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Ageing, an unanswered question in the medical field, is a multifactorial process that results in a progressive functional decline in cells, tissues and organisms. Although it is impossible to prevent ageing, slowing down the rate of ageing is entirely possible to achieve. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is characterized by the nourishing of life and its role in anti-ageing is getting more and more attention. This article summarizes the work done on the natural products from TCM that are reported to have antiageing effects, in the past two decades. The effective anti-ageing ingredients identified can be generally divided into flavonoids, saponins, polysaccharides, alkaloids and others. Astragaloside, Cistanche tubulosa acteoside, icariin, tetrahydrocurcumin, quercetin, butein, berberine, catechin, curcumin, epigallocatechin gallate, gastrodin, 6-Gingerol, glaucarubinone, ginsenoside Rg1, luteolin, icarisid II, naringenin, resveratrol, theaflavin, carnosic acid, catalpol, chrysophanol, cycloastragenol, emodin, galangin, echinacoside, ferulic acid, huperzine, honokiol, isoliensinine, phycocyanin, proanthocyanidins, rosmarinic acid, oxymatrine, piceid, puerarin and salvianolic acid B are specified in this review. Simultaneously, chemical structures of the monomers with antiageing activities are listed, and their source, model, efficacy and mechanism are also described. The TCMs with anti-ageing function are classified according to their action pathways, including the telomere and telomerase, the sirtuins, the mammalian target of rapamycin, AMP-activated kinase and insulin/insulin-like growth factor-1 signalling pathway, free radicals scavenging and the resistance to DNA damage. Finally, Chinese compound prescription and extracts related to anti-ageing are introduced, which provides the basis and the direction for the further development of novel and potential drugs.

BackgroundThis study was performed to investigate the effect of microRNA-203 (miR-203) on cell proliferation and migration in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC).MethodsReal-time PCR was performed to detect the expression of miR-203 in TNBC cell lines. miR-203 precursor and control microRNA (miRNA) were transfected into triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) cell lines and the effects of miR-203 up-regulation on the proliferation and migration of cells were investigated. Meanwhile, the mRNA and protein levels of baculoviral IAP repeat-containing protein 5 (BIRC5) and Lim and SH3 domain protein 1 (LASP1) were measured. Luciferase assays were also performed to validate BIRC5 and LASP1 as miR-203 targets.ResultsBoth miR-203 and BIRC5 siRNA signicantly inhibited cell proliferation in TNBC cells. Both miR-203 and LASP1 siRNA signicantly inhibited cell migration in TNBC cells, also. Moreover, up-regulated of BIRC5 and LASP1 was able to abrogate the effects induced by transfection with the miR-203 precursor.ConclusionsThese data suggest that miR-203 may function as a tumor suppressor in TNBC cells. Thus, miR-203 could be a potential therapeutic target for this disease.

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In order to evaluate impacts of different source emission on marine atmospheric particles over the South China Sea (SCS), major inorganic ionic concentrations (Na + , Cl − , SO 2− 4 , Ca 2+ , Mg 2+ , K + , NH + 4 and NO − 3 ) were determined in total suspended particulates (TSPs) at Yongxing Island, from March 2014 to February 2015. The annual average concentration of TSPs was 89.6 ± 68.0 µg m −3 , with 114.7 ± 82.1, 60.4 ± 27.0 and 59.5 ± 25.6 µg m −3 in cool, warm and transition seasons, respectively. Cl − had the highest concentration, with an annual average of 7.73 ± 5.99 µg m −3 , followed by SO 2− 4 (5.54 ± 3.65 µg m −3 ), Na + (4.00 ± 1.88 µg m −3 ),Concentrations of TSPs and the major ions showed seasonal variations, which were higher in the cool season and lower in the warm and transition seasons. Factors of influence were wind speed, temperature, relatively humidity, rain and air mass source region. Back trajectories, concentration-weighted trajectories (CWTs), and positive matrix factorization (PMF) of chemical compositions were analyzed for source apportionment, source contribution and spatiotemporal variation of major ions. Back trajectories and CWTs showed that air masses at Yongxing Island were mainly from the northeast, southwest and southeast in the cool, warm and transition seasons, respectively. The PMF results showed that 77.4 % of Na + and 99.3 % of Cl − were from sea salt; 60.5 % of NH + 4 was from oceanic emission. Anthropogenic sources were very important for atmospheric aerosols over the island. Secondary inorganic aerosol of SO 2 and NO x from fossil fuel combustion (especially coal in Chinese coastal regions) was the dominant source of NO − 3 (69.5 %) and SO 2− 4 (57.5 %).

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Hibiscus sabdariffa Linn., belonging to the family of Malvaceae, is considered to be a plant with health care applications in China. The main purpose of this study was to analyze the composition of its essential oil and assess its potential therapeutic effect on anti-inflammatory activity. A water steam distillation method was used to extract the essential oil from H. Sabdariffa. The essential oil components were determined by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis and a total of 18 volatile constituents were identified, the majority of which were fatty acids and ester compounds. Biological activity showed that the essential oil extracted from H. Sabdariffa exhibited excellent anti-inflammatory activity in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated macrophage RAW 264.7 cells. The nitric oxide (NO) inhibition rate reached 67.46% when the concentration of the essential oil was 200 μg mL. Further analysis showed that the anti-inflammatory activity of the essential oil extracted from H. Sabdariffa might be exerted through inhibiting the activation of NF-κB and MAPK (JNK and ERK1/2) signaling pathways to decrease NO and pro-inflammatory cytokine (IL-1, IL-6, TNF-α, COX-2, and iNOS) production. Thus, the essential oil extracted from H. Sabdariffa is a good source of a natural product with a beneficial effect against inflammation, and it may be applied as a food supplement and/or functional ingredient.

Essential oil has been popularly used as an alternative for the treatment of inflammation. The bioactivities of essential oil from blossoms of Citrus aurantium L. var. amara Engl (CAVAO) showed greater anti-inflammation potential than that of antioxidant, anticancer, and 3T3-L1 proliferation inhibition. CAVAO (250 μg/mL) significantly inhibited production of nitric oxide (NO) (99.54 ± 2.81%), interleukin-6 (IL-6) (98.11 ± 1.62%), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) (41.84 ± 1.52%), and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) (56.09 ± 2.21%) as well as their gene expression level. CAVAO also markedly decreased the expression levels of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) gene and protein. Furthermore, CAVAO inhibited nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) activation, which was justified by the inhibitory effect on NF-κB nuclear translocation, IκBα phosphorylation and degradation, and phosphorylation-dependent IκB kinase activation in RAW264.7 cells stimulated with lipopolysaccharides. CAVAO also suppressed the phosphorylation of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) and p38, indicating that mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathways were also blocked. The major constituents of CAVAO were characterized as linalool (64.6 ± 0.04%), α-terpineol (7.61 ± 0.03%), (R)-limonene (6.15 ± 0.04%), and linalyl acetate (5.02 ± 0.03%), which might be responsible for its observed anti-inflammation activity. It is concluded that CAVAO has great potential to be developed into a functional food for the treatment of inflammatory-associated diseases.