Browsing by Author "Si, Hongwei"

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    Dietary Anti-Aging Polyphenols and Potential Mechanisms
    Luo, Jing; Si, Hongwei; Jia, Zhenquan; Liu, Dongmin (MDPI, 2021-02-13)
    For years, the consumption of a diet rich in fruits and vegetables has been considered healthy, increasing longevity, and decreasing morbidities. With the assistance of basic research investigating the potential mechanisms, it has become clear that the beneficial effects of plant-based foods are mainly due to the large amount of bioactive phenolic compounds contained. Indeed, substantial dietary intervention studies in humans have supported that the supplementation of polyphenols have various health-promoting effects, especially in the elderly population. In vitro examinations on the anti-aging mechanisms of polyphenols have been widely performed, using different types of natural and synthetic phenolic compounds. The aim of this review is to critically evaluate the experimental evidence demonstrating the beneficial effects of polyphenols on aging-related diseases. We highlight the potential anti-aging mechanisms of polyphenols, including antioxidant signaling, preventing cellular senescence, targeting microRNA, influencing NO bioavailability, and promoting mitochondrial function. While the trends on utilizing polyphenols in preventing aging-related disorders are getting growing attention, we suggest the exploration of the beneficial effects of the combination of multiple polyphenols or polyphenol-rich foods, as this would be more physiologically relevant to daily life.
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    Dietary epicatechin improves survival and delays skeletal muscle degeneration in aged mice
    Si, Hongwei; Wang, Xiaoyong; Zhang, Longyun; Parnell, Laurence D.; Admed, Bulbul; LeRoith, Tanya; Ansah, Twum-Ampofo; Zhang, Lijuan; Li, Jianwei; Ordovas, Jose M.; Si, Hongzong; Liu, Dongmin; Lai, Chao-Qiang (2019-01)
    We recently reported that epicatechin, a bioactive compound that occurs naturally in various common foods, promoted general health and survival of obese diabetic mice. It remains to be determined whether epicatechin extends health span and delays the process of aging. In the present study, epicatechin or its analogue epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) (0.25% w/v in drinking water) was administered to 20-mo-old male C57BL mice fed a standard chow. The goal was to determine the antiaging effect. The results showed that supplementation with epicatechin for 37 wk strikingly increased the survival rate from 39 to 69%, whereas EGCG had no significant effect. Consistently, epicatechin improved physical activity, delayed degeneration of skeletal muscle (quadriceps), and shifted the profiles of the serum metabolites and skeletal muscle general mRNA expressions in aging mice toward the profiles observed in young mice. In particular, we found that dietary epicatechin significantly reversed age-altered mRNA and protein expressions of extracellular matrix and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor pathways in skeletal muscle, and reversed the age-induced declines of the nicotinate and nicotinamide pathway both in serum and skeletal muscle. The present study provides evidence that epicatechin supplementation can exert an antiaging effect, including an increase in survival, an attenuation of the aging-related deterioration of skeletal muscles, and a protection against the aging-related decline in nicotinate and nicotinamide metabolism.Si, H., Wang, X., Zhang, L., Parnell, L. D., Admed, B., LeRoith, T., Ansah, T.-A., Zhang, L., Li, J., Ordovas, J. M., Si, H., Liu, D., Lai, C.-Q. Dietary epicatechin improves survival and delays skeletal muscle degeneration in aged mice.
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    Mechanisms of soy isoflavones in the regulation of vascular function
    Si, Hongwei (Virginia Tech, 2007-12-18)
    Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States. It is also well recognized that the incidence of CVD is substantially increased in postmenopausal women due to the loss of estrogen. Experimental and clinical data support vascular protective effects of estrogen by various mechanisms. However, administration of estrogen is also associated with an increased incidence of heart disease which limits its therapeutic potential. Given the demonstrated risks of conventional estrogen therapy, a search for novel, cost-effective, alternative vasoactive agents for prevention of CVD is of major importance in the effort to decrease the burden of CVD morbidity. Genistein, a major soy isoflavone, may be one of those alternative agents because of its selective affinity to estrogen receptor-beta and various beneficial effects on CVD. However, the mechanism of the cardioprotective effects of genistein is still unclear. The objectives of this study were (1) to investigate the effect of genistein on the expression of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) both in vitro and in vivo; (2) to define the mechanism by which genistein regulates eNOS expression; and, (3) to examine whether genistein protects against tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α)-induced apoptosis in human aortic endothelial cells (HAECs). The results demonstrated that genistein, at physiologically achievable concentrations (1-10 μM) in individuals consuming soy products, enhanced the expression of eNOS protein and subsequently elevated nitric oxie (NO) synthesis in both HAECs and human umbilical vein endothelial cells, concomitant with the increased eNOS mRNA expression (2.6-fold of control) and eNOS promoter activity, suggesting that genistein activates eNOS transcription. Furthermore, dietary supplementation of genistein to spontaneously hypertensive rats restored aortic eNOS levels, improved aortic wall thickness, and alleviated hypertension, confirming the biological relevance of the in vitro findings. However, the effects of genistein on eNOS and NO were not mediated by activation of estrogen signaling, mitogen-activated protein kinase, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt kinase, protein kinase C or inhibition of typrosine kinases, but possibly through activating the cAMP/protein kinase A/cAMP responsive elemant binding protein pathway. These data suggest that genistein has direct genomic effects on the vascular wall that are unrelated to its known actions, leading to increase in eNOS expression and NO synthesis, thereby improving vascular homeostasis. We also found that genistein (5-10 μM) significantly inhibited TNF-α-induced apoptosis in HAECs as determined by caspase-3 activation, apoptotic cell detection and DNA laddering. The anti-apoptotic effect of genistein was associated with an enhanced expression of anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 protein and its promoter activity that was ablated by TNF-α. Moreover, this anti-apoptotic effect of genistein was not mediated by extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2, protein kinase A, or estrogen receptor. However, inhibition of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38) by SB203580 completely abolished the cytoprotective effect of genistein, suggesting that genistein acted through the p38-dependent pathway. Accordingly, stimulation of HAECs with genistein resulted in rapid and dose-dependent activation of p38. Unlike TNF-α which specifically activated p38α, genistein selectively induced phosphorylation of p38β, suggesting that p38β, but not p38α, is essential for the cytoprotective effect of genistein. These findings provide the evidence that genistein acts as a survival factor for vascular ECs to protect cells against apoptosis via activation of p38β. Taken together, the resuls of the present study suggest that genistein can act directly on vascular ECs, improves endothelium homeostasis by promoting eNOS expression and endothelial-derived NO synthesis through activating the cAMP/PKA/CREB cascade, and protects against TNF-α-induced apoptosis via activation of p38 β. These data potentially provide a basic mechanism underlying the physiological effects of genistein in the vasculature.
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    Phytoestrogen Genistein Up-Regulates Endothelial Nitric Oxide Synthase Expression Via Activation of cAMP Response Element-Binding Protein in Human Aortic Endothelial Cells
    Si, Hongwei; Yu, Jie; Jiang, Honglin; Lum, Hazel; Liu, Dongmin (Endocrine Society, 2012-07)
    We previously reported that genistein, a phytoestrogen, up-regulates endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) and prevents hypertension in rats that are independent of estrogen signaling machinery. However, how genistein regulates eNOS expression is unknown. In the present study, we show that genistein enhanced eNOS expression and NO synthesis in primary human aortic endothelial cells. Inhibition of extracellular signal regulated kinase, phosphoinositol-3 kinase, or protein kinase C did not affect genistein-enhanced eNOS expression and NO synthesis. However, chemical inhibition of protein kinase A (PKA) or adenoviral transfer of the specific endogenous PKA inhibitor gene completely abolished PKA activity and genistein-stimulated eNOS expression and NO production. Accordingly, genistein induced PKA activity and subsequent phosphorylation of cAMP response element (CRE)-binding protein (CREB) at Ser133. Suppression of CREB by small interfering RNA transfection abolished genistein-enhanced eNOS expression and NO production. Consistently, deletion of the CRE site within human eNOS promoter eliminated genistein-stimulated eNOS promoter activity. These findings provide the first evidence to our knowledge that genistein may play a beneficial role in vascular function through targeting the PKA/CREB/eNOS/NO signaling pathway. (Endocrinology 153: 3190-3198, 2012)