Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42078922›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in pharmacology2026

Study on the analgesic and anti-inflammatory mechanisms of Jingu Zhitong gel in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis through the IL-17, NGF-TrkA, and COX-2/PGE2 pathways.

Lu Li, Yiyao Liang, Jing Dong, Zhenzhen Su, Xinyu Xu, Ziyin Wu, Xinzhuang Zhang, Jifeng Li, Zhenzhong Wang, Wenjun Liu and 2 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in pharmacology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

Lu Li *State Key Laboratory of Technologies for Chinese Medicine Pharmaceutical Process Control and Intelligent Manufacture (Jiangsu Kanion Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.), Nanjing, China.
Yiyao Liang *State Key Laboratory of Technologies for Chinese Medicine Pharmaceutical Process Control and Intelligent Manufacture (Jiangsu Kanion Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.), Nanjing, China.
Jing DongState Key Laboratory of Technologies for Chinese Medicine Pharmaceutical Process Control and Intelligent Manufacture (Jiangsu Kanion Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.), Nanjing, China.
Zhenzhen SuState Key Laboratory of Technologies for Chinese Medicine Pharmaceutical Process Control and Intelligent Manufacture (Jiangsu Kanion Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.), Nanjing, China.
Xinyu XuState Key Laboratory of Technologies for Chinese Medicine Pharmaceutical Process Control and Intelligent Manufacture (Jiangsu Kanion Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.), Nanjing, China.
Ziyin WuState Key Laboratory of Technologies for Chinese Medicine Pharmaceutical Process Control and Intelligent Manufacture (Jiangsu Kanion Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.), Nanjing, China.
Xinzhuang ZhangState Key Laboratory of Technologies for Chinese Medicine Pharmaceutical Process Control and Intelligent Manufacture (Jiangsu Kanion Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.), Nanjing, China.
Jifeng LiJiangsu Kangyuan sunshine Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Nanjing, China.
Zhenzhong WangState Key Laboratory of Technologies for Chinese Medicine Pharmaceutical Process Control and Intelligent Manufacture (Jiangsu Kanion Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.), Nanjing, China.
Wenjun LiuState Key Laboratory of Technologies for Chinese Medicine Pharmaceutical Process Control and Intelligent Manufacture (Jiangsu Kanion Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.), Nanjing, China.
Liang CaoState Key Laboratory of Technologies for Chinese Medicine Pharmaceutical Process Control and Intelligent Manufacture (Jiangsu Kanion Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.), Nanjing, China.
Wei XiaoState Key Laboratory of Technologies for Chinese Medicine Pharmaceutical Process Control and Intelligent Manufacture (Jiangsu Kanion Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.), Nanjing, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Introduction: Knee osteoarthritis (KOA) is a degenerative bone and joint disease. Jingu Zhitong Gel (JGZTG) exhibits a promising therapeutic effect in the clinical treatment of knee osteoarthritis (KOA). However, the mechanism of JGZTG in treating KOA remains unclear. Methods: We established a rat model of KOA through surgery and treated rats with JGZTG for 21 days. The pain threshold was measured by the Ugo Basile joint pain tester, the weight bearing on the right foot was detected by a bipedal balance tester, the inflammatory factor levels were measured by ELISA kits, and the joint morphology score was evaluated. Hematoxylin and eosin staining (H&E) was used to evaluate the pathological lesions, while toluidine blue staining was used to observe the proteoglycan depletion. Transcriptomic analysis was conducted to elucidate the potential mechanisms of JGZTG in treating KOA. Real-time quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-qPCR), and immunofluorescence (IF) assays were conducted to validate transcriptomic results and investigate the analgesic mechanisms. Results: After 21 days of treatment, JGZTG significantly increased the pain threshold and the weight bearing on the right foot in KOA rats, furthermore, reduced the levels of inflammatory factors (TNF-α, IL-6, IL-1β, and PGE2) in the serum and joint lavage fluid. In addition, JGZTG significantly decreased the joint morphology score, reduced synovial damage, alleviated cartilage injury, and reduced proteoglycan depletion in KOA models. The results of transcriptomic analysis showed that the anti-inflammatory effect of JGZTG in treating KOA was associated with the IL-17 signaling pathway. Further validation revealed that the relative mRNA and protein expression of IL-17RB, FosB, MMP1b, MMP3, MMP13, CCL17, and CXCL6 were regulated by JGZTG. In addition, JGZTG can reduce the mRNA and protein overexpression of NGF, Ntrk1, Trpv1, Ptgs2, PGE2, EP4, TAC1, and Calca, which are the key factors of the NGF-TrkA and COX-2/PGE2 pathways. Conclusion: JGZTG exhibits pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory effects in KOA, which were linked to altered IL-17, NGF-TrkA, and COX-2/PGE2 pathways. These findings have provided experimental evidence for the mechanisms underlying the therapeutic effects of JGZTG in KOA.

Indexed as

COX-2/PGE2 pathwayIL-17 signaling pathwayJingu Zhitong gel (JGZTG)knee osteoarthritis (KOA)NGF-TrkA pathwaytranscriptomics

Identifiers

PMID42078922
PMCPMC13132807

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.