Pien Tze Huang (PZH) as a Multifunction Medicinal Agent in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM): a review on cellular, molecular and physiological mechanisms

Abstract

Relevance Pien Tze Huang (PZH) is a well-known Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), characterized by a multitude of pharmacological effects, such as hepatoprotection and inhibition of inflammation and cell proliferative conditions. Many of these effects have been validated at the cellular, molecular and physiological levels but, to date, most of these findings have not been comprehensively disclosed. Objectives This review aims to provide a critical summary of recent studies focusing on PZH and its multiple pharmacological effects. As a result, we further discuss some novel perspectives related to PZH’s mechanisms of action and a holistic view of its therapeutic activities. Methods A systematic review was performed focusing on PZH studies originated from original scientific resources. The scientific literature retrieved for this work was obtained from International repositories including NCBI/PubMed, Web of Science, Science Direct and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) databases. Results The major active componentes and their potential functions, including hepatoprotective and neuroprotective effects, as well as anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory activities, were summarized and categorized accordingly. As indicated, most of the pharmacological effects were validated in vitro and in vivo. The identification of complex bioactive components in PZH may provide the basis for further therapeutic initiatives. Conclusion Here we have collectively discussed the recent evidences covering most, if not all, pharmacological effects driven by PZH. This review provides novel perspectives on understanding the modes of action and the holistic view of TCM. The rational development of future clinical trials will certainly provide evidence-based medical evidences that will also confirm the therapeutic advantages of PZH, based on the current information available.

Pien-tze-huang promotes wound healing in streptozotocin-induced diabetes models associated with improving oxidative stress via the Nrf2/ARE pathway

“…PZH is a traditional Chinese remedy that has been found to be effective in treating inflammatory diseases and cancer, more recent studies have investigated its pharmacological effects ( Chen, 2021 ). In our research, we observed for the first time that PZH facilitates wound healing in different biological diabetic models, promotes the expression of NRF2 and its downstream antioxidant genes HO-1 and SOD-1, increases the expression of VEGF-A, PDGF and EGF in diabetic wounds, and reduces the levels of TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 in diabetic mouse serum, contributing to the repair of diabetic wounds.…”

Pien-Tze-Huang alleviates CCl4-induced liver fibrosis through the inhibition of HSC autophagy and the TGF-β1/Smad2 pathway

“…It has been reported that PZH perhaps heals a wide range of liver injuries and inflammation (Fu et al, 2016;Qi et al, 2017;Li et al, 2018;Zhang et al, 2018). Owing to its history of around 500 years, PZH was listed as one of the Chinese National Protected TCM in the 1990s (Chen, 2021). Also, the major active components with their potential functions such as neuro-protecting effects, anti-cancer effects, and antiinflammatory effects including most of the pharmacological effects had been validated and reported (Yan et al, 2017; Frontiers in Pharmacology frontiersin.org et al, 2020).…”

Protective effects of muscone on traumatic spinal cord injury in rats

“…It is widely used in the treatment of dementia, cerebral ischemia, myocardial infarction, diabetic peripheral neuropathy, vertebral endplate degeneration, injury, inflammation, cancer, and other diseases (27)(28)(29)(30)(31)(32)(33)(34)(35)(36)(37)(38). Muscone is one of the anti-inflammatory constituents in a well-known traditional Chinese medicine named Pian-Tze Huang (39). It can reach various parts of the central nervous system through the blood-brain barrier within 5 minutes after gastric administration and within 2 minutes after caudal vein injection (40).…”