OBJECTIVETo investigate the effect of panax notoginseng saponins (PNS) injection on pulmonary artery pressure and the expression of p38MAPK in lung tissue of rats subjected to chronic hypoxia.

METHODSThirty adult male Sprague Dawley rats were randomly divided into three groups (ten in each group): rats in control group were exposed to normoxic condition and the rats in hypoxia group and PNS group were subjected to 4-week hypoxia, and PNS injection (50 mg · kg(-1) · d(-1)) was administrated intraperitoneally at 30 min in the PNS group daily before the rats were kept in the hypoxic chamber, while rats in the other two groups received equal dose of normal saline instead. After chronic hypoxia, mean pulmonary artery pressure (mPAP) and mean carotid artery pressure (mCAP) were measured. The heart and lung tissues were harvested, and right ventricle (RV) and left ventricle plus ventricular septum (LV+S) were weighed to calculate the ratio of RV/(LV+S). The expression of p38MAPK mRNA was determined by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, the quantity of phosphorylated p38MAPK (p-p38MAPK) in rat lung tissues and pulmonary arterioles was determined by Western blot and immunohistochemistry.

RESULTSCompared with the control group, mPAP and the ratio of RV/(LV+S) in the hypoxia group were increased, the expression of p-p38MAPK in pulmonary arterioles and p38MAPK mRNA in the lung were higher (P<0.05). The changes of these parameters in the hypoxia group were significantly attenuated by PNS treatment (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONPNS injection was shown to prevent hypoxic pulmonary hypertension at least partly by regulating p38MAPK pathway.

Animals ; Arterioles ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Blood Pressure ; drug effects ; Blotting, Western ; Carotid Arteries ; drug effects ; physiopathology ; Disease Models, Animal ; Heart Ventricles ; drug effects ; physiopathology ; Hemodynamics ; drug effects ; Hypertension, Pulmonary ; complications ; enzymology ; physiopathology ; Hypoxia ; complications ; enzymology ; physiopathology ; Injections ; Lung ; drug effects ; enzymology ; pathology ; physiopathology ; MAP Kinase Signaling System ; drug effects ; Male ; Panax notoginseng ; chemistry ; Pulmonary Artery ; drug effects ; physiopathology ; RNA, Messenger ; genetics ; metabolism ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Saponins ; administration & dosage ; pharmacology ; p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases ; genetics ; metabolism

No abstract available.
Angiogenesis Inhibitors/*therapeutic use ; Bevacizumab/*therapeutic use ; Choroid/*blood supply ; Ciliary Arteries/pathology ; Fluorescein Angiography ; Humans ; Intravitreal Injections ; Ischemia/*drug therapy/etiology/physiopathology ; Male ; Meningeal Neoplasms/surgery ; Meningioma/surgery ; Neurosurgical Procedures/*adverse effects ; Retinal Detachment/*drug therapy/etiology/physiopathology ; Subretinal Fluid ; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A/antagonists & inhibitors ; Visual Acuity/physiology ; Young Adult

The aim of the present study is to investigate the effect of 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid (18β-GA) on KCl- and PE-induced constriction of rat renal interlobar artery (RIA). Pressure myograph system was used to observe the constriction induced by KCl and PE (endothelial independent vasoconstrictor) in acutely separated RIA of Wistar rats with or without 18β-GA pretreatment. Whole-cell patch clamp recordings were used to observe the effect of 18β-GA on membrane input capacitance (C(input)), membrane input conductance (G(input)) or membrane input resistance (R(input)) of smooth muscle cells embedded in arteriole segment. The results showed that both KCl (30-100 mmol/L) and PE (0.1-30 μmol/L) induced contraction of RIA in a concentration-dependent way. After pretreatment with 18β-GA (100 μmol/L), KCl- or PE-induced constriction of RIA was significantly decreased. After application of 18β-GA (100 μmol/L), the C(input), G(input) and R(input) of the in situ smooth muscle cells were very close to those of dispersed single smooth muscle cells. These results suggest 18β-GA inhibits the contraction induced by KCl and PE, and the underlying mechanism may involve the inhibitory effect of 18β-GA on gap junction.
Animals ; Arteries ; drug effects ; physiopathology ; Constriction ; Gap Junctions ; Glycyrrhetinic Acid ; analogs & derivatives ; pharmacology ; In Vitro Techniques ; Myocytes, Smooth Muscle ; cytology ; Patch-Clamp Techniques ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar

Stroke is one of the major diseases that threaten human health, early diagnosis and treatment are very important for stroke. Carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) is measured noninvasively to diagnosis stroke, and it is a independent predictor for stroke because its thickening can timely predict the incidence and development of stroke. As an important predictor of cardiovascular disease, more and more attention is played on CIMT. In this review, we will make a summary on the important role of CIMT in stroke and the mechanisms of carotid intima-media thickening in stroke as well as the potential use of traditional Chinese medicine in treating carotid intima-media thickening.
Animals ; Carotid Arteries ; drug effects ; physiopathology ; Carotid Intima-Media Thickness ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Stroke ; diagnosis ; drug therapy ; physiopathology

OBJECTIVETo investigate the acute effects of aldosterone (ALD) on mesenteric resistance vessels in normal or heart failure (HF) rats and its mechanism.

METHODSHF model was adopted by in vivo ligation of left anterior descending coronary artery in SD rats; segments of third-order branches of mesenteric artery were isolated and dissected into about 2 mm rings for isometric force recording.

RESULTSPretreated with ALD for 10 min,phenylephrine (PE)-induced contraction of normal mesenteric artery decreased first and then increased compared to control group along with the increase of the concentration of PE while decreased in HF rats. This effect was attenuated by ALD receptor-special antagonist eplerenone partially. ALD increased Ach-induced endothelial-dependent vascular relaxation significantly compared to control group both in normal and HF rats. Pretreated with ALD and dexamethasone (DEX) for 10 min, the effects of ALD on PE-induced contraction were weakened in mesenteric artery both of normal and HF rats. And this reaction of DEX to ALD-treated mesenteric in normal rats was attenuated by RU486 partially.

CONCLUSIONALD has biphasic effect in PE-induced response on mesenteric artery of normal rats, while reduces the sensitivity of mesenteric artery to PE in HF rats. DEX attenuates the biphasic effect of ALD on artery of normal rat partially but has no significant effect on that of HF rats.

Aldosterone ; pharmacology ; Animals ; Heart Failure ; physiopathology ; Male ; Mesenteric Arteries ; drug effects ; physiology ; Phenylephrine ; pharmacology ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Vasoconstriction ; drug effects

Lipid accumulation in the vessel wall and tunica intima vasorum pathological changes are important factors in the development of atherosclerosis, which are closely related with hemodynamics. In this paper, we established a model of local low shear stress in rabbits using carotid artery cannula and a high cholesterol diet for 2 weeks, 4 weeks and 8 weeks. The effects of Shenlian extract on blood flow, vascular pathology formation and lipid metabolism were assessed by electromagnetic blood flow meter and hematoxylin-eosin staining of the proximal end in carotid artery at different times. The results demonstrate that the relationship between blood flow and shear stress for control, atorvastatin, Shenlian extract high-dose, Shenlian extract middle-dose, and Shenlian extract low-dose were linearly related. The blood flow and the shear stress of proximal end in carotid artery of Shenlian extract (1.12, 2.24, 4.48 g x kg(-1)), and atorvastatin (4.7 x 10(-4) g x kg(-1)) were significantly (P < 0.05)increased compared with the control. Plasma total cholesterol (TC), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) ,and high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) were markedly decreased with the increasing of dose and time. This study is the first to prove that the inhibition of Shenlian extract on low shear stress (LSS) induces rabbits carotid atherosclerosis with increasing blood flow and decreasing lipids and vessel pathological changes.
Animals ; Biomechanical Phenomena ; Blood Flow Velocity ; drug effects ; Carotid Arteries ; chemistry ; drug effects ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Carotid Artery Diseases ; drug therapy ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; administration & dosage ; Humans ; Male ; Rabbits ; Stress, Mechanical

OBJECTIVETo investigate the role of oxidative stress in impaired intermediate-conductance Ca(2+)-activated potassium channels (IKCa)- and small-conductance Ca(2+)-activated potassium channels (SKCa)-mediated relaxation in diabetic resistance arteries.

METHODSRat diabetic model was induced by a high fat and high glucose diet and streptozotocin (STZ) injection. Endothelial function of mesenteric arteries was assessed with the use of wire myography. The expression levels of IKCa and SKCa in cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) treated with H2O2 and/or antioxidant alpha lipoic acid (ALA) were measured using Western blotting.

RESULTSIKCa- and SKCa-mediated vasodilatation in response to acetylcholine was impaired in the third-order mesenteric arterioles of diabetic rats. In cultured HUVECs, H2O2 significantly decreased the protein expression of IKCa and SKCa. ALA alleviated the impairment of both vasodilatation function of the mesenteric arterioles ex vivo and enhanced the expression of IKCa and SKCa challenged with H2O2 in cultured HUVECs.

CONCLUSIONOur data demonstrated for the first time that impaired IKCa- and SKCa-mediated vasodilatation in diabetes was induced, at least in part, by oxidative stress via down-regulation of IKCa and SKCa channels.

Animals ; Cells, Cultured ; Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental ; metabolism ; physiopathology ; Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells ; drug effects ; pathology ; Humans ; Hydrogen Peroxide ; pharmacology ; Intermediate-Conductance Calcium-Activated Potassium Channels ; metabolism ; Male ; Mesenteric Arteries ; physiopathology ; Oxidative Stress ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Small-Conductance Calcium-Activated Potassium Channels ; metabolism ; Thioctic Acid ; pharmacology ; Vasodilation

BACKGROUND/AIMS: We assessed changes in hemodynamic and arterial stiffness parameters following reductions of dialysate calcium concentrations in patients undergoing hemodialysis. METHODS: In this prospective study, 20 patients on maintenance hemodialysis (10 females, 10 males) with dialysate calcium concentrations of 1.75 mmol/L were enrolled. At the start of the study, the dialysate calcium level was lowered to 1.50 mmol/L. Serial changes in biochemical, hemodynamic, and arterial stiffness parameters, including pulse wave velocity (PWV) and augmentation index (AIx), were assessed every 2 months for 6 months. We also examined changes in the calcification-inhibitory protein, serum fetuin-A. RESULTS: During the 6-month study period, serum total calcium and ionized calcium decreased consistently (9.5 +/- 1.0 to 9.0 +/- 0.7, p = 0.002 vs. 1.3 +/- 0.1 to 1.1 +/- 0.1, p = 0.035). Although no apparent changes in blood pressure were observed, heart-femoral PWW (hf-PWV) and AIx showed significant improvement (p = 0.012, 0.043, respectively). Repeated-measures ANOVA indicated a significant effect of lowering dialysate calcium on hf-PWV (F = 4.58, p = 0.004) and AIx (F = 2.55, p = 0.049). Accompanying the change in serum calcium, serum fetuin-A levels significantly increased (95.8 +/- 45.8 pmol/mL at baseline to 124.9 +/- 82.2 pmol/mL at 6 months, p = 0.043). CONCLUSIONS: Lowering dialysate calcium concentration significantly improved arterial stiffness parameters, which may have been associated with upregulation of serum fetuin-A.
Aged ; Analysis of Variance ; Ankle Brachial Index ; Arteries/*drug effects/physiopathology ; Biological Markers/blood ; Blood Pressure/drug effects ; Calcium/*administration & dosage/adverse effects ; Compliance ; Female ; Hemodialysis Solutions/*administration & dosage/adverse effects/chemistry ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prospective Studies ; Pulsatile Flow/*drug effects ; *Renal Dialysis ; Republic of Korea ; Time Factors ; Treatment Outcome ; alpha-2-HS-Glycoprotein/metabolism

OBJECTIVETo study the vascular endothelial function recovery and its mechanism of Banxia Baizhu Tianma Decoction (BBTD).

METHODS54 SH rats were randomly divided into three groups: the blank control group, BBTD group and Captopril treatment group. BBTD (at the daily dose of 4. 320 g crude drug/kg) and Captopril (at the daily dose of 3.375 g/kg) was administered from the 7th week to the 24th week. Another eighteen Wistar-Kyoto rats of the same ages were taken as the control. Medication was discontinued and effects were observed until the 32nd week. The blood pressure was determined by arterial carotis cannula. The concentration of serum NO2(-) and total anti-oxidation were determined by Griess and fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP). The acetylcholine (Ach)-dependent relaxation of superior mesenteric artery was detected using in vitro vascular ring. The mRNA expressions of IL-1, IL-6 and iNOS were detected by Real-time PCR at the 18th, 24th, and 32nd week.

RESULTSBBTD could significantly lower blood pressure of SHR and the concentration of serum NO2(-) at the 18th and 24th week (P<0.05). The total anti-oxidation of SH rats increased at the 18th week (P<0.01), and ACh-dependent relaxation of superior mesenteric artery increased at the 24th week. The mRNA expressions of IL-1 was markedly suppressed by BBTD at the 18th, 24th, and 32nd week (P<0.05), while IL-6 and iNOS mRNA expression were significantly lowered only at the 32nd week (P< 0.01). Captopril could significantly lower blood pressure of SHR at the 18th and 24th week (P<0.05). It significantly increased the total anti-oxidation of SH rats at the 18th week (P<0.01). However, it could not increase ACh-dependent relaxation of superior mesenteric artery and regulate the concentration of NO2(-) at the 18th, 24th, and 32nd week. The mRNA expression of iNOS was markedly suppressed by Captopril at the 24th and 32nd week, while mRNA expressions of IL-1 and IL-6 were significantly lower only at the 32nd week (P<0.01).

CONCLUSIONSBBTD showed similar effect in decreasing the blood pressure to captopril, but it showed better effect in improving the mesenteric endothelial dysfunction of SHR, which may be associated with its inhibition on NO and IL-1 expression, and improvement of the oxidative stress state.

Animals ; Captopril ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Endothelium, Vascular ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Hypertension ; drug therapy ; metabolism ; physiopathology ; Interleukin-1 ; metabolism ; Interleukin-6 ; metabolism ; Male ; Mesenteric Arteries ; drug effects ; physiopathology ; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type II ; metabolism ; Rats ; Rats, Inbred SHR ; Rats, Inbred WKY

OBJECTIVETo observe the effect of Chinese herbal medicine for calming Gan (肝) and suppressing hyperactive yang (平肝潜阳, CGSHY) on arterial elasticity function and the circadian rhythm of blood pressure in patients with essential hypertension (EH).

METHODSAdopting a parallel, randomized design, sixty-four patients with EH of stages I and II were randomly divided into two groups according to a random number table, with 32 in each group. The patients in the treatment group were treated with CGSHY and those in the control group were treated with Enalapril. All patients were given 24-h ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) before and after a 12-week treatment. Trough/peak (T/P) ratios of systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP & DBP) of each group were calculated. The circadian rhythm of their blood pressure was observed at the same time. The changes in elasticity of the carotid artery in the patients, including stiffness parameter (β), pressure-strain elastic modulus (Ep), arterial compliance (AC), augmentation index (AI), and pulse wave velocity (PVWβ) were determined by the echo-tracking technique before and after a 12-week treatment. In the meantime, their levels of nitric oxide (NO) and endothelin-1 (ET-1) were measured respectively.

RESULTSAfter treatment, all parameters in the 24-h ABPM and the elasticity of the carotid artery (β, Ep, AC and PVWβ) were markedly improved, the level of NO was increased, and ET-1 was decreased in both groups as compared with values before treatment (P<0.05 or P<0.01). Further, the improvements in the ratio of T/P of SBP & DBP and in the level of NO and ET-1 in the treatment group were more significant than those in the control group (P<0.05). There were no significant differences in all parameters in the ABPM monitoring and the elasticity of the carotid artery, the recovery of blood pressure circadian rhythm, and the therapeutic effect of antihypertension in EH patients between the two groups (P>0.05).

CONCLUSIONSChinese herbal medicine for CGSHY may lower the blood pressure smoothly and recover the circadian rhythm of blood pressure in EH patients. They may also improve the carotid elasticity of EH patients similar to that of Enalapril. The mechanism of action of Chinese herbs on EH might be related to the regulation of vascular endothelium function.

Antihypertensive Agents ; Arteries ; drug effects ; physiopathology ; Blood Pressure ; drug effects ; physiology ; Blood Pressure Monitoring, Ambulatory ; Circadian Rhythm ; drug effects ; physiology ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Elasticity ; drug effects ; physiology ; Enalapril ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Endothelin-1 ; metabolism ; Female ; Humans ; Hypertension ; drug therapy ; physiopathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Nitric Oxide ; metabolism ; Time Factors ; Treatment Outcome ; Yin-Yang