Effects of Chaihu-Shugan-San capsule for psychogenic erectile dysfunction

et al. 2021

Front. Pharmacol.

Often associated with sexual dysfunction (SD), chronic stress is the main contributing risk factor for the pathogenesis of depression. Radix bupleuri had been widely used in traditional Chinese medicine formulation for the regulation of emotion and sexual activity. As the main active component of Radix bupleuri, saikosaponin D (SSD) has a demonstrated antidepressant effect in preclinical studies. Herein, we sought to investigate the effect of SSD to restore sexual functions in chronically stressed mice and elucidate the potential brain mechanisms that might underly these effects. SSD was gavage administered for three weeks during the induction of chronic mild stress (CMS), and its effects on emotional and sexual behaviors in CMS mice were observed. The medial posterodorsal amygdala (MePD) was speculated to be involved in the manifestation of sexual dysfunctions in CMS mice. Our results revealed that SSD not only alleviated CMS-induced depressive-like behaviors but also rescued CMS-induced low sexual motivation and poor sexual performance. CMS destroyed astrocytes and activated microglia in the MePD. SSD treatment reversed the changes in glial pathology and inhibited neuroinflammatory and oxidative stress in the MePD of CMS mice. The neuronal morphological and functional deficits in the MePD were also alleviated by SSD administration. Our results provide insights into the central mechanisms involving the brain associated with sexual dysfunction. These findings deepen our understanding of SSD in light of the psychopharmacology of stress and sexual disorders, providing a theoretical basis for its potential clinical application.

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Saikosaponin D Rescues Deficits in Sexual Behavior and Ameliorates Neurological Dysfunction in Mice Exposed to Chronic Mild Stress

et al. 2021

Front. Pharmacol.

“…Animal experiments show that Chaihu Shugan San can lessen clinical symptoms and has an obvious therapeutic effect on depression in rats. [143][144][145][146] Xiao Chaihu decoction comes from the "Treatise on Febrile Diseases" and acts to reconcile Shaoyang and regulate the stomach; it is often used to treat liver stagnation and poor vitality. Xiao Chai Hu decoction can promote the recovery of BDNF levels, improve levels of neurofunctional factors, and enhance sleep quality.…”

Section: The Pharmacological Mechanism Of Jzg In the Treatment Of Depmentioning

confidence: 99%

<p>Traditional Chinese Medicine Jiuwei Zhenxin Granules in Treating Depression: An Overview</p>

2020

NDT

Depression is known as "Yu Zheng" in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Jiuwei Zhenxin granules (JZG) is a type of TCM. According to TCM theory, it nourishes the heart and spleen, tonifies Qi, and tranquilizes the spirit, and may also has effects in the treatment of depression. Here, we systematically reviewed recent basic and clinical experimental studies of JZG and depression, including studies of the pharmacological mechanisms, active ingredients, and clinical applications of JZG in depression treatment. This review will deepen our understanding of the pharmacological mechanisms, drug interactions, and clinical applications of TCM prescriptions and provide a basis for the development of new drugs in the treatment of depression.

“…In effort to put forth solutions, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has been considered as a prospective supplementary treatment, due to its proven clinical performance in treating many chronic diseases, mental disorders, and even SARS ( Hao et al, 2017 ; Kim et al, 2008 ; Ren et al, 2019 ; Xiang et al, 2019 ). The Chinese government and other official institutes have published a list of TCM prescriptions recommended for each disease stage of the COVID-19 infection (released by National Health Commission & National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, on March 3, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Officially Recommended in China for COVID-19 Using Ontology-Based Side-Effect Prediction Framework (OSPF) and Deep Learning

Journal of Ethnopharmacology

Song³

et al. 2021

Ethnopharmacological relevance The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Wuhan has imposed a huge influence in terms of public health and economy on society. However, no effective drugs or vaccines have been developed so far. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has been considered as a promising supplementary treatment of this disease due to its clinically proven performance in many severe diseases, like severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). Meanwhile, many reports suggest that the side-effects (SE) of TCM prescriptions cannot be ignored in treating COVID-19 as it often leads to dramatic degradation of the patients’ physical condition. Systematic evaluation of TCM regarding its latent SE becomes a burning issue. Aim In this study, we used an ontology-based side-effect prediction framework (OSPF) developed from our previous work and Artificial Neural Network (ANN)-based deep learning, to evaluate the TCM prescriptions officially recommended by China for the treatment of COVID-19. Materials and methods The OSPF developed from our previous work was implemented in this study, where an ontology-based model separated all ingredients in a TCM prescription into two categories: hot and cold. A database was created by converting each TCM prescription into a vector which contained ingredient dosages, corresponding hot/cold attribution and safe/unsafe labels. This allowed for training of the ANN model. A safety indicator (SI), as a complement to SE possibility, was then assigned to each TCM prescription. According to the proposed SI, from high to low, the recommended prescription list could be optimized. Furthermore, in interest of expanding the potential treatment options, SIs of other well-known TCM prescriptions, which are not included in the recommended list but are used traditionally to cure flu-like diseases, are also evaluated via this method. Results Based on SI, QFPD-T, HSBD-F, PMSP, GCT-CJ, SF-ZSY, and HSYF-F were the safest treatments in the recommended list, with SI scores over 0.8. PESP, QYLX-F, JHQG-KL, SFJD-JN, SHL-KFY, PESP1, XBJ-ZSY, HSZF-F, PSSP2, FFTS-W, and NHSQ-W were the prescriptions most likely to be unsafe, with SI scores below 0.1. In the additional lists of other TCM prescriptions, the indicators of XC-T, SQRS-S, CC-J, and XFBD-F were all above 0.8, while QF-Y, XZXS-S, BJ-S, KBD-CJ, and QWJD-T’s indicators were all below 0.1. Conclusions In total, there were 10 TCM prescriptions with indicators over 0.8, suggesting that they could be considered in treating COVID-19, if suitable. We believe this work could provide reasonable suggestions for choosing proper TCM prescriptions as a supplementary treatment for COVID-19. Furthermore, this work introduces a novel and informative method which could help create recommendation list of TCM prescriptions for the treatment of other diseases.