Cigarette smoking-induced oxidative stress has harmful effects on bone metabolism. Maqui berry extract (MBE) and ginseng extract (GE) are two naturally occurring antioxidants that have been shown to reduce oxidative stress. By using an osteoblast and osteoclast three-dimensional co-culture system, we investigated the effects of MBE and GE on bone cells exposed to cigarette smoke extract (CSE). The cell viability and function of the co-culture system were measured on day 14. Markers of bone cell differentiation and oxidative stress were evaluated at gene and protein levels on day 7. The results showed that exposure to CSE induced osteoporotic-like alterations in the co-culture system, while 1.5 µg/mL MBE and 50 µg/mL GE improved CSE-impaired osteoblast function and decreased CSE-induced osteoclast function. The molecular mechanism of MBE and GE in preventing CSE-induced bone cell damage is linked with the inhibition of the NF-κB signaling pathway and the activation of the Nrf2 signaling pathway. Therefore, MBE and GE can reduce CSE-induced detrimental effects on bone cells and, thus, prevent smoking-induced alterations in bone cell homeostasis. These two antioxidants are thus suitable supplements to support bone regeneration in smokers.

Multiple diaphyseal sclerosis (MDS), known as Ribbing disease, is a rare congenital bone disease resulting from autosomal recessive inheritance. The case study involved a 22-year-old female patient who had been diagnosed with chronic sclerosing osteomyelitis due to lack of knowledge about MDS. Previous studies reported rarely on this condition. A 22-year-old female with MDS was analyzed. MDS is characterized radiographically by a fusiform widening of the diaphyseal portion of the long bones, which is caused by a thickening of the cortex with obstruction of the medullary cavity. The pathologies are observed utilizing diagnostic imagery and are often difficult to identify. The patient was following a suggested regimen of oral celecoxib capsules at 200 mg/day for 6 days. The patient's diagnosis was revised to the rare condition of Ribbing disease by reviewing the clinical history and distinctive radiography images and because the symptoms were alleviated by celecoxib capsule. We also present a review of the literature on the diagnosis and differential diagnosis of MDS based on clinical and imaging features. MDS is rare and may often be initially misdiagnosed as another type of sclerosing bone dysplasia, thus, it is important to be aware of the existence of MDS. Once MDS is suspected, differential diagnosis should be performed to exclude other sclerosing bone dysplasias, taking into account clinical history, distinctive radiographic appearance, distribution, and laboratory and histopathologic findings. Laboratory evaluation and pathologic findings are nonspecific but assist in excluding other diagnoses. More evidence is needed to illustrate the effectiveness of medical or surgical treatments for patients with MDS.

Changji'an Formula (CJAF) is a Chinese herbal compound, which is effective against irritable bowel syndrome with predominant diarrhea (IBS-D) in clinic. However, the molecular mechanism has not been well defined. In the current study, the potential targets and signaling pathways of CJAF against IBS-D were predicted using network pharmacology analysis. The pharmacological mechanisms of CJAF against IBS-D and the potential mechanism were validated by using an IBS-D mouse model induced by enema with trinitrobenzene-sulfonic acid (TNBS) plus with restraint stress and further intervened with CJAF. A total of 232 active compounds of CJAF were obtained, a total of 397 potential targets for the active ingredients were retrieved and a total of 219 common targets were obtained as the potential targets of CJAF against IBS-D. GO and KEGG enrichment analyses showed that multiple targets were enriched and could be experimentally validated in a mouse model of IBS-D. The mechanisms were mainly converged on the immune and inflammatory pathways, especially the NF-κB, TNF and IL-17 signaling pathway, which were closely involved in the treatment of CJAF against IBS-D. Animal experiment showed that CJAF alleviated visceral hypersensitivity and diarrhea symptom of IBS-D. CJAF also restored the histological and ultrastructure damage of IBS-D. The result of Western blot showed that CJAF upregulated colonic tight junction proteins of ZO-1, Occludin and Claudin-1. Further results demonstrated that CJAF inhibited the protein expression of NF-κB/NLRP3 inflammasome pathway targets and downregulated proinflammatory mediators of IL-1β, IL-18, TNF-α. In conclusion, CJAF could effectively reduce inflammatory response and alleviate visceral hypersensitivity as well as diarrhea symptom of IBS-D by inhibiting the NF-κB/NLRP3 signaling pathway. This study not only reveals the mechanism of CJAF against IBS-D, but also provides a novel therapeutic strategy for IBS-D.