Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0079731 (B-cell lymphoma)
 16,671 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Aristolochic acid (AA) is a natural bioactive substance found in Chinese herbs that induce toxicity during ovarian maturation of animals and humans. Apoptosis is induced by various types of damage and governs the progression of biological cell removal that controls the equilibrium between cell growth and death. However, the AA toxicity mechanism during testis maturation in mouse has not been elucidated and was thus the focus of the present study. This study used TM4 Sertoli cells and an ICR mouse model, both of which were injected with aristolochic acid I (AAI) for 4 weeks. Testis dimensions and weight were surveyed to define AAI cytotoxicity in the mice testis. The MTT assay was used to analyze the cytotoxicity of AAI in TM4 Sertoli cells. An apoptosis expression mediator was analyzed through Western blotting, while the measure of apoptosis-induced cell death of TM4 Sertoli cells and testis tissues was analyzed by the TUNEL assay. We found that AAI strongly inhibits survival in TM4 cells and that AAI significantly activated apoptosis-induced cell death in TM4 Sertoli cells and mice testis tissue. In addition, AAI suppressed the expression of B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2), a factor related to anti-apoptosis. It markedly improved pro-apoptotic protein expression, including Bcl-2-associated X protein, poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase, and caspase-3 and -9. Furthermore, we observed that AAI significantly reduced the size and weight of mouse testis. Moreover, germ cells and somatic cells in testis were markedly damaged by AAI. In addition, we found that AAI significantly inhibits ERK1/2 and Akt activation in TM4 Sertoli cells and testis tissue. The data obtained in this study indicate that AAI causes severe injury for the period of testis development by impeding apoptosis related to the Akt and ERK1/2 pathway.
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PMID:Aristolochic Acid I Causes Testis Toxicity by Inhibiting Akt and ERK1/2 Phosphorylation. 2665 93

At present, the treatment of oligoasthenospermia with western medicine is ineffective. Qilin pill (QLP) is a Chinese traditional medicine for treating male infertility. Recent multicenter clinical studies in China reported that QLPs markedly improved sperm quality. However, the mechanism of action of QLPs on oligoasthenospermia remains unknown. In this study, we investigated the mechanistic basis for improvement of semen parameters and reversal of testis damage by QLPs in a rat model of oligoasthenospermia induced by treatment with tripterygium glycosides (TGs) (40 mg/kg) once daily for 4 weeks. Rats were administered QLPs (1.62 g/kg or 3.24 g/kg) each day for 60 days, with untreated animals serving as controls. The concentration and motility of sperm extracted from rat epididymis were determined, whereas histopathological examination and immunohistochemical apoptosis analysis of rat testes was performed. Expression profiles of apoptosis-related genes were determined by microarray analysis; the results were validated by quantitative real-time PCR, western blotting, and immunohistochemistry. Sperm concentration and motility in the QLP treatment group were increased relative to those in control rats. Testis tissue and DNA damage were reversed by QLP treatment. The improvement function of QLPs on sperm and testis works mainly by suppressing mitochondrial apoptosis in the testis via modulation of B cell lymphoma (Bcl)-2, Bcl-2-associated X protein (Bax), cytochrome C, caspase-9 and caspase-3 expression. QLPs could improve sperm quality and testis damage in a rat model of oligoasthenospermia by inhibiting the Bax-Caspase-9 apoptosis pathway and exerting therapeutic effects.
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PMID:Qilin pills alleviate oligoasthenospermia by inhibiting Bax-caspase-9 apoptosis pathway in the testes of model rats. 2977 1