[Objective]To investigate the efficacy of Liangxue Huoxue Decoction with conventional western medicine in the treatment of blood heat psoriasis complicated with coronary heart disease and the effects on skin barrier function and hemorheology of patients.[Methods]Eighty-eight patients with blood heat psoriasis combined with coronary heart disease from November 2019 to December 2021 were selected and randomly divided into two groups,with 44 patients in each group.The control group was treated with conventional western medicine,and the observation group was treated with Liangxue Huoxue Decoction together with conventional western medicine.The clinical efficacy,adverse reactions,as well as skin barrier function,hemorheological indicators,serum inflammatory factors interleukin-1(IL-1),IL-6,IL-8,and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α),lesion area and severity index(PASI),and Barthel index(BI)were compared before and after treatment between the two groups.[Results]Compared with control group(70.45％),the total effective rate of treatment in observation group(88.64％)was higher(P＜0.05),and there was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of adverse reactions between observation group and control group(P＞0.05).After 2 weeks and 4 weeks of treatment,the stratum corneum water content and sebum content in observation group were higher than control group and the transepidermal water loss,whole blood high cut and low cut viscosity,erythrocyte specific volume,plasma viscosity and IL-1,IL-6,IL-8 and TNF-α level were lower than control group(P＜0.05).After 4 weeks and 12 weeks of treatment,the PASI score was lower and the BI was higher in observation group than control group(P＜0.05).[Conclusion]Liangxue Huoxue Decoction together with conventional western medicine can effectively reduce the inflammatory response of the body and improve the skin barrier function and hemorheological indicators in the treatment of patients with psoriasis combined with coronary heart disease,with good effect and high safety.

BACKGROUNDWe previously demonstrated that the aqueous extract of the Schizandra chinensis fruit (AESC) ameliorated Cd-induced depletion of monoamine neurotransmitters in the brain through antioxidant activity. In the present study, we investigated the effect of AESC on anxiety-like behavior and the levels of norepinephrine and 3-methoxy-4-hydroxy-phenylglycol (a metabolite of norepinephrine) in different brain regions during ethanol withdrawal in rats.

METHODSMale Sprague-Dawley rats were treated with 3 g/kg of ethanol (20%, w/v) or saline by daily intraperitoneal injection for 28 days followed by three days of withdrawal. During withdrawal, rats were given AESC (100 mg × kg(-1)× d(-1) or 300 mg × kg(-1)× d(-1), P.O.) once a day for three days. Thirty minutes after the final dose of AESC, the anxiogenic response was evaluated using an elevated plus maze, and the plasma corticosterone levels were examined by radioimmunoassay. Meanwhile, the concentrations of norepinephrine and 3-methoxy-4-hydroxy-phenylglycol in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus and hippocampus were also measured by high performance liquid chromatography.

RESULTSRats undergoing ethanol withdrawal exhibited substantial anxiety-like behavior, which was characterized by both the decrease in time spent in the open arms of the elevated plus maze and the increased level of corticosterone secretion, which were greatly attenuated by doses of AESC in a dose-dependent manner. The high performance liquid chromatography analysis revealed that ethanol withdrawal significantly increased norepinephrine and 3-methoxy-4-hydroxy-phenylglycol levels in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus, while not significantly altering them in the hippocampus. Similar to the results from the elevated plus maze test, the AESC significantly inhibited the elevation of norepinephrine and its metabolite in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus in a dose-dependent manner.

CONCLUSIONSThese results suggest that AESC attenuates anxiety-like behavior induced by ethanol withdrawal through modulation of the hypothalamic norepinephrine system in the brain.

Animals ; Anxiety ; drug therapy ; etiology ; Behavior, Animal ; drug effects ; Ethanol ; adverse effects ; Fruit ; chemistry ; Male ; Plant Extracts ; therapeutic use ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Schisandra ; chemistry ; Substance Withdrawal Syndrome ; drug therapy