Department of Endocrinology, Cangzhou Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese Medicine and Western Medicine of Hebei Province Affiliated to Hebei University of Chinese Medicine, Cangzhou, China.
Qingxian Branch of Cangzhou Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese Medicine and Western Medicine of Hebei Province Affiliated to Hebei University of Chinese Medicine, Cangzhou, China.
Curr Drug Metab. 2023;24(10):709-722. doi: 10.2174/0113892002257928231031113337.
Crocin is one of the main components of Crocus sativus L. and can alleviate oxidative stress and inflammation in diabetic nephropathy (DN). However, the specific mechanism by which crocin treats DN still needs to be further elucidated.
In the present study, a mouse model of DN was first established to investigate the therapeutic effect of crocin on DN mice. Subsequently, non-targeted metabolomics techniques were used to analyze the mechanisms of action of crocin in the treatment of DN. The effects of crocin on CYP4A11/PPARγ and TGF-β/Smad pathway were also investigated.
Results showed that crocin exhibited significant therapeutic and anti-inflammatory, and anti-oxidative effects on DN mice. In addition, the non-targeted metabolomics results indicated that crocin treatment affected several metabolites in kidney. These metabolites were mainly associated with biotin metabolism, riboflavin metabolism, and arachidonic acid metabolism. Furthermore, crocin treatment upregulated the decreased levels of CYP4A11 and phosphorylated PPARγ, and reduced the increased levels of TGF-β1 and phosphorylated Smad2/3 in the kidneys of DN mice.
In conclusion, our study validated the considerable therapeutic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidative impacts of crocin on DN mice. The mechanism of crocin treatment may be related to the regulation of biotin riboflavin and arachidonic acid metabolism, the activation of CYP4A11/PPARγ pathway, and the inhibition of TGF-β/Smad pathway in the kidney.
藏红花苷是藏红花的主要成分之一,可减轻糖尿病肾病(DN)中的氧化应激和炎症。然而,藏红花苷治疗 DN 的具体机制仍需进一步阐明。
本研究首先建立了糖尿病肾病小鼠模型,以研究藏红花苷对糖尿病肾病小鼠的治疗作用。随后,采用非靶向代谢组学技术分析藏红花苷治疗 DN 的作用机制。还研究了藏红花苷对 CYP4A11/PPARγ 和 TGF-β/Smad 通路的影响。
结果表明,藏红花苷对糖尿病肾病小鼠具有显著的治疗作用、抗炎作用和抗氧化作用。此外,非靶向代谢组学结果表明,藏红花苷治疗影响了肾脏中的几种代谢物。这些代谢物主要与生物素代谢、核黄素代谢和花生四烯酸代谢有关。此外,藏红花苷治疗可上调糖尿病肾病小鼠肾脏中 CYP4A11 和磷酸化 PPARγ 的降低水平,并降低 TGF-β1 和磷酸化 Smad2/3 的增加水平。
综上所述,本研究验证了藏红花苷对糖尿病肾病小鼠具有显著的治疗、抗炎和抗氧化作用。藏红花苷治疗的机制可能与调节生物素、核黄素和花生四烯酸代谢、激活 CYP4A11/PPARγ 通路以及抑制肾脏中 TGF-β/Smad 通路有关。