REVIEW article

Front. Pharmacol., 28 November 2016

Sec. Inflammation Pharmacology

Volume 7 - 2016 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2016.00448

San-Huang-Xie-Xin-Tang Constituents Exert Drug-Drug Interaction of Mutual Reinforcement at Both Pharmacodynamics and Pharmacokinetic Level: A Review

  • JW

    Jiasi Wu 1

  • YH

    Yingfan Hu 1

  • LX

    Li Xiang 1

  • SL

    Sheng Li 2

  • YY

    Yi Yuan 1,2

  • XC

    Xiaomei Chen 3

  • YZ

    Yan Zhang 1

  • WH

    Wenge Huang 1

  • XM

    Xianli Meng 1*

  • PW

    Ping Wang 1*

  • 1. Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine Chengdu, China

  • 2. Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences Chengdu, China

  • 3. Hainan Medical University Hainan, China

Abstract

Inflammatory disorders underlie varieties of human diseases. San-Huang-Xie-xin-Tang (SHXXT), composed with Rhizoma Rhei (Rheum palmatum L.), Rhizoma Coptidis (Coptis chinensis Franch), and Radix Scutellaria (Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi), is a famous formula which has been widely used in the fight against inflammatory abnormalities. Mutual reinforcement is one of the basic theories of traditional Chinese medicine. Here this article reviewed and analyzed the recent research on (1) How the main constituents of SHXXT impact on inflammation-associated signaling pathway molecules. (2) The interaction between the main constituents and efflux pumps or intestinal transporters. The goal of this work was to, (1) Provide evidence to support the theory of mutual reinforcement. (2) Clarify the key targets of SHXXT and suggest which targets need further investigation. (3) Give advice for the clinical use of SHXXT to elevated the absorption of main constituents and eventually promote oral bioavailability. We search literatures in scientific databases with key words of “each main SHXXT constituent,” in combination with “each main inflammatory pathway target molecule” or each main intestinal transporter, respectively. We report the effect of five main constituents on target molecules which lies in three main inflammatory signaling pathways, we as well investigate the interaction between constituents and intestinal transporter. We conclude, (1) The synergistic effect of constituents at both levels confirm the mutual reinforcement theory of TCM as it is proven in this work. (2) The effect of main constituents on downstream targets in nuclear need more further investigation. (3) Drug elevating the absorption of rhein, berberine and baicalein can be employed to promote oral bioavailability of SHXXT.

Introduction

Inflammation, a complex response triggered by pernicious stimuli like pathogens or irritants, verified to be involved in process of many diseases such as Alzheimer Disease, type 2 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, etc., (Chiapinotto Spiazzi et al., 2015; Garimella et al., 2015; Saito et al., 2015). Generally, inflammation is classified as acute and chronic type. Acute type only last a few days with neutrophil infiltration, while chronic type can last up to years with infiltrations of lymphocytes and macrophages (Ambrozova et al., 2016). Inflammatory pathways perform a crucial part for signal transduction and recent research provide genuine evidence showing NF-κB, MAPK and JAK/STAT are the three main pathways (Bertolini, 2012; Ottani et al., 2015).

As a famous traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) formula which has been used for centuries, San-Huang-Xie-Xin-Tang (SHXXT) displays good curative activation in the treatment of inflammatory disorders such as atherosclerosis (Wang Y. S. et al., 2011), upper respiratory tract infection (Ma et al., 2009; Kim et al., 2014), diabetic nephropathy (Wu et al., 2015), gastritis, gastric bleeding and peptic ulcers (Lo et al., 2005), and these protective effects are correlated with reactions of weakening inflammatory by suppressing cytokine/chemokine production. SHXXT has a quite simple composition with only three herbals, namely Radix et Rhizoma Rhei (Rheum palmatum L.) [RR, yields anthraquinones like emodin(Emo), rhein(Rhe) and aloe-emodin (Aem)], Rhizoma Coptidis (Coptis chinensis Franch) [RC, yields alkaloids like berberine(Ber) and coptisine(COP)], and Radix Scutellaria (Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi) [RS, yields flavonoids like baicalin(Bai) and baicalein (Bae)]. Previous studies show the basic effective constituents of SHXXT responsible for the anti-inflammatory effect may be Ber, Bai, Emo, Rhe, and Aem (Ma et al., 2009), plus, Bae is considered as a quality control indicator of RS (Zhang et al., 2013b). In regard of the bioavailability of SHXXT, A rapid and sensitive UPLC-ESI/MS method determined 17 active SHXXT constituents with good linearity in a relatively wide concentration ranges, among which, Bai is the most abundant. In bloodstream, the major forms of SHXXT include Bae, Emo, Aem and Rhe, while only the parent form of Rhe can be detected, and the conjugated effect may be accounted for their physicochemical property differences (Li et al., 2010; Shia et al., 2011).

Intestinal transporters (IT), such as P-gp, MRP, BCRP (Sampson et al., 2015), SGLT1 (Asano et al., 2004) and OCT (Bader et al., 2014), play a critical role in the process of intracellular and efflux transport. Numerous evidence illustrate the main constituents in SHXXT are the substrates of efflux transporters which leads to a very low oral bioavailability (Huang S. et al., 2011; He et al., 2014; Wei et al., 2014; Di et al., 2015). However, most studies only concentrate on solitary constituent, whether they have mutual effect on respective absorption remains to be elucidated.

There's growing evidence indicating that all those constituents above, while exclusively dosed, possess anti-inflammation effect by affecting a variety of target molecules in signaling pathways (Shih et al., 2007; Hamsa and Kuttan, 2012; Zhang et al., 2013a; Hu et al., 2014). We are all clear that, Chinese herbal combination should not only improve curative effects and reduce side effects, but also promote the mutual absorption of effective constituents. In this study, we review the recent studies and discuss how the three classic herbals of SHXXT, RS, RR, and RC, reach the goal of synergistic interaction at both pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetic level.

Pharmacodynamic level

Effect of the active constituents on molecules in NF-κB pathway

TLR-4 is the first described TLRs in mammals, it responds to LPS which can trigger NF-κB activation and pro-inflammatory cytokines secretion (Lee et al., 2010), constituents that can block the binding between TLR-4 and LPS are supposed to be valued in inflammation treatment (Wu et al., 2016). As summarized in Table 1, It is reported that Ber, Bai and Rhe exert inhibitory effect on TLR-4 expression in varies of models (Lee et al., 2010; Li et al., 2011; Cabrera-Benitez et al., 2012; Hou et al., 2012; Chen C. C. et al., 2014; Chen et al., 2015), and the combination of TLR-4 and LPS is observed to be blocked by Ber (Jeong et al., 2014). So, it seems that the anti-inflammatory mechanism of SHXXT begins at a really early stage, ever since LPS are interacting with upstream membrane protein.

Table 1

TargetAnimal or cell cultureModel buildingControl (P or N)DrugDoseTreat timeResult
TLR-4Microglial cellsIL-1βVehicleBer50 μM24 hTLR-4 expression↓    Chen C. C. et al., 2014
BALB/c miceLPSYohimbineBer50 mg/kg3 dTLR-4 mRNA expression in ileum tissue↓    Li et al., 2011
C3H/HeN,C3H/HeJ miceTNBSVehicleBer10–20 mg/kg3 dTLR-4 expression in colonic epithelial cell↓    Lee et al., 2010
PM cellLPSMangiferinBer10,20 μM1 hTLR-4 & LPS banding↓    Jeong et al., 2014
Microglial cellsOGDVehicleBai40,20.10 ug/ml24 hTLR-4 mRNA expression↓    Hou et al., 2012
IgAN SD ratsBSA, LPS, and CCl4VehicleRhe400 mg/kg/d6 wTLR-4 expression in renal↓    Chen et al., 2015
BEAS-2B cellLPSCKT0103Rhe10 μM18 hTLR-4 level↓    Cabrera-Benitez et al., 2012
BALB/c miceLPSTAK-242Rhe100 mg/kgTLR-4 expression↓    Zhang et al., 2015
Wistar ratsLPSVehicleEmo10mg/kg/hr1,2 hTLR-4 expression↓    Li A. et al., 2013
MyD88Microglial cellsIL-1βVehicleBer50 μM24 hMyD88 expression↓    Chen C. C. et al., 2014
Microglial cellsOGDVehicleBai20 ug/ml2 hMyD88 activation↓    Hou et al., 2012
C57BL/6 miceDSSMesalazineBai100 mg/kg/12 h7 dcolon MyD88 expression↓    Feng et al., 2014
ICR micePlaceboRibavirinBai375 mg/kg/d7 dMyD88 mRNA expression↓    Wan et al., 2014
TNFR1HEK293 cellTNF-αNoneBer25 μmol/L24 hTNFR1gene expression↓    Pandey et al., 2008
TRADDHEK293 cellTNF-αNoneBer25 μmol/L24 hTRADD gene expression↓    Pandey et al., 2008
TRAF2HEK293 cellTNF-αNoneBer25 μmol/L24 hTRAF2 gene expression↓    Pandey et al., 2008
SAP SD ratsSTSOEmo30 mg/kg6 hTRAF2 protein expression↓    Wu et al., 2013
TRAF6Microglial cellsOGDVehicleBai40 ug/ml4 hTRAF6 protein level↓    Hou et al., 2012
NIKHEK293 cellTNF-αNoneBer25 μmol/L24 hNIK gene expression↓    Pandey et al., 2008
Fischer 344 rats“Age” dietYoung ratsBai10,20 mg/kg/d10 dNIK phosphorylation↓    Kim et al., 2006
RafFischer 344 rats“Age” dietYoung ratsBai10,20 mg/kg/d10dRaf phosphorylation↓    Kim et al., 2006
U251/U87 cellNoneVehicleBer15 μM1-7 dp-Raf phosphorylation↓    Liu et al., 2015
IRAK1PM cellLPSMangiferinBer10,20 μM90 minphosphorylation of IRAK1↓    Jeong et al., 2014
IKKPM cellLPSMangiferinBer10,20 μM90 minphosphorylation of IKK-β↓    Jeong et al., 2014
HEK293 cellTNF-αNoneBer25 μmol/L24 hIKK-β gene expression↓    Pandey et al., 2008
KM miceHCM dietVehicleBer50 mg/kg2 wIKKβ phosphorylation in liver and adipose tissue↓    Shang et al., 2010
ARD Wistar ratsHCM dietNormal dietBer150 mg/kg/d12 wrenal IKKβ protein level↓    Wan et al., 2013
Fischer 344 rats“Age”dietYoung ratsBai10,20 mg/kg/d10 dp-IKK expression↓    Kim et al., 2006
HBE16 cellsLPSVehicleBai10–100μM24 hp-IKK expression↓    Dong et al., 2015
BALB/c micecisplatinVehicleBae50 mg/kg/d15 dp-IKK protein expression↓    Sahu et al., 2015
Raw264.7 cellLPSVehicleRhe17.5,35 μM2 hIKKβ activity↓    Gao et al., 2014
BALB/c miceLPSCMCSRhe20–80 mg/kg/d7 dp-IKKβ protein expression↓    Yu et al., 2015
IκBαPM cellLPSYohimbineBer2 μM90 minphosphorylation of IκBα↓    Li et al., 2012
Jurkat cellTNF-αNoneBer50 μmol/L18 hIκB-α degradation↓    Pandey et al., 2008
Mesangial cellLPSPDTCBer30,90 μM12 hIκBα protein expression↑    Jiang et al., 2011
BALB/c miceDSSCKBer100 mg/kg3 dcolon IκBα protein expression↑    Li et al., 2014
C57BL/6 miceLPSYohimbineBer50 mg/mg3 dspleen IκBα phosphorylation↓    Li et al., 2012
BALB/c miceDSSCKBer100 mg/kg3 dp-IκBα protein expression of in cytoplasm of colon cell↓    Li et al., 2014
Raw264.7 cellLPSBAY11-7082Bae10 μM2 hIκBα phosphorylation↓    Fan et al., 2013
BALB/c miceCisplatinVehicleBae50 mg/kg/d15 dp-IκBα protein expression↓    Sahu et al., 2015
C57BL/6 miceSurgerySOBae100 mg/kg/d7 dIκBα degradation↓    Wang W. et al., 2015
WKY ratsLPSSOBae10 mg/kg6 hp- IκBα expression↓    Lee et al., 2011
Microglial cellsOGDVehicleBai40,20 ug/ml4 hp-IκBα protein level↓    Hou et al., 2012
DBA/1 miceCIIPBSEmo10 mg/kg10 dIκBα degradation↓    Hwang et al., 2013
HUVECsLPSDMSOEmo10–50 μg/ml30 minIκBα degradation↓    Meng et al., 2010
MECLPSVehicleEmo10,20,40 μg/ml1 hIκBα degradation↓    Yang Z. et al., 2014
BMMCsPMA+ A23187PDTCEmo1–20 μM1 hp-IκBα / IκBα↓    Lu et al., 2013
Raw264.7 cellLPSVehicleRhe17.5,35 μM30 minIκBα phosphorylation↓    Gao et al., 2014
ChondrocytesIL-1βVehicleRhe10 μM18 hIκBα degradation↓    Domagala et al., 2006
Raw264.7 cellLPSBAY11-7082Aem10,20 μM12 hIκBα degradation↓    Hu et al., 2014
BALB/c miceLPSCMCSRhe20–80 mg/kg/d7 dp-IκBα protein expression↓    Yu et al., 2015
NF-κBPMLPSYohimbineBer2 μM90 minNF-κB translocation and phosphorylation↓    Li et al., 2012
SD ratsSurgeryInterceedBer0.75,1.5 mg/ml14 dNF-κB phosphorylation↓    Zhang et al., 2014
SD diabets ratsSTZVehicleBer200 mg/kg12 wrenal NF-κB expression↓    Xie et al., 2013
Jurkat cellTNF-αNoneBer50 μmol/L18 hNF-κB activation↓    Pandey et al., 2008
ARD wistar ratsHCM dietNormal dietBer150 mg/kg/d12 wRenal NF-κB DNA banding↓    Wan et al., 2013
BALB/cN miceCisplatinVehicleBer3 mg/kg2 dNF-κB expression↓    Domitrović et al., 2013
C57BL/6 ratsCigarettesVehicleBer50 mg/kg4dlung NF-κB DNA banding↓    Lin K. et al., 2013
BALB/c miceLPSYohimbineBer50 mg/Kg3 dileum NF-κB activation↓    Li et al., 2011
C3H/HeN, C3H/HeJ rats(colitis)TNBSVehicleBer10,20 mg/kg3 dcolon NF-κB activation↓    Lee et al., 2010
Raw264.7 cellLPSBAY11-7082Bae10 μM2 hNF-κB activation↓    Fan et al., 2013
DBA/1 miceCIIPBSEmo10 mg/kg10 dNF-κB binding activity↓    Hwang et al., 2013
MECLPSVehicleEmo10,20,40 μg/m1 hNF-κB activation↓    Yang Z. et al., 2014
SD ratsADMBenazeprilRhe100 mg/kg/d6–12 wRenal NF-κB activation↓    Ji et al., 2005
p65PM cellLPSMesalazineBer10,20 μM1 hp65 phosphorylation↓    Jeong et al., 2014
Jurkat cellTNF-αNoneBer50 μmol/L18 hp65 phosphorylation and translocation↓    Pandey et al., 2008
NIT-1 cellLPSVehicleBer2.5,5.0 μM24 hp65 phosphorylation↓    Hamsa and Kuttan, 2012
Mesangial cellLPSPDTCBer30,90 μM12 hp65 translocation↓    Jiang et al., 2011
B16F-10 cellLPSVehicleLPS2 μg/mL2 hp65 DNA-bound↓    Hamsa and Kuttan, 2012
ARD Wistar ratsHCM dietNormal dietBer150 mg/kg/d12 wRenal p65 protein level↓    Wan et al., 2013
C57BL/6 ratsCigarettesVehicleBer50 mg/kg4 dp65 translocation↓    Lin K. et al., 2013
BALB/c miceDSSCKBer100 mg/kg3 dp65 translocation↓    Li et al., 2014
BALB/c miceCisplatinVehicleBae50 mg/kg/d15 dp65 translocation↓    Sahu et al., 2015
C57BL/6 miceSurgerySOBae100 mg/kg/d7 dp65 expression↓    Wang W. et al., 2015
C57BL/6 miceAng IIVehicleBae25 mg/kg14 dp65 expression↓    Wang A. W. et al., 2014
Raw264.7 cellLPSBAY11-7082Bae10 μM2 hp65 translocation↓    Fan et al., 2013
CardiomyocytesI/RVehicleBae25 μM30 minp65 phosphorylation↓    Song et al., 2014
ICR micePlaceboRibavirinBai375 mg/kg/d7 dp65 protein level↓    Wan et al., 2014
WKY ratsLPSSOBae10 mg/kg6 hp-p65 expression↓    Lee et al., 2011
DBA/1 miceCIIPBSEmo10 mg/kg10 dp65 translocation↓    Hwang et al., 2013
BALB/c miceLPSSalineEmo100 mg/kg/12h3.5 dp65 phosphorylation↓    Xiao et al., 2014
Wistar ratsLPSVehicleEmo10 mg/kg/hr1,2 hp65 expression↓    Li A. et al., 2013
HUVECsLPSIL-1βEmo10–50μg/ml30 minp65 translocation↓    Meng et al., 2010
MECLPSGW9662Emo10,20,40 μg/ml1 hp-p65 expression↓    Yang Z. et al., 2014
MDA-MB-435sTNF-αVehicleRhe50–200 μM48 hp65 nuclear translocation↓    Fernand et al., 2011
Raw264.7 cellLPSVehicleRhe17.5,35 μM1 hp65 level in nuclear↓    Gao et al., 2014
BALB/c miceLPSCMCSRhe20–80 mg/kg/d7 dp-p65 protein expression↓    Yu et al., 2015
p50B16F-10 cellLPSVehicleBer2 μg/mL2 hp50 DNA-bound↓    Hamsa and Kuttan, 2012
ARD Wistar ratsHCM dietNormal dietBer150 mg/kg/d12 wrenal p50 protein level↓    Wan et al., 2013
DBA/1 miceCIIPBSEmo10 mg/kg10 dp50 translocation↓    Hwang et al., 2013
MDA-MB-435sTNF-αVehicleRhe50–200 μM48 hp50 nuclear translocation↓    Fernand et al., 2011
GSK3βHT-29/B6 cellTNF-αBAY11-7082, GenisteinBer50 μM26,2 hGSK3β phosphorylation↓    Amasheh et al., 2010
IRF3PMLPSYohimbineBer2 μM2 hIRF3 phosphorylation↓    Li et al., 2012
BALB/c miceLPSYohimbineBer50 mg/kg3 dspleen IRF3 phosphorylation↓    Li et al., 2012
DC1.2 cellPoly(I:C)VehicleRhe1–10 μM5 hp-IRF3 expression↓    Yuan et al., 2015

Effect of the active constituents on molecules in NF-κB pathway.

It has been identified that, MyD88 is recruited by TLR4 at plasma membrane to stimulate the initial activation of IKK, and it may be responsible for the early peak in NF-κB activity (Cheng Z. et al., 2015). Apart from MyD88, there are many other adapter molecules (such as TRAF3, TRAM and TRADD) sharing similar activity. NIK will promote NF-κB activation once combined with TRAF2 (Lee et al., 2014). Among them, MyD88 has been most systemically studied both in vivo and in vitro. In respect of these adaptor molecules, Ber and Bai negatively regulate their protein expressions (Pandey et al., 2008; Hou et al., 2012; Lim et al., 2012; Chen C. C. et al., 2014; Feng et al., 2014; Wan et al., 2014), however the main constituents from RR are rarely mentioned.

Enzyme complex IKK (α-γ) have a crucial role in regulating NF-κB signaling pathway (Bagnéris et al., 2015). In general, IκBα forms a heterodimer with p65 (RELA) and p50 (NF-κb1), making NF-κB sequestered in cytoplasm. Once activated, IκBα goes phosphorylated meanwhile p65 is liberated and translocate into nuclear, which leads to gene transcription (Pandey et al., 2008). Depicted in Figure 1, the majority of current studies focus on upstream molecules from IKK to p65. Data in Table 1 show the main constituents of SHXXT can inhibit (1) the expression and phosphorylation of IKK, (2) the expression, phosphorylation and degradation of IκBα, (3) the expression, phosphorylation and translocation of p65 and (4) the expression, phosphorylation, DNA banding and activation of NF-κB in multiple in-vivo and in-vitro models, such as mesangial (Jiang et al., 2011), RAW264.7 (Fan et al., 2013), MEC (Yang Z. et al., 2014) etc., and ARD rats (Wan et al., 2013), C57BL/6 mice (Wang W. et al., 2015), DBA/1 mice (Hwang et al., 2013), etc.

Figure 1

We know that, GSK3β is not active until dephosphorylated, and the activation will promote inflammation process undergoes Alzheimer Disease and diabetes (Venna et al., 2015). IRF3 is a target of TLR-4 signaling pathway, acting as regulating and activating the transcription of interferon which results inflammatory responses (Cheng B. C. Y. et al., 2015). Briefly, phosphorylation of these two downstream molecules are both identified to be reversed by Ber or Rhe treatment in either animal or cell inflammatory model (Amasheh et al., 2010; Li et al., 2012; Yuan et al., 2015), which cover the effect shortage of RS constituents at this part.

Effect of the active constituents on molecules in MAPK pathway

MAPK can be divided into several subfamilies including p38, ERK and JNK (Lou et al., 2011). Upstream TAK1 forms a complex consist of TAB1, TAB2, and TRAF6 and then sequentially activate MKK and JNK. The presence of Ras will activate c-raf, MEK and ERK, followed by c-fos regulation once transported into nucleus. Subsequently, the regulated c-fos recruits c-jun to form AP-1 complex (Figure 1).

Accumulative data shown in Table 2 leads to a conclusion that p38, ERK, and JNK attract the most focus of study in MAPK pathway. In-vitro study results reveal that the increased level of p38, ERK or JNK phosphorylation stimulated by cytokines/chemokines like LPS (Lin Y. et al., 2013), IL-1β (Legendre et al., 2007), oxLDL (Chen J. et al., 2014), PMA (Huang Z. et al., 2011), ischemia (Song et al., 2014), OGD (Hou et al., 2012), HG (Li et al., 2009) and CoCl2 (Fernand et al., 2011), or in-vivo elevated level induced by insulin (Lu et al., 2010), collagen (Wang Z. et al., 2014) and cisplatin (Sahu et al., 2015) can be significantly attenuated by either RR, RC, or RS constituent intervention. To further investigate whether p38, ERK and JNK are the only targets, molecules lied on the upstream and downstream are taken into consideration. Turns out, Ber, Bai as well as Rhe treatments all show inhibitory effect on MEK phosphorylation (Shen et al., 2011; Lim et al., 2012; Liu et al., 2015). Nevertheless, for the enhanced phosphorylation of TAK1, Ber is the only reported SHXXT constituent (Zhang et al., 2014). In addition, Ber, Bai, or Rhe also display markedly suppressing effect on endonuclear translocation factors like c-fos and CREB (Hamsa and Kuttan, 2012), c-jun (Hou et al., 2012), ATF-2(Legendre et al., 2007), CHOP (Zha et al., 2010), or AP-1 complex (Domagala et al., 2006).

Table 2

TargetAnimal or cell cultureModel buildingControl (P or N)DrugDoseTreat timeResult
MEKFischer 344 rats“Age” dietYoung ratsBai10,20 mg/kg/d10 dMEK phosphorylation↓    Kim et al., 2006
VSMCPDGFVehicleBai5–40 μM48 hp-MEK phosphorylation↓    Hu et al., 2010
U251/U87 cellNoneVehicleBer15 μM1–7 dp-MEK phosphorylation↓    Liu et al., 2015
Jurkat cellSDF-1βPyscionEmo1 μg/ml1 hp-MEK phosphorylation↓    Shen et al., 2011
TAK1SD ratsSurgeryInterceedBer0.75,1.5 mg/ml14 dTAK phosphorylation Zhang et al., 2014
JNKTHP-1 celloxLDLVehicleBer25 μM1 hJNK phosphorylation↓    Chen J. et al., 2014
RAW264.7 cell, PMLPSVehicleBer5 μM2 hJNK phosphorylation↓    Jeong et al., 2009
PMLPSYohimbineBer2 μM90 minJNK activation↓    Li et al., 2012
CIA SD ratsCollagenPBSBer200 mg/kg28 dJNK expression↓    Wang Z. et al., 2014
SD ratsSurgeryInterceedBer0.75,1.5 mg/ml14 dJNK phosphorylation↓    Zhang et al., 2014
BALB/c miceLPSYohimbineBer50 mg/kg3 dSpleen JNK phosphorylation↓    Li et al., 2012
CIA SD ratsCollagenPBSBer200 mg/kg28 dp-JNK expression↓    Wang Z. et al., 2014
NIT-1 cellLPSVehicleBer2.5,5.0 μM24 hp-JNK expression↓    Hamsa and Kuttan, 2012
CardiomyocytesI/RVehicleBae25 μM30 minJNK1/2 phosphorylation↓    Song et al., 2014
Microglial cellsOGDVehicleBai40,20 ug/ml4 hp-JNK protein level↓    Hou et al., 2012
BALB/c miceCisplatinVehicleBae50 mg/kg/d15 dp-JNK expression↓    Sahu et al., 2015
C57BL/6 miceSurgerySOBae100 mg/kg/d7 dp-JNK expression↓    Wang W. et al., 2015
TRMs ratsNoneWTBae10–40 mg/kg14 dp-JNK expression↓    Mao et al., 2014
SAP SD ratsSTSOEmo30 mg/kg6 hp-JNK protein expression↓    Wu et al., 2013
BMMCsPMA+ A23187SP600125Emo1–20 μM1 hp-JNK/JNK↓    Lu et al., 2013
MECLPSVehicleEmo10,20,40 μg/ml1 hp-JNK expression↓    Yang Z. et al., 2014
ChondrocytesIL-1βDMSORhe100 μM18 hJNK activation↓    Legendre et al., 2007
Raw264.7 cellLPSSP600125Aem5,10,20 μM4 hJNK phosphorylation↓    Hu et al., 2014
ERKPMLPSYohimbineBer2 μM90 minERK activation↓    Li et al., 2012
HepG2 cellPalmitatePD98059Ber10 μM30 minERK phosphorylation↓    Lu et al., 2010
BV2 microglialIFN-γVehicleBer10 μM30 minERK phosphorylation↓    Lu et al., 2010
RAW264.7 cell, PMLPSVehicleBer5 μM2 hERK phosphorylation↓    Jeong et al., 2009
BALB/c miceLPSYohimbineBer50 mg/kg3 dSpleen ERK phosphorylation↓    Li et al., 2012
CIA SD ratsCollagenPBSBer200 mg/kg28 dp-ERK expression↓    Wang Z. et al., 2014
U266 cellsIL-6PD98059Bae50 μM1 hERK1/2 phosphorylation↓    Liu et al., 2010
Fischer 344 rats“Age” dietYoung ratsBai10,20 mg/kg/d10 dp-ERK1/2 expression↓    Kim et al., 2006
BALB/c miceCisplatinVehicleBae50 mg/kg/d15 dp-ERK expression↓    Sahu et al., 2015
C57BL/6 miceSurgerySOBae100 mg/kg/d7 dp-ERK expression↓    Wang W. et al., 2015
C57BL/6 miceAng IIVehicleBae25 mg/kg14 dp-ERK1/2 expression↓    Wang A. W. et al., 2014
ChondrocytesIL-1βVehicleRhe10 μM18 hERK1/2 phosphorylation↓    Domagala et al., 2006
ChondrocytesIL-1βDMSORhe100 μM18 hERK activation↓    Legendre et al., 2007
BALB/c miceLPSVehicleEmo1–4 mg/kg12 hERK phosphorylation↓    Li D. et al., 2013
MECLPSVehicleEmo10,20,40 μg/ml1 hp- ERK expression↓    Yang Z. et al., 2014
BMMCsPMA+ A23187U0126Emo1–20 μM1 hp- ERK / ERK ↓    Lu et al., 2013
Raw264.7 cellLPSPD98059Aem5,10,20 μM12 hERK1/2 phosphorylation↓    Hu et al., 2014
P38THP-1oxLDLVehicleBer25 μM1 hp38 phosphorylation↓    Chen J. et al., 2014
THP-1PMAVehicleBer5–50 μM1 hBlock p38 pathway Huang Z. et al., 2011
RAW264.7 cell, PMLPSVehicleBer5 μM2 hp38 phosphorylation↓    Jeong et al., 2009
CIA SD ratsCollagenPBSBer200 mg/kg28 dp-p38 expression↓    Wang Z. et al., 2014
SD ratsLPSVehicleBer100 mg/kg24 hp38 expression↓    Godugu et al., 2014
BALB/cN miceCisplatinVehicleBer3 mg/kg2 dRenal p38 expression↓    Domitrović et al., 2013
CardiomyocytesI/RVehicleBae25 μM30 minp38 phosphorylation↓    Song et al., 2014
Microglial cellsOGDVehicleBai40, 20 ug/ml4 hp-p38 protein level↓    Hou et al., 2012
BALB/c miceCisplatinVehicleBae50 mg/kg/d15 dp-p38 expression↓    Sahu et al., 2015
C57BL/6 miceSurgerySOBae100 mg/kg/d7 dp-p38 expression↓    Wang W. et al., 2015
TRMs ratsNoneWTBae10–40 mg/kg14 dp-p38 expression↓    Mao et al., 2014
HUVECsLPSVehicleRhe0,5,10,20 μM24 hp38 phosphorylation↓    Hu et al., 2013
HUVECsLPSip38Rhe20 μM24 hp38 phosphorylation↓    Lin Y. et al., 2013
SAP SD ratsSTSOEmo30 mg/kg6 hp-p38 protein expression↓    Wu et al., 2013
HBZY-1HGSB203580Emo30–60 μM24 hp-p38 protein expression↓    Li et al., 2009
MECLPSVehicleEmo10,20,40 μg/ml1 hp-p38 protein expression↓    Yang Z. et al., 2014
BMMCsPMA+ A23187SB203580Emo1–20 μM1 hp-p38 /p38↓    Lu et al., 2013
HUVECsCoCl2VehicleRhe50 μM6 hp-ERK acivation↓    Fernand et al., 2011
Raw264.7 cellLPSSB203580Aem10,20 μM4 hp38 phosphorylation↓    Hu et al., 2014
IRS-13T3-L1 cellTNF-αPioglitazoneWE30–100 mg/L24 hIRS-1 phosphorylation↓    Yuan et al., 2014
HepG2 cellPalmitateSSBer0.1–10 μM30 minIRS-1 phosphorylation↓    Lou et al., 2011
MAPK APK2HUVECsLPSip38Rhe20 μM24 hMAPKAPK2 phosphorylation↓    Lin Y. et al., 2013
CREBB16F-10 cellLPSVehicleBer2 μg/ml2 hCREB DNA-bound↓    Hamsa and Kuttan, 2012
c-RelB16F-10 cellLPSVehicleBer2 μg/ml2 hc-Rel DNA-bound↓    Hamsa and Kuttan, 2012
c-fosB16F-10 cellLPSVehicleBer2 μg/ml2 hc-Fos DNA-bound↓    Hamsa and Kuttan, 2012
c-junMicroglial cellsOGDVehicleBai40 ug/ml4 hp-c-jun protein level↓    Hou et al., 2012
AP-1ChondrocytesIL-1βDMSORhe100 μM18 hAP-1 DNA binding↓    Legendre et al., 2007
ChondrocytesIL-1βVehicleRhe10 μM18 hAP-1 DNA binding↓    Domagala et al., 2006
ICR micePlaceboRibavirinBai375 mg/kg/d7 dc-jun/AP-1 expression↓    Wan et al., 2014
ATF2B16F-10 cellLPSVehicleBer2 μg/ml2 hATF-2 DNA-bound↓    Hamsa and Kuttan, 2012
CHOPJ744A.1 macrophagesProtease inhibitorVehicleBer0–2.0 mg/ml2 hnuclear CHOP expression↓    Zha et al., 2010

Effect of the active constituents on molecules in MAPK pathway.

Effect of the active constituents on molecules in AMPK pathway

AMPK serves as a cellular energy sensor to modulate lipid metabolism, and it can be activated by upstream kinases like LKB1 and CaMKK (Yang Y. et al., 2014; Li N. S. et al., 2016). There is a mechanism underlined the relationship, thus once AMPK activated, the nuclear translocation of Nrf2 is promoted, which contribute to the diminution of pro-inflammatory cytokines production. Nrf2 can also drive downstream HO-1 expression in with the considerable beneficial protect effect against cell injury from inflammatory response like diabetes mellitus (Agca et al., 2014). PPAR-γ is identified as a primary regulator of gene expression for inflammation and a pharmacological receptor of insulin-sensitizing drugs (Choi et al., 2014).

As summed up in Table 3, the current study status demonstrate that Ber from RC exert the most comprehensive effect compared with other constituents form RR and RS, pathway molecules from upstream to downstream, including CaMKII, LKB1, PPAR-γ (Legendre et al., 2007), AMPK (Lu et al., 2010), Nrf2 and HO-1(Mo et al., 2014) are all verified to be the effective targets of Ber. In addition, Emo (Yang Z. et al., 2014; Wang T. et al., 2015), Bai and Bae (Lim et al., 2012; Ma et al., 2012; Feng et al., 2013; Tsai et al., 2014) as well affect some of those molecules. Given this investigation situation, it seems that constituents from either RR, RS, or RC can block AMPK pathway by cross-talk regulating pathway molecules.

Table 3

TargetAnimal or cell cultureModel buildingControl (P or N)DrugDoseTreat timeResult
CaMK-IIBV2 microglial cellLPS or IFN-γVehicleBer10 μM2 hCaMKII (Thr286) phosphorylation↑    Lu et al., 2010
LKB1BV2 microglial cellLPS or IFN-γVehicleBer10 μM2 hLKB1 phosphorylation↑    Lu et al., 2010
AMPKBV2 microglial cellLPS or IFN-γVehicleBer10 μM2 hAMPK (Thr172) phosphorylation↑    Lu et al., 2010
Hela cellNoneCompound CBai1 μM3 hAMPK phosphorylation↑    Ma et al., 2012
HO-1PMLPSVectorBer10 μM24 hHO-1 mRNA expression↑    Mo et al., 2014
SD ratsLPSVehicleBae20 mg/kg7 hHO-1 protein expression↑    Tsai et al., 2014
BALB/c miceDoxVehicleBae25 mg/kg24 dHO-1 protein expression↑    Sahu et al., 2016
C57BL/6 miceOVADexEmo10 mg/kg3 dHO-1 mRNA expression↑    Wang T. et al., 2015
Nrf2PMLPSVectorBer10 μM24 hNrf2 translocation↑    Mo et al., 2014
SD ratsLPSVehicleBae20 mg/kg7 hNrf2 nuclear translocation↑    Tsai et al., 2014
BALB/c miceDoxVehicleBae25 mg/kg24 dNrf2 protein expression↑    Sahu et al., 2016
PPAR -γ3T3-L1 cellTNF-aPioglitazoneWE30 mg/L24 hPPAR-γ mRNA expression↑Yuan et al., 2014
SD ratsLPSSR-202Bai25 mg/kg3 dintestinal PPAR-γ level↓    Feng et al., 2013
Fischer 344 ratsAgedTZD;GW9662Bai10 mg/kg3 dPPAR-γ protein expression↓    Lim et al., 2012
HBZY-1HGSB203580Emo30–60 μM24 hPPAR-γ protein expression↑    Li et al., 2009
MECLPSRosiglitazoneEmo10 μg/ml1 hPPAR-γ activation↑    Yang Z. et al., 2014

Effect of the active constituents on molecules in AMPK pathway.

Effect of the active constituents on molecules in JAK/STAT pathway

The activation of JAK catalyze Tyr phosphorylation so that STAT can be combined with receptor protein, then transported into nucleus to regulate transcription. It has been reported that STAT1 and STAT5, the downstream molecules of IFN-γ, are also likely to be implicated in inflammation (Chmielewski et al., 2015; Li X. et al., 2015). Akt functions as emerging crucial regulator of multiple cellular processes, such as apoptosis, differentiation, survival, etc., (Piao et al., 2015). Moreover, recent studies indicate PI3K/Akt can lead to an elevated expression level of COX-2 and iNOs in inflammatory macrophages (Liou et al., 2014). Further activated mTOR can regulate cell growth, differentiation as well as transcription and it tends to perform abnormally in diabetes models (Hua and Hu, 2015).

For JAK/STAT pathway, constituents from RC, RS and RR are all showing inhibitory activity, typical targets include JAK (Kim et al., 2011; Qi et al., 2013; Subramaniam et al., 2013), STAT (Cui et al., 2009; Liu et al., 2010; Kim et al., 2015) and Akt (Lou et al., 2011; Hu et al., 2014; Wang A. W. et al., 2014), all of which are proved to be influenced by Ber, Bae, Bae, Emo or Aem in either in-vivo or in-vitro models (Table 4). On the other hand, results in the study concerning about downstream molecular present main RR constituent's effect-weakness on targets like Tyk2. Apparently, RS and RC cover the shortfalls of RR's poor activity in downstream pathway, which partly supports the synergistic theory of drug combination aiming at promoting curative effect.

Table 4

TargetAnimal or cell cultureModel buildingControl (P or N)DrugDoseTreat timeResult
JAK1Raw264.7 cellLPSVehicleBae20–80 μM2 hJAK1 phosphorylation↓    Qi et al., 2013
NOP2 cellsIL-6NoneBae50 μM1 hJAK1 phosphorylation↓    Liu et al., 2010
JAK2Raw264.7 cellLPSVehicleBae20–80 μM2 hJAK2 phosphorylation↓    Qi et al., 2013
HepG2NoneVehicleEmo50 μM12 hJAK2 phosphorylation↓    Subramaniam et al., 2013
JAK3Nb2 cellIL-2VehicleBer1–10 μM1 hJAK3 phosphorylation↓    Kim et al., 2011
STAT1NOD rats CD4+ T cellNoneVehicleBer200 mg/kg 5, 10 μM2 wSTAT1 phosphorylation↓    Cui et al., 2009
BALB/c miceLPSYohimbineBer50 mg/kg3 dSpleen STAT1 phosphorylation↓    Li et al., 2012
U266 cellsIL-6NoneBae12.5–50 μM1 hSTAT1 phosphorylation↓    Liu et al., 2010
STAT3NOD rats CD4+ T cellNoneVehicleBer200 mg/kg 5, 10 μM2 wSTAT3 phosphorylation↓    Cui et al., 2009
U266cellsIL-6NoneBae50,100 μM1 hSTAT3 phosphorylation↓    Liu et al., 2010
GSCsNoneVehicleEmo5 μM24 hp-STAT3 phosphorylation↓    Kim et al., 2015
RPMI8266IL-6DoxEmo50 μmol/L12 hSTAT3 phosphorylation↓    Muto et al., 2007
STAT5Nb2 cellIL-2VehicleBer1,3,7,10 μM1 hSTAT5 phosphorylation↓    Kim et al., 2011
STAT4NOD rats CD4+ T cellNoneVehicleBer200 mg/kg 5, 10μM2 wSTAT4 phosphorylation↓    Cui et al., 2009
Arthritis micekaolinPrednisoloneBer10–50 mg/kg6 dsynovial expression STAT4↓    Kim et al., 2011
STAT6Arthritis micekaolinPrednisoloneBer10–50 mg/kg6 dsynovial expression STAT6↓    Kim et al., 2011
Tyk2BALB/c miceLPSYohimbineBer50 mg/kg3 dSpleen Tyk2 phosphorylation↓    Li et al., 2012
NOP2 cellsIL-6NoneBae25 μM1 hTyk2 phosphorylation↓    Liu et al., 2010
Src-PHT-29/B6 cellTNF-αBAY11-7082, GenisteinBer50 μM26 hSrc-P phosphorylation↓    Amasheh et al., 2010
AktHT-29/B6 cellTNF-αBAY11-7082, GenisteinBer50 μM26 hAkt phosphorylation↓    Amasheh et al., 2010
HepG2 cellPaimitatePD98059,SS, BAY11-7082Ber0.1–10 μM30 minAkt phosphorylation↓    Lou et al., 2011
NOP2 cellsIGF-1NoneBae10 μM30 minAkt phosphorylation↓    Liu et al., 2010
HUVECsCoCl2VehicleRhe50 μM6 hp-Akt activation↓    Fernand et al., 2011
Raw264.7 cellLPSLY294002Aem10,20 μM4 hAkt phosphorylation↓    Hu et al., 2014
C57BL/6 miceAng IIVehicleBae25 mg/kg14 dp-Akt expression↓    Wang A. W. et al., 2014
SD ratsAdjuvantIbuprofenRhe50 mg/kg21 dp-Akt/Akt level↓    Cong et al., 2012
PI3KHUVECsCoCl2VehicleRhe50 μM6 hPI3K activation↓    Fernand et al., 2011
HT-29/B6 cellTNF-αBAY11-7082, GenisteinBer50 μM26 hPI3K activation↓    Amasheh et al., 2010
mTORCRC cellsNoneVehicleBer15–60 μM24 hmTOR phosphorylation↓    Li W. et al., 2015
C57BL/6 miceAng IIVehicleBae25 mg/kg14 dp-mTOR expression↓    Wang A. W. et al., 2014

Effect of the active constituents on molecules in JAK/STAT pathway.

Pharmacokinetic level

Traditional Chinese medicines are frequently orally administrated and the absorption of active constituents are confirmed to be influenced by efflux pumps and intestinal transporters (ITs) (Park et al., 2012; Zumdick et al., 2012). In general, ITs widely distribute in intestinal membrane and can be divided into two categories. One accounts for external substance's intracellular transport, such as OCTs and SGLT1 (Moran et al., 2014; Couroussé and Gautron, 2015). The other one, like P-gp, MRP and BCRP, is functioning as efflux pump to make drug or toxin back to lumen (Yamagata et al., 2007; Juan et al., 2010; Zeng et al., 2015). There are many isolate reports showing SHXXT's main constituents have an unexpectedly low concentration in plasma with oral administration, making it challenged to explain its positive effects in inflammatory therapies.

In-vitro research on the efflux pump and ITs normally use Caco-2 cell or MDCK cell for they both have similar structure of differential intestinal epithelial cell with apical side and basolateral side (Chen et al., 2013; Schexnayder and Stratford, 2015; Obringer et al., 2016). Currently, it is verified that Bai from RS is the substrate of both MRP2 and BCRP (Kalapos-Kovács et al., 2015), and another RS constituent Bae is also pumped out by MRP (Zhang et al., 2007). Rhe, Emo and Aem from RR are substrate of BCRP, MRP and P-gp respectively (Wang J. et al., 2011; Liu et al., 2012; Ye et al., 2013), those ITs at least partly reduce the bioavailability of SHXXT constituents by diminishing their intracellular transport. Similarly, the absorption of Ber, Pal, Cop and Jat form RC is reported to be promoted by OCTs while inhibited by P-gp (Chen et al., 2008; Zhang et al., 2011; Sun et al., 2014). In addition to OCTs, SGLT1 also contributes to uptake (Zhang et al., 2012). Thus, any constituents in SHXXT which suppress the MRP2, BCRP, and P-gp activation or, on the other hand, up-regulate OCTs and SGLT1 activation may be considered to exert mutual reinforcement property by promoting bioavailability.

In return, constituents in SHXXT show retroaction on those efflux pump or ITs. Depicted in Figure 2, Firstly, P-gp, which reduces the absorption of Ber, Pal, Cop, Jar, and Aem, is proved to be inhibited by Bae treatment (Cho et al., 2011). Secondly, Rhe can suppress MRP's activation which may lead the increasing uptake of Aem, Bai, and Bae (Shia et al., 2013). Last but not least, Ber can as well decrease BCRP activation, which is capable of promoting the intracellular concentrations of Bai, Emo, and Rhe (Tan et al., 2013).

Figure 2

Discussion

TCM normally used as prescription so as to recruit active contents from different herbals. Modern mutual reinforcement theory believes pharmacodynamics effect after herbal combination is not simply equal to the summing up of each herbal, but to a certain extent, should be more than that. Under most circumstances, a prescription can bring out more advantages in regards of safety and efficacy aspects than a single herb does (Song et al., 2013). Apart from expanding effect on one specific part, the combination of several herbals can also give rise to respective effect on different parts, which in other words, supplement other herbals' disadvantages or helping other herbals to perform their property in a better way.

Inflammatory signal transduction is quite complex network, and suppression on any intersection can partly contribute to the prevention of inflammation process. SHXXT have been high-lighted based on their widely appearance in inflammation-associated treatment for centuries. Clinically, SHXXT is a preferred drug for “coexistence of cold and heat” (Zhang et al., 2013c). With the constantly deepen researches, it is widely used in the treatment for anti-pathogens, anti-inflammation, gastric mucosal protection, hemostasis, anti-diabetes and so on (Li and Guo, 2010). As depicted in Figure 1, target with three colored “cross” is to be influenced by constituents form all three compositions (TLR-4, ERK, JNK, p38, Akt, etc.), which lead a fold increase of the final effect. On the other hand, target with less than three “cross” suggest at least one composition was not valid at this part. For example,

  • Ber from RC is reported to affect TAK1 and interaction between LPS and TLR-4, while RR and main RS constituents barely mentioned.

  • Bae from RS and Ber from RC inhibit Tyk2 phosphorylation, while no main RR constituent has similar effect.

  • Rhe from RR and Ber from RC reduce IRF3 phosphorylation level, while the effect of main constituent of RS isn't that clear, etc.

The connotative meaning of synergism at pharmacodynamics level is to enhance the effect on a certain target, as well as to expand target-affecting scope, just like what SHXXT constituents have performed. As for the pharmacokinetic level, shown in Figure 2, Ber form RS, Rhe form RR and Bae form RC is capable of improving the uptake or reducing the efflux of constituents from the other composition, which ultimately reaches the goal of synergistically influence inflammatory processes and eventually make this formula's anti-inflammatory action stronger and wider.

Nowadays, elevated attention has been paid to dose-effect relationship. There is a complicated process which can be expressed as “theory-methodology-formulation-medication-dosage” in TCM clinical therapeutics, showing how important for a formula prescription to have a specific herbal dosage (Zha et al., 2015). Basically for western medicine, these is a positive correlation between dose and toxicity. However, TCM at a large dosage tends to have good therapy efficacy with slight side effect (Wang et al., 1983). The dosage of Chinese herbals in clinical cases or experimental studies is usually at a relatively higher level than that documented in ancient TCM records (Peng, 2003; Sun, 2007). RR as an example, the dosage to treat cholestasis in clinical is more than four times the regular dose recommended in the Chinese pharmacopeia (Zhang et al., 2016). For now, the widespread explanation is that drug should be administrated to the patient with the correct disorder indications, otherwise it will produce dosage variety and individual detrimental effect (Zhao et al., 2015). As displayed in Table 5, dosage of constituents from SHXXT has a big range with no obvious rule to follow, it is possibly due to different tested animals or cells may have different drug sensitivities, but still need further clarification.

Table 5

ConstituentModelDose lower limitDose upper limit
BerCells0.1 μM Lou et al., 201190μM Jiang et al., 2011
Mice3 mg/kg Domitrović et al., 201350mg/kg Li et al., 2011
Rats50 mg/kg Li et al., 2012200 mg/kg Muto et al., 2007
BaiCells1 μM Ma et al., 2012100 μM Dong et al., 2015
Mice100 mg/kg Feng et al., 2014375 mg/kg Wan et al., 2014
Rats10 mg/kg Lim et al., 201225 mg/kg Feng et al., 2013
BaeCells10 μM Fan et al., 201380 μM Qi et al., 2013
Mice25 mg/kg Sahu et al., 2016100 mg/kg Wang W. et al., 2015
Rats10 mg/kg Lee et al., 201140 mg/kg Mao et al., 2014
EmoCells1 μM Lu et al., 2013182.5 μM Meng et al., 2010
Mice1 mg/kg Li D. et al., 2013100 mg/kg Xiao et al., 2014
Rats10 mg/kg Li A. et al., 201330 mg/kg Wu et al., 2013
AloCells5 μM Hu et al., 201420 μM Hu et al., 2014
MiceNot reportedNot reported
RatsNot reportedNot reported
RheCells10 μM Domagala et al., 2006200 μM Fernand et al., 2011
Mice20 mg/kg Yu et al., 201580 mg/kg Yu et al., 2015
Rats100 mg/kg Ji et al., 2005400 mg/kg Hou et al., 2012

The dose range of SHXXT constituent used in-vivo and in-vitro.

Conclusions

It is easy to find out not all the SHXXT constituents receive deep-enough investigation on their anti-inflammatory effect, the interaction between main SHXXT constituents and targets outside the nucleus get most focus. Besides, any drug elevating the absorption of Rhe, Ber, and Bae can be employed to promote oral bioavailability of SHXXT. Even though evidence shows P-gp, BCRP, and MRP really are inhibited while reports rarely cover the effect of SHXXT constituents on OCTs or SGLT. Hence, further investigation at these two levels is required to fully explain the mutual reinforcement relationship of RR, RC, and RS.

Statements

Author contributions

JW: Prepare the manuscript; YH and LX: Search for the literatures; SL and YY: Draw the figures; XC and YZ: Do the summing work and accomplish the tables; WH: Polish language; XM and PW: Corresponding authors.

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 81073118, 81274111 and 81473419).

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

    Abbreviations

  • ADM

    adriamycin amycin

  • Akt

    Protein kinase B; extracellular signal-regulated kinase

  • AMPK

    5′ AMP-activated protein kinase

  • Ang II

    angiotensin II

  • AP-1

    activator protein 1

  • ATF

    Activating transcription factor

  • BCRP

    breast cancer resistance protein

  • CaMK

    Calcium/calmodulin- dependent kinase

  • CHOP

    C/EBP homologous protein 10

  • CK

    ginsenoside metabolite compound K

  • CMC-Na

    caboxy methyl cellulose

  • CREB

    cAMP response element-binding protein

  • Dex

    Dexamethasone

  • Dox

    Doxorubicin

  • DSS

    dextran sulfate sodium

  • ERK

    extracellular signal-regulated kinase

  • GSK3β

    Glycogen synthase kinase 3 beta

  • HCM

    hypercholesterolemic

  • HG

    high glucose

  • HO-1

    HMOX1heme oxygenase (decycling) 1

  • I/R

    ischemia/reperfusion

  • IKK

    IκBα kinase

  • IκBα

    inhibitor of nuclear factor κBα

  • iNOS

    inducible nitric oxide synthase

  • IRAK

    Interleukin-1 receptor-associated kinase

  • IRF3

    Interferon regulatory factor 3

  • IRS-1

    Insulin receptor substrate 1

  • JAK

    junas kinase

  • JNK

    c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase

  • LKB1

    liver kinase B1

  • LPS

    lipopolysaccharide

  • MAPK

    mitogen-activated protein kinase

  • MAPKAPK2

    MAP kinase-activated protein kinase 2

  • MEK

    Mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase

  • MRP

    multidrug resistance associated protein

  • mTOR

    mammalian target of rapamycin 2

  • MyD88

    Myeloid differentiation primary response gene 88

  • NIK

    NF-κB inducing kinase

  • Nrf2

    Nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2

  • OCT

    organic cation transporter

  • OGD

    oxygen–glucose deprivation

  • PDTC

    Pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate

  • P-gp

    P-glycoprotein

  • PI3K

    phosphoinositide 3-kinase

  • PMA

    Phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate

  • Poly(I:C)

    Polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid

  • PPAR-γ

    peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ

  • Raf

    RAF proto-oncogene serine/threonine-protein kinase

  • SAP

    severe acute pancreatitis

  • SGLT1

    Na+-dependent glucose transporter

  • SO

    sham operation

  • SS

    sodium salicylate

  • ST

    sodium taurocholate

  • STAT

    signal transducer and activator of transcription

  • TAK1

    transforming growth factor-b-activated kinase

  • TLR-4

    toll-like receptor

  • TNBS, 2, 4

    6-trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid

  • TNFR1

    tumor necrosis factor receptor 1

  • TRADD

    Tumor necrosis factor receptor type 1-associated death domain protein

  • TRAF

    TNF receptor associated factors

  • TRM

    epilepsy-like tremor

  • Tyk2

    Non-receptor tyrosine-protein kinase 2

  • VSMC

    vascular smooth muscle cell

  • WKY

    Wistar-Kyoto

  • WT

    wild type.

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Summary

Keywords

San-Huang-Xie-Xin-Tang, constituents, anti-inflammatory, NF-κB, MAPK, JAK/STAT, intestinal transporter

Citation

Wu J, Hu Y, Xiang L, Li S, Yuan Y, Chen X, Zhang Y, Huang W, Meng X and Wang P (2016) San-Huang-Xie-Xin-Tang Constituents Exert Drug-Drug Interaction of Mutual Reinforcement at Both Pharmacodynamics and Pharmacokinetic Level: A Review. Front. Pharmacol. 7:448. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2016.00448

Received

07 September 2016

Accepted

09 November 2016

Published

28 November 2016

Volume

7 - 2016

Edited by

Pietro Minuz, University of Verona, Italy

Reviewed by

Satish Ramalingam, Chettinad Academy of Research and Education, India; Ennio Lubrano, University of Molise, Italy

Updates

Copyright

*Correspondence: Xianli Meng

This article was submitted to Inflammation Pharmacology, a section of the journal Frontiers in Pharmacology

Disclaimer

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

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