scholarly journals TCM-Blast for traditional Chinese medicine genome alignment with integrated resources

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhao Chen ◽  
Jing Li ◽  
Ning Hou ◽  
Yanling Zhang ◽  
Yanjiang Qiao

AbstractThe traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) genome project aims to reveal the genetic information and regulatory network of herbal medicines, and to clarify their molecular mechanisms in the prevention and treatment of human diseases. Moreover, the TCM genome could provide the basis for the discovery of the functional genes of active ingredients in TCM, and for the breeding and improvement of TCM. The traditional Chinese Medicine Basic Local Alignment Search Tool (TCM-Blast) is a web interface for TCM protein and DNA sequence similarity searches. It contains approximately 40G of genome data on TCMs, including protein and DNA sequence for 36 TCMs with high medical value.The development of a publicly accessible TCM genome alignment database hosted on the TCM-Blast website (http://viroblast.pungentdb.org.cn/TCM-Blast/viroblast.php) has expanded to query multiple sequence databases to obtain TCM genome data, and provide user-friendly output for easy analysis and browsing of BLAST results. The genome sequencing of TCMs helps to elucidate the biosynthetic pathways of important secondary metabolites and provides an essential resource for gene discovery studies and molecular breeding. The TCMs genome provides a valuable resource for the investigation of novel bioactive compounds and drugs from these TCMs under the guidance of TCM clinical practice. Our database could be expanded to other TCMs after the determination of their genome data.

Molecules ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (19) ◽  
pp. 3505 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi Shin Eng ◽  
Chien Hsing Lee ◽  
Wei Chang Lee ◽  
Ching Chun Huang ◽  
Jung San Chang

Herbal medicine, including traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), is widely used worldwide. Herbs and TCM formulas contain numerous active molecules. Basically, they are a kind of cocktail therapy. Herb-drug, herb-food, herb-herb, herb-microbiome, and herb-disease interactions are complex. There is potential for both benefit and harm, so only after understanding more of their mechanisms and clinical effects can herbal medicine and TCM be helpful to users. Many pharmacologic studies have been performed to unravel the molecular mechanisms; however, basic and clinical studies of good validity are still not enough to translate experimental results into clinical understanding and to provide tough evidence for better use of herbal medicines. There are still issues regarding the conflicting pharmacologic effects, pharmacokinetics, drug interactions, adverse and clinical effects of herbal medicine and TCM. Understanding study validation, pharmacologic effects, drug interactions, indications and clinical effects, adverse effects and limitations, can all help clinicians in providing adequate suggestions to patients. At present, it would be better to use herbs and TCM formulas according to their traditional indications matching the disease pathophysiology and their molecular mechanisms. To unravel the molecular mechanisms and understand the benefits and harms of herbal medicine and TCM, there is still much work to be done.


2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 80-93
Author(s):  
Jieyu Zuo ◽  
Qin Zheng ◽  
Hui Jian ◽  
Tasha Porttin ◽  
Chanelle Willson ◽  
...  

2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Baojin Yao ◽  
Bocheng Lu ◽  
Mei Zhang ◽  
Hongwei Gao ◽  
Xiangyang Leng ◽  
...  

Traditional Chinese medicine is one of the oldest medical systems in the world and has its unique principles and theories in the prevention and treatment of human diseases, which are achieved through the interactions of different types of materia medica in the form of Chinese medicinal formulations. GZZSZTW, a classical and effective Chinese medicinal formulation, was designed and created by professor Bailing Liu who is the only national medical master professor in the clinical research field of traditional Chinese medicine and skeletal diseases. GZZSZTW has been widely used in clinical settings for several decades for the treatment of joint diseases. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms are still largely unknown. In the present study, we performed quantitative proteomic analysis to investigate the effects of GZZSZTW on mouse primary chondrocytes using state-of-the-art iTRAQ technology. We demonstrated that the Chinese medicinal formulation GZZSZTW modulates chondrocyte structure, dynamics, and metabolism by controlling multiple functional proteins that are involved in the cellular processes of DNA replication and transcription, protein synthesis and degradation, cytoskeleton dynamics, and signal transduction. Thus, this study has expanded the current knowledge of the molecular mechanism of GZZSZTW treatment on chondrocytes. It has also shed new light on possible strategies to further prevent and treat cartilage-related diseases using traditional Chinese medicinal formulations.


2021 ◽  
Vol 27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Li-Ping Yu ◽  
Ting-Ting Shi ◽  
Yan-Qin Li ◽  
Jian-Kang Mu ◽  
Ya-Qin Yang ◽  
...  

: Mitophagy plays an important role in maintaining mitochondrial quality and cell homeostasis through the degradation of damaged, aged, and dysfunctional mitochondria and misfolded proteins. Many human diseases, particularly neurodegenerative diseases, are related to disorders of mitochondrial phagocytosis. Exploring the regulatory mechanisms of mitophagy is of great significance for revealing the molecular mechanisms underlying the related diseases. Herein, we summarize the major mechanisms of mitophagy, the relationship of mitophagy with human diseases, and the role of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in mitophagy. These discussions enhance our knowledge of mitophagy and its potential therapeutic targets using TCM.


2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cheng Ma ◽  
Cheng Wang ◽  
Yafang Zhang ◽  
Honglin Zhou ◽  
Yunxia Li

Background: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a kind of metabolic stress-induced liver injury closely related to insulin resistance and genetic susceptibility, and there is no specific drug for its clinical treatment currently. In recent years, a large amount of literature has reported that many natural compounds extracted from traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) can improve NAFLD through various mechanisms. According to the latest reports, some emerging natural compounds have shown great potential to improve NAFLD but are seldom used clinically due to the lacking special research. Purpose: This paper aims to summarize the molecular mechanisms of the potential natural compounds on improving NAFLD, thus providing a direction and basis for further research on the pathogenesis of NAFLD and the development of effective drugs for the prevention and treatment of NAFLD. Methods: By searching various online databases, such as Web of Science, SciFinder, PubMed, and CNKI, NAFLD and these natural compounds were used as the keywords for detailed literature retrieval. Results: The pathogenesis of NAFLD and the molecular mechanisms of the potential natural compounds on improving NAFLD have been reviewed. Conclusion: Many natural compounds from traditional Chinese medicine have a good prospect in the treatment of NAFLD, which can serve as a direction for the development of anti-NAFLD drugs in the future.


2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Guo ◽  
Yabin Gao ◽  
Yaoxian Wang ◽  
Wei Jing Liu ◽  
Jingwei Zhou ◽  
...  

Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is a global pandemic, and microinflammation has been reported as an important pathogenic factor of DKD. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has been used in the treatment of DKD for thousands of years, and modern Chinese medicine studies have found that herbal medicines with heat-clearing property have a curative anti-inflammation effect in DKD. This article reviews the new clinical and experimental progress made in herbal medicines with heat-clearing property, in the treatment of DKD, as well as their safety aspects.


2004 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 211-217 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiao-Dong Cheng ◽  
Chun-Hui Hou ◽  
Xue-Jun Zhang ◽  
Heng-Yue Xie ◽  
Wei-Ying Zhou ◽  
...  

Abstract Huangqi (Astragalus membranaceus), a traditional Chinese medicine, has been used to ameliorate side effects of cancer chemotherapy in China. However, little is known about its molecular mechanisms. Here we show that induction of K562 or HEL cells with 1.5 mg/ml of Huangqi (Hex) (Components extracted from Huangqi) for 3–5 d results in the expression of β-globin gene in both cell lines and leads to terminal differentiation. Moreover, the apoptosis in HEL cells can be induced by increasing concentration of Huangqi (Hex) to 4.5 mg/ml for 3–5 d. Upregulation of Apaf-1, caspase-3 and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) in HEL cells may play a crucial role in the process of apoptosis. The prospect of inducing expression of adult (β) globin gene and apoptosis selectively in cancer cells is obviously attractive from a therapeutic point of view.


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