Objective To investigate the effect of Echinacoside(Ech)on liver injury in hepatitis B rats.Methods SD rats were divided into control group,Hepatitis B(HBV,5 mL/kg HBV virus was injected into the tail vein twice a week for 3 consecutive weeks),low(Ech-L)and high(Ech-H)doses of Ech were injected into the stom-ach for HBV(8.33 and 33.32 mg/kg,respectively),HBV group was treated with positive drugs(lamivudine,10 mg/kg)and Ech-H+BKM120(40 mg/kg BKM120),with 12 animals in each group.The drug was administered once a day for 8 weeks.The activity of ALT and AST in serum of were detected.Serum level of gam-ma-interferon(IFN-γ)and interleukin(IL-4)was detected by ELISA;Flow cytometry was applied to detect Th1/Th2 in peripheral blood;Chromatin immunoprecipitation was applied to detect HBV DNA expression in liver tissue;HE staining was used to detect the pathological changes of liver tissue and score the damage;Western blot was ap-plied to detect phosphorylated phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase(p-PI3K),phosphorylated protein kinase B(p-AKT)proteins in liver tissue.Results Compared with the control group,hepatocytes in the hepatitis B group were swollen,nuclear staining was excessive,hepatic lobular structure was disorganized,pathological injury score,serum AST,ALT activity,IL-4 level,peripheral blood Th2,HBV DNA expression in liver tissue were all increased.Serum IFN-γ level,Th1,Th1/Th2 in peripheral blood,p-PI3K and p-AKT protein in liver tissue were all decreased(P＜0.05);Treatment with Ech-L,Ech-H and lamivudine reduced the swelling of HBV rat hepatocytes,cleared the structure of some liver cords,reduced pathological injury score,the activity of AST,ALT and IL-4 levels in serum,Th2 in peripheral blood and HBV DNA in liver tissue;The level of serum IFN-γ,Th1,Th1/Th2 in peripheral blood,and protein expression p-PI3K and p-AKT protein in liver tissue were increased(P＜0.05).BKM120 attenuated the ameliorative effect of high-dose Ech on hepatitis B-induced liver injury in rats.Conclusions Ech ameliorates liver in-jury in rats with hepatitis B,and the mechanism may be related to the activation of the PI3K/AKT pathway.

ObjectiveTo observe the effect of enriched environment (EE) combined with acupuncture at head point (HA) on behavior in rats with autism spectrum disorder. MethodsHealthy female Wistar rats were given peritoneal injection of sodium valproate at 12.5 days of gestation. Twenty-four male offspring rats were randomly selected and then randomly divided into model group (n = 6), EE group (n = 6), HA group (n = 6) and EE combined with HA group (the combined group, n = 6). Six male offspring rats born from female mice injected with the same amount of saline intraperitoneally were as control group. After four weeks of treatment, all the five groups were tested with three-chamber test and marble burying test, and the sociability index, the social novelty index and the number of buried marbles were recorded. The levels of interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-6 in peripheral blood were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). ResultsAfter treatment, compared with the model group, the sociability index and the social novelty index improved (P < 0.05), the number of buried marbles reduced (P < 0.05), and the levels of IL-6 and IL-1β in peripheral blood decreased in EE group, HA group and the combined group (P < 0.05); while the combined group was the best (P < 0.01). ConclusionBoth EE or acupuncture at HA could improve behavioral symptoms, and reduce the expression of inflammatory factors in rats with autism spectrum disorder. The combination of the two methods showed the best result.

Objective To explore the effect of galangin(Gal)on inflammation in hepatitis B rats.Methods The rats were randomly divided into control group,hepatitis B group,Gal-L and Gal-H groups,positive drug lamivudine group and Gal-H+AMPK inhibitor(compound C)group with 12 in each.After modeling,medication treatment was performed once a day for 8 weeks.The level of alanine aminotransferase(ALT),total bilirubin(TBIL)and aspartate aminotransferase(AST)in the serum of rats were detected.HE staining microscopy was ap-plied to detect pathological changes in liver tissue.TUNEL staining microscopy was applied to detect cell apoptosis in liver tissue.Chromatin immuno-precipitation was applied to detect HBV viral load in liver tissue.ELISA was ap-plied to detect the levels of monocyte chemotactic protein-1(MCP-1),interleukin-12(IL-12),and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α)in liver tissue.Western blot was applied to detect the expression of caspase-3,Bcl-2 associated X protein(Bax),p-AMPK and SIRT1 proteins in liver tissue.Results Compared with hepatitis B group,the liver damage of rats in the Gal-L group,Gal-H group and lamivudine group was alleviated;The level of serum AST,TBIL,and ALT,apoptosis rate,HBV viral load and the level of MCP-1,IL-12,TNF-α as well as the expression of caspase-3 and Bax proteins in liver tissue were all reduced.The expression of p-AMPK and SIRT1 proteins in liv-er tissue increased(P＜0.05).Compound C baffled inhibitory effects of high-dose Gal on inflammation,cell apopto-sis,and HBV viral load in liver tissue of hepatitis B rats.Conclusions The mechanism of Gal in inhibiting inflam-mation,cell apoptosis and HBV virus replication in hepatitis B rats is potentially attributed to up-regulation of the AMPK/SIRT1 pathway.

OBJECTIVETo observe the effect of Pingxian granules on the protein expression of apoptosis regulatory genes Bcl-2 and Bax in the hippocampus of epileptic model rats and study the molecular biological mechanism of the anti-epileptic effect of Pingxian granules.

METHODTotally 60 45-days-old Wistar rats were selected and then randomly assigned into 5 groups: the normal control group, the model group, the positive control group, the Pingxian high dose group and the Pingxian low dose group, with 12 in each group. Except the normal control group, all the groups were intraperitoneally injected with 35 mg x kg(-1) pentylenetetrazol to establish the models of epilepsy. The Pingxian high dose (1.66 g x mL(-1)) and low dose (0.42 g x mL(-1)) groups were intragastrically infused with Pingxian granules 2 mL x d(-1). The positive control group received 3.6 g x L(-1) phenobarbital suspension by gastric perfusion. The normal group and the model group were drenched with distilled water, 2 mL x d(-1), for 5 weeks. Bcl-2 and Bax protein positive cells were labeled with immunohistochemical SABC at 3, 5 w.

RESULT(1) Rats in the model group appeared the epileptic behavior at the 1st week, and became serious with the kindle frequency; grade VIepileptic behavior appeared at the 4th week. The attack frequency and grade of the Pingxian group were less and lower, the highest grade were only IV, and there were no significant differences in the attack grade and frequency. (2) With the increase in kindle frequency, the model group showed a notable decrease in the Bcl-2 expression compared with the normal control group at the 3rd and 5th weekend (P < 0.01), but a significant increase in Bax protein expression (P <0. 01). The number of the Bcl-2 protein expression in Pingxian groups and the positive control group were obviously more than the model group (P < 0.01); and the number of the Bax protein expression in Pingxian groups and the positive control group were obviously less than the model group (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONPingxian granules may decrease neuronal cell apoptosis by improving the protein expression of apoptosis regulatory gene Bcl-2 and inhibiting the protein expression of apoptosis regulatory gene Bax with a view of anti-epilepsy.

Animals ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Epilepsy ; chemically induced ; drug therapy ; Female ; Hippocampus ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Immunohistochemistry ; Male ; Pentylenetetrazole ; toxicity ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar