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Synergistic effects of Ginseng C. A. Mey and Astragalus membranaceus (Fisch.) Bunge on activating mice splenic lymphocytes detected by microcalorimetry and the underlying mechanisms predicted by in silico network analysis

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Abstract

The aim of the current study was to investigate the combination effect of Ginseng C. A. Mey (ginseng) and Astragalus membranaceus (Fisch.) Bunge (astragalus) which are commonly used for strengthening immune system. In this study, the effects of ginseng, astragalus and their combination on activating mice splenic lymphocytes were studied by microcalorimetry in vitro. The parameters of Pmax, Q and Tmax of heat-production curve in spleen lymphocytes were recorded and analyzed, as well as their association with drug concentration. Through the combination index analysis, it was found that ginseng and astragalus could induce the heat generation of splenic lymphocytes. Network analysis was used to investigate the mechanisms, which showed that their combination may cause immune activation in the body through several signaling pathways such as T cell receptor signaling pathway and PI3 K-Akt signaling pathway.

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Acknowledgements

The current study was financially supported by 1226 major project (Grant No. AWS16J018).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Pharmacy, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, China

    Tao Wang & Wenjun Zou

  2. Department of Pharmacy, 302 Military Hospital of China, Beijing, China

    Tao Wang, Xuelin Zhou, Haotian Li, Shizhang Wei, Kun Li & Yanling Zhao

  3. China Astronaut Research and Training Centre, 26# Beiqing Road, Beijing, 100094, China

    Jiaping Wang, Jianyi Gao & Yongzhi Li

  4. Integrative Medical Center, 302 Military Hospital of China, Beijing, China

    Ping Zhang

Authors
  1. Tao Wang
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  2. Xuelin Zhou
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  3. Wenjun Zou
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  4. Ping Zhang
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  5. Jiaping Wang
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  6. Haotian Li
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  8. Kun Li
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  10. Yongzhi Li
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  11. Yanling Zhao
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Yongzhi Li or Yanling Zhao.

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Wang, T., Zhou, X., Zou, W. et al. Synergistic effects of Ginseng C. A. Mey and Astragalus membranaceus (Fisch.) Bunge on activating mice splenic lymphocytes detected by microcalorimetry and the underlying mechanisms predicted by in silico network analysis. J Therm Anal Calorim 132, 1933–1942 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-018-7109-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-018-7109-y

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