Enantiomeric Cyclic Peptides with Different Caco‐2 Permeability Suggest Carrier‐Mediated Transport

Recently, oral absorption of cyclic hexapeptides was improved by N‐methylation of their backbone amides. However, the number and position of N‐methylations or of solvent exposed NHs did not correlate to intestinal permeability, measured in a Caco‐2 model. In this study, we investigate enantiomeric pairs of three polar and two lipophilic peptides to demonstrate the participation of carrier‐mediated transporters. As expected, all the enantiomeric peptides exhibited identical lipophilicity (logD_7.4) and passive transcellular permeability determined by the parallel artificial membrane permeability assay (PAMPA). However, the enantiomeric polar peptides exhibited different Caco‐2 permeability (P_app) in both directions a–b and b–a. The same trend was observed for one of the lipophilic peptide, whereas the second lipophilic enantiomer pair showed identical Caco‐2 permeability (within the errors). These findings provide the first evidence for the involvement of carrier‐mediated transport for peptides, especially for those of polar nature.     

Comparative absorption kinetics of seven active ingredients of Eucommia ulmoides extracts by intestinal in situ circulatory perfusion in normal and spontaneous hypertensive rats

Eucommia ulmoides Oliv. (E. ulmoides) is a valuable and nourishing medicinal herb in China that has been used in the treatment of hypertension. Given the fact that most traditional Chinese medicine is mainly used to treat disease, investigating the pharmacokinetics of traditional Chinese medicines in the pathological state is more useful than that in the normal state. However, the differences in the absorption kinetics of active ingredients of E. ulmoides extract between pathological and physiological conditions have not been reported. Therefore, in this study, the rat intestinal in situ circulatory perfusion model was used to investigate the differences in absorption kinetics of seven active ingredients of E. ulmoides extract in normal and spontaneously hypertensive rats, namely, genipinic acid, protocatechuic acid, neochlorogenic acid, chlorogenic acid, cryptochlorogenic acid, (+)-pinoresinol di-O-β-D -glucopyranoside and (+)-pinoresinol 4′-O-β-D -glucopyranoside. Our results indicate that the pathological state of spontaneous hypertension may change the absorption of active components of E. ulmoides extracts, and these findings may provide a reference for improving the rational use of E. ulmoides in the clinic.     

反复上呼吸道感染患儿发样微量元素锌,铜,铁检测结果分析

采用示波极谱法对１８３名反复上呼吸道感染患儿及１１８名健康体检儿同时进行发样锌，铁，铜测定，结果表明，反复上呼吸道感染儿发锌，铁均低于健康体检儿，有高度显著性差异，铜只在婴儿组反复感儿高于健康体检儿，其它各年龄组反复上感儿低于健康栓检儿或无显著性差异，说明以２儿童进行常规发样微量元素普查，发现低锌，低铁者及时给予补充，可减少感染性疾病的发生率。铜与免疫功能的关系尚待研究。     

Purification and properties of a β-galactosidase with potential application as a digestive supplement

Functional-based screening of crude β-galactosidase activities from 42 yeast strains resulted in the selection of a single enzyme of potential interest as a digestive supplement. β-Galactosidase produced by Kluyveromyces marxianus DSM5418 was purified to homogeneity by a combination of gel filtration, ion-exchange, and hydroxylapatite chromatographies. The denatured (123 kDa) and native molecular masses (251 kDa) suggest that the enzyme is a homodimer. The optimum pH and temperature of the purified enzyme were 6.8 and 37°C, respectively. The unpurified β-galactosidase in particular displayed a high level of stability when exposed to simulated intestinal conditions in vitro for 4 h. Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization mass sectrometry analysis revealed that the enzyme's trypsin-generated peptide mass fingerprint shares several peptide fragment hits with β-galactosidases from Kluyveromyces lactis. This confirms the enzyme's identity and indicates that significant sequence homology exists between these enzymes.     

基于分子参数的药物小肠吸收预测模型

选择100个化合物作为数据集,随机选取其中80个为训练集,其他分子为验证集,并为每个化合物分子计算了30个参数.通过采用五种不同多元线性回归分析方法对其训练模拟,建立了数学模型,并用验证集检验了所建模型的预测能力.结果发现向后筛选法为最优小肠吸收建模方法.由该法所建模型的统计结果良好(R2>0.80),应用于验证集时也表现出较强预测能力.该模型确定了对小肠吸收影响较大的分子参数,有助于指导进一步的新药筛选和开发.     

微量元素锌与反复呼吸道感染的相关性

对28例反复呼吸道感染患儿(下称复感儿)及26例健康儿进行微量元素发锌测定。发现前者发锌平均值为(92.3±14.7)×10~(-6),后者为(132.5±21.5)×10~(-6),P<0.01,差异非常显著。对复感儿进行口服锌治疗,观察其疗效及治疗前后发锌变化。治疗前发锌平均值为(92.3±14.7)×10~(-6),治疗后为(137.5±20.2)×10~(-6),P<0.01差异非常显著。有效率达85.7％。故缺锌可能是复感儿患病的影响因素之一,锌治疗小儿反复呼吸道感染是十分必要的。     

Toward a new generation of therapeutics

Scientific evidence in the prevention and treatment of various disorders is accumulating regarding probiotics. The health benefits supported by adequate clinical data include increased resistance to infectious disease, decreased duration of diarrhea, management of inflammatory bowel disease, reduction of serum cholesterol, prevention of allergy, modulation of cytokine gene expression, and suppression of carcinogen production. Recent ventures in metabolic engineering and heterologous protein expression have enhanced the enzymatic and immunomodulatory effects of probiotics and, with time, may allow more active intervention among critical care patients. In addition, a number of approaches are currently being explored, including the physical and chemical protection of cells, to increase probiotic viability and its health benefits. Traditional immobilization of probiotics in gel matrices, most notably calcium alginate and κ-carrageenan, has frequently been employed, with noted improvements in viability during freezing and storage. Conflicting reports exist, however, on the protection offered by immobilization from harsh physiologic environments. An alternative approach, microencapsulation in “artificial cells,” builds on immobilization technologies by combining enhanced mechanical stability of the capsule membrane with improved mass transport, increased cell loading, and greater control of parameters. This review summarizes the current clinical status of probiotics, examines the promises and challenges of current immobilization technologies, and presents the concept of artificial cells for effective delivery of therapeutic bacterial cells.     

LC–MS/MS determination and interaction of the main components from the traditional Chinese drug pair Danshen–Sanqi based on rat intestinal absorption

The Chinese drug pair Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza)–Sanqi (Panax ginseng) has been widely used for centuries treating various cardiovascular disorders, among which salvianlic acid B (SAB), ginsenoside Rg₁ (GRg₁), ginsenoside Rb₁ (GRb₁) and notoginsenoside R₁ (NGR₁) were identified as the major components. The present study focused on the interaction between these components based on investigating their intestinal absorption using the Ussing chamber technique. The concentrations of SAB, GRg₁, GRb1 and NGR₁ in the intestinal perfusate were determined by LC–MS/MS method, followed by Q (accumulative quantity) and P_app (apparent permeability). The results showed that all these four main components displayed very low permeabilities, which implied their poor absorption in the rat intestine. The intestinal absorption level of SAB displayed regioselectivity: duodenum < jejunum < ileum. However, there was no significant difference in the absorption of GRg₁ and GRb₁ in the different segments. The Q and P_app values of the four main components were obviously increased in jejunum when co‐administrating Danshen extract with Sanqi extract. In conclusion, compatibility of Danshen and Sanqi could remarkably improve the intestinal absorption level of the main components in the pair. To some extent, this might explain the nature of the compatibility mechanisms of composite formulae in TCMs.