Group 6: Simvastatin 40 mg/kg + HCD. After 4 weeks of oral administration of respective drugs, we checked body, liver and epididymal fatweights along with liver and serum triacylglyceride (TG) concentration, total and low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol in serum. Moreover, 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA (HMG-CoA) reductase (HMGCR), LDL receptor (LDLR), and sterol regulatory element-binding protein 2 (SREBP2) were detected by RT PCR or western blot analysis. The overall results showed that mixtures of AM and AV extracts inhibited HCD-induced increases of total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol in serum. Those effects seem to be caused by AM and AV extracts through inhibition of HMGCR expression. And thus blood cholesterol is induced into the liver by increasing LDLR expression, which is regulated by SREBP2 transcrption factor. The cholesterol lowering effects and mechanism of mixtures of AM and AV extracts was similar to the statin. We have identified the potential mixtures of AM and AV extracts as a new treatment for dyslipidemia. |
