thermozymocidin and Liver-Cirrhosis

Cicada flower, Isaria cicadae Miq., has been a traditional Chinese medicine for approximately 1600 years. Many works on its identification, bioactivities, and clinical use against some disorders have been published, but some inaccuracies and inconsistencies need to be further clarified. In combination with our > 20 years of research and application of cicada flower and examination of the literature and patents published in recent years, this article summarizes and reviews the life cycle and taxonomy, genome size and mating type, molecular systematic classification and cultivation, active ingredients, and pharmacological functions of I. cicadae.

Topics: Animals; Anti-Infective Agents; Anti-Inflammatory Agents; Antihypertensive Agents; Antineoplastic Agents; Antioxidants; Cordyceps; Ergosterol; Fatty Acids, Monounsaturated; Fibrosis; Genome, Fungal; Immunologic Factors; Kidney Failure, Chronic; Liver Cirrhosis; Medicine, Chinese Traditional; Nucleosides; Peptides, Cyclic; Polysaccharides

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a serious comorbidity in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Since plasma ceramides are increased in NAFLD and sphingomyelin, a ceramide metabolite, is an independent risk factor for CVD, the role of ceramides in dyslipidemia was assessed using LDLR(-/-) mice, a diet-induced model of NAFLD and atherosclerosis. Mice were fed a standard or Western diet (WD), with or without myriocin, an inhibitor of ceramide synthesis. Hepatic and plasma ceramides were profiled and lipid and lipoprotein kinetics were quantified. Hepatic and intestinal expression of genes and proteins involved in insulin, lipid and lipoprotein metabolism were also determined. WD caused hepatic oxidative stress, inflammation, apoptosis, increased hepatic long-chain ceramides associated with apoptosis (C16 and C18) and decreased very-long-chain ceramide C24 involved in insulin signaling. The plasma ratio of ApoB/ApoA1 (proteins of VLDL/LDL and HDL) was increased 2-fold due to increased ApoB production. Myriocin reduced hepatic and plasma ceramides and sphingomyelin, and decreased atherosclerosis, hepatic steatosis, fibrosis, and apoptosis without any effect on oxidative stress. These changes were associated with decreased lipogenesis, ApoB production and increased HDL turnover. Thus, modulation of ceramide synthesis may lead to the development of novel strategies for the treatment of both NAFLD and its associated atherosclerosis.

Topics: Animals; Apolipoproteins B; Apoptosis; Atherosclerosis; Biological Transport; Body Weight; Ceramides; Cholesterol, HDL; Diet, Western; Fasting; Fatty Acids, Monounsaturated; Feeding Behavior; Gene Expression Regulation; Glucose; Inflammation; Insulin; Liver Cirrhosis; Mice; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease; Oxidative Stress; Receptors, LDL; RNA, Messenger