Traditional Tibetan Medicine Twenty-Five Wei’er Tea Pills Ameliorate Rheumatoid Arthritis Based on Chemical Crosstalk Between Gut Microbiota and the Host

Abstract

Twenty-Five Wei’er Tea Pills (TFP), a traditional Tibetan medicine, has shown to have a promising therapeutic effect in patients with Rheumatoid arthritis (RA), as well as being safe. Nonetheless, there have been limited pharmacological studies that have explored this therapeutic option. As gut microbiota has been proven to have a critical role in the pathogenesis of RA, this study aims to explore and reveal relevant ways by which TFP interacts with the chemical crosstalk between the gut microbiome and its host. 16S rRNA sequencing, combined with un-targeted metabolomics, were conducted on collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) rats. CIA model rats treated with TFP showed significant improvement in weight gain, pathological phenomena in joints, as well as decreased serum levels of TNF-α, IL-6 and increased level of IL-4 and IL-10. Significant dysfunction in the gut microbiome and alteration in serum metabolites were observed in CIA model rats, which were restored by TFP treatment. Coherence analysis indicated that TFP modulated the pathways of histidine metabolism, phenylalanine metabolism, alanine, aspartate, glutamate metabolism, amino sugar and nucleotide sugar metabolism owing to the abundances of Lactobacillus, Bacteroides, Prevotellaceae_UCG-001 and Christensenellaceae_R-7_group in the gut microflora. The corresponding metabolites involved L-histidine, histamine, phenylethylamine, asparagine, L-aspartic acid, D-fructose 1-phosphate, D-Mannose 6-phosphate, D-Glucose 6-phosphate, and Glucose 1-phosphate. In conclusion, this study reveals the ameliorative effects of TFP on RA through the chemical crosstalk that exists between the gut microbiota and its host, and also further enriches our understandings of the pathogenesis of RA.

The mechanism of a humid climate on the joints of normal rats and collagen- induced arthritis rats: mutual effects on faecal metabolism and microbial diversity

“…At the same time, compared with the CON group, the species abundance of Prevotellaceae in the HH group was signi cantly reduced, suggesting that high humidity intervention reduced the abundance of Prevotellaceae in healthy rats. Previous animal experimental studies have shown that the abundance of Prevotellaceae decreased during the immune attack stage of CIA [41], which is consistent with our results. We speculate that high humidity may cause a certain degree of immune response, which may be related to RA.…”

Phyllanthus emblica aqueous extract retards hepatic steatosis and fibrosis in NAFLD mice in association with the reshaping of intestinal microecology

“…In the present study, G-1-P is a common key metabolite involved in multiple metabolic pathways, including starch and sucrose metabolism, amino sugar and nucleotide sugar metabolism, and galactose metabolism. Among them, the dysfunction of amino sugar and nucleotide sugar metabolism has been reported in individuals with various metabolic diseases, such as dyslipidemia, type 2 diabetes, and NAFLD ( Huang et al, 2020 ; Li et al, 2022b ). However, evidence to clarify the relationship between the metabolic pathway and NAFLD in previous studies is insufficient.…”

Gingko biloba-inspired lactone prevents osteoarthritis by activating the AMPK-SIRT1 signaling pathway

“…Bioinformatics tools that are constantly updated provide new insights for drug development through high-throughput screening, targets prediction, and pathways enrichment. Traditional Chinese herbs have shown to be effective in treating joint disorders such as OA, RA [ 24 ], and gouty arthritis [ 25 ]; however, the key ingredients responsible for their therapeutic effects and underlying mechanisms by which their effects are manifested are still unknown. According to our bioinformatics results, Ginkgo biloba may exert anti-arthritic effects by inhibiting inflammatory cytokines such as IL-6 and modulating oxidative stress proteins such as hypoxia-inducible factor 1 subunit alpha (HIF-1α) and nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (NFE2L2, NRF2).…”