Myostatin (Mstn) is an inhibitor of myogenesis, regulating the number and size of skeletal myocytes. In addition to its myogenic regulatory function, Mstn plays important roles in the development of adipose tissues and in metabolism. In the present study, an Mstn knockout rat model was generated using the zinc finger nuclease (ZFN) technique in order to further investigate the function and mechanism of Mstn in metabolism. The knockout possesses a frame shift mutation resulting in an early termination codon and a truncated peptide of 109 amino acids rather than the full 376 amino acids. The absence of detectable mRNA confirmed successful knockout of Mstn. Relative to wild-type (WT) littermates, Knockout (KO) rats exhibited significantly greater body weight, body circumference, and muscle mass. However, no significant differences in grip force was observed, indicating that Mstn deletion results in greater muscle mass but not greater muscle fiber strength. Additionally, KO rats were found to possess less body fat relative to WT littermates, which is consistent with previous studies in mice and cattle. The aforementioned results indicate that Mstn knockout increases muscle mass while decreasing fat content, leading to observed increases in body weight and body circumference. The Mstn knockout rat model provides a novel means to study the role of Mstn in metabolism and Mstn-related muscle hypertrophy.

FK506-binding protein 51 (encoded by Fkpb51) has been associated with stress-related mental illness. To identify its function, we studied the morphological consequences of Fkbp51 deletion. Arti cial Intelligence-assist morphological analysis identi ed that Fkbp51 knock-out (KO) mice possess more elongated CA and DG but shorter in height in coronal section when compared to WT. Primary cultured Fkbp51 KO hippocampal neurons were shown to exhibit larger dendritic outgrowth than wild-type (WT) controls, pharmacological manipulation experiments suggest that this may occur through regulation of microtubule-associated protein. Both in vitro primary culture and in vivo labeling support that FKBP51 regulates microtubule-associated protein expression. Furthermore, in the absence of differences in mRNA expression, Fkbp51 KO hippocampus exhibited decreases in βIII-tubulin, MAP2, and Tau protein levels, but a greater than 2.5-fold increase in Parkin protein. Overexpression and knock-down FKBP51 demonstrated that FKBP51 negatively regulates Parkin in a dose-dependent and ubiquitin-mediated manner. These results indicate a potential novel post-translational regulatory of Parkin by FKBP51 and signi cance of their interaction on disease onset.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is an ongoing global health concern, and effective antiviral reagents are urgently needed. Traditional Chinese medicine theory-driven natural drug research and development (TCMT-NDRD) is a feasible method to address this issue as the traditional Chinese medicine formulae have been shown effective in the treatment of COVID-19. Huashi Baidu decoction (Q-14) is a clinically approved formula for COVID-19 therapy with antiviral and anti-inflammatory effects. Here, an integrative pharmacological strategy was applied to identify the antiviral and anti-inflammatory bioactive compounds from Q-14. Overall, a total of 343 chemical compounds were initially characterized, and 60 prototype compounds in Q-14 were subsequently traced in plasma using ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Among the 60 compounds, six compounds (magnolol, glycyrrhisoflavone, licoisoflavone A, emodin, echinatin, and quercetin) were identified showing a dose-dependent inhibition effect on the SARS-CoV-2 infection, including two inhibitors (echinatin and quercetin) of the main protease (M pro ), as well as two inhibitors (glycyrrhisoflavone and licoisoflavone A) of the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp). Meanwhile, three anti-inflammatory components, including licochalcone B, echinatin, and glycyrrhisoflavone, were identified in a SARS-CoV-2-infected inflammatory cell model. In addition, glycyrrhisoflavone and licoisoflavone A also displayed strong inhibitory activities against cAMP-specific 3′,5′-cyclic phosphodiesterase 4 (PDE4). Crystal structures of PDE4 in complex with glycyrrhisoflavone or licoisoflavone A were determined at resolutions of 1.54 Å and 1.65 Å, respectively, and both compounds bind in the active site of PDE4 with similar interactions. These findings will greatly stimulate the study of TCMT-NDRD against COVID-19.