OBJECTIVETo investigate the acting mechanism of Buxu Huayu Qutan Decoction (BHQD) for impacting the anti-oxidative capacity in aged patients with stable angina pectoris of coronary heart disease (AP-CHD).

METHODSForty patients of AP-CHD, Chinese medicine diagnosed as Xiong-bi, were equally assigned to the treatment group and the control group. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and lipid peroxide (LPO) contents in blood, and mRNA expression of manganese-containing superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) in peripheral mononuclear cells were determined before and after treatment by biochemical and molecular biologic techniques.

RESULTSNo significant change of plasma SOD and LPO was found in the control group after treatment (P >0.05), while the plasma SOD activity increased and LPO content lowered in the treatment group significantly (P<0.01). Moreover, mRNA expression of MnSOD in the treatment group after treatment was obviously higher than that in the control group (P <0.01).

CONCLUSIONSThe acting mechanism of BHQD for AP-CHD treatment might partially due to its effects in inducing gene expression of MnSOD in mononuclear cells, enhancing SOD activity, decreasing LPO content, maintaining oxidation/antioxidation equilibrium in myocardial cells, blocking the chain reaction of lipid peroxidation, intervening the production and enhancing the scavenging of oxygen free radicals.

Aged ; Angina Pectoris ; drug therapy ; metabolism ; Coronary Disease ; drug therapy ; metabolism ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Humans ; Lipid Peroxidation ; Lipid Peroxides ; blood ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Oxidative Stress ; Phytotherapy ; Superoxide Dismutase ; metabolism

This study was performed to investigate the effect of chongkukjang intake on lipid metabolism and liver function in ethanol consumed rats. Twenty one Sprague-Dawley male rats aging 4 weeks old were used as experimental animals, which were divided into three dietary groups: casein diet (CA), soybean diet (SB) and chongkukjang diet (CJ). Alcohol was consumed with water as 25% (v/v) ethanol solution. After 4 weeks of experimental period, rats were sacrificed to get blood and liver samples for analysis of lipids, lipid peroxides, antioxidative enzymes and biochemical indices of liver function. The mean body weight, food intake and liver index were not significantly different among three groups. Serum level of total lipid, triglyceride and total cholesterol of chongkukjang diet group was the lowest among three groups although the difference was not significant. HDL-cholesterol level was significantly (p < 0.05) higher in chongkukjang diet group than that of casein diet group. LDL-cholesterol level of chongkukjang and soybean diet group was significantly (p < 0.05) lower than that of casein diet group respectively. Liver TBARS of chongkukjang and soybean diet group was significantly (p < 0.05) lower than that of casein diet group respectively. The superoxide dismutase activity of chongkukjang diet group was significantly (p < 0.05) higher than that of casein diet group. Catalase activity was not significantly different among three groups. As indices of liver function, glutamic oxaloacetic transminase (GOT), glutamic pyruvic transminase (GPT), gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (gamma-GTP) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were not significantly different among three groups. Serum alcohol concentration and activities of alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) and aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) were not significantly different among three groups. The chongkukjang diet seems to give a beneficial effect for improving lipid metabolism by increasing HDLcholesterol level and SOD activity while reducing liver TBARS level. However, effect on liver function has to be investigated further.
Aging ; Alcohol Dehydrogenase ; Aldehyde Dehydrogenase ; Animals ; Body Weight ; Caseins ; Catalase ; Cholesterol ; Diet ; Eating ; Ethanol* ; gamma-Glutamyltransferase ; Humans ; L-Lactate Dehydrogenase ; Lipid Metabolism* ; Lipid Peroxides ; Liver* ; Male ; Rats* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Soybeans ; Superoxide Dismutase ; Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances ; Triglycerides ; Water

OBJECTIVETo observe clinical therapeutic effect of head point-through-point electroacupuncture on Parkinson's disease and the mechanism.

METHODSSeventy-six cases of Parkinson's disease were randomly divided into a treatment group (n=37) treated with head point-through-point electroacupuncture and oral administration of madopa, and a control group (n=39) with only oral administration of madopa. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) and lipids peroxides (LPO) were determined before and after treatment.

RESULTSThe effective rate was 97.3% in the treatment group and 61.5% in the control group with a very significant difference between the two groups (P < 0.01). SOD activity and LPO content were significantly improved after treatment in the treatment group (P < 0.01), with a significant difference between the two groups (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONHead point-through-point electroacupuncture can improve SOD activity and LPO content in the body so as to cure Parkinson's disease.

Acupuncture Points ; Adult ; Aged ; Electroacupuncture ; methods ; Female ; Head ; Humans ; Lipid Peroxides ; analysis ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Parkinson Disease ; metabolism ; therapy ; Superoxide Dismutase ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo examine changes of blood oxidative-antiovidative level in schizophrenic patients and its relationship with clinical symptoms.

METHODSForty-six Chinese patients met DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-IV) criteria for schizophrenia and fifty age- and sex-matched healthy controls were enrolled in the present study. Baseline psychiatric symptom severity was assessed with brief psychiatric rating scale, positive and negative syndrome scale on the blood draw day. Fresh blood samples were collected to measure levels of nitric oxide and lipid peroxide in plasma as well as activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione peroxidase in red blood cells by spectrophotometric assays simultaneously.

RESULTSComparison of the biochemical parameters indicated that the level of nitric oxide and lipid peroxide increased in patient group, which represented a positive correlation with positive scale scores; while the activities of three critical enzymes decreased and showed a negative linear correlation.

CONCLUSIONThis study showed that there are dysregulation of free radical metabolism and poor activities of the antioxidant defense systems in schizophrenic patients. Excess free radicals formation may play a critical role in the etiology of schizophrenia. Using antioxidants might be an effective therapeutic approach to partially alleviate or prevent the symptoms of schizophrenia.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Antioxidants ; metabolism ; Female ; Free Radicals ; Humans ; Lipid Peroxides ; metabolism ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Nitric Oxide ; metabolism ; Schizophrenia ; etiology ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo discuss the protective effects of pueraria compound on the cerebral ischemic injury.

METHODUsing the middle cerebral artery occlusion model (MCAO) in rats and cerebral ischemia-reperfusion models in gerbils and mice, we investigated the influence of pueraria compound on the brain water content and the infarct size, the cerebral apoplexy exponent, the contents of lactic acid (LA) and lipid peroxide (LPO), the activities of lactic dehydrogenase (LDH), glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and Na+ -K+ -ATPase.

RESULTPueraria compound obviously reduced the brain water content and the infrarct size in MCAO, improved motor abilities in the cerebral ischemia-reinfusion model of gerbils, decreased the contents of LA and LPO and increased the activities of LDH, GPx and Na+ -K+ -ATPase in cerebral ischemia-reinfusion model of mice.

CONCLUSIONPueraria compound has the function of antioxidation and protective effect on ischemic brain tissue.

Animals ; Antioxidants ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Brain ; metabolism ; pathology ; Brain Ischemia ; metabolism ; pathology ; Drug Combinations ; Gerbillinae ; Glutathione Peroxidase ; metabolism ; Isoflavones ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; L-Lactate Dehydrogenase ; metabolism ; Lactic Acid ; metabolism ; Lipid Peroxides ; metabolism ; Male ; Mice ; Neuroprotective Agents ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry ; Pueraria ; chemistry ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Reperfusion Injury ; metabolism ; pathology ; Sodium-Potassium-Exchanging ATPase ; metabolism ; Soybeans ; chemistry

OBJECTIVETo study the therapeutic effects and mechanism of Jiechangning (JCN) decoction on carrageenan induced experimental ulcerative colitis (UC).

METHODSAfter sensitizing guinea pigs with carrageenan, we established UC animal models by free drinking water containing 2% acid degraded carrageenan (ADC). JCN decoction was orally administered once a day for 2 weeks after carrageenan treatment. Salicylazosulfapyridine (SASP) and normal saline were given to the other two groups as control. The levels of colon lipid peroxide (LPO), acid phosphatase (ACP) activity and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) were measured; colitis activity score (CAS) was carried out for assessment of the degree of tissue inflammation and injury; the colonic pathological changes were examined simultaneously with hematoxylin and eosin (HE) and toluidine blue staining used to evaluate the therapeutic effects of JCN decoction and SASP.

RESULTSExperimental colitis models resembling human UC were successfully induced. The levels of tissue LPO, ACP activity and the content of tissue TNF-alpha were markedly increased in the model group as compared with the normal control group (P < 0.01) and were positively correlated with CAS. JCN decoction could reverse these changes like SASP. HE staining showed that JCN decoction and SASP could reduce CAS and the degree of tissue injury, toluidine blue staining revealed that mucosa and submucosa red metachromasia pellets in JCN group and SASP group were markedly fewer than those in the model group.

CONCLUSIONJCN decoction is effective in treating experimental UC, which provides theoretical basis for its clinical application.

Acid Phosphatase ; metabolism ; Animals ; Carrageenan ; Colitis, Ulcerative ; chemically induced ; metabolism ; pathology ; Colon ; drug effects ; metabolism ; pathology ; Gastrointestinal Agents ; pharmacology ; Guinea Pigs ; Lipid Peroxides ; metabolism ; Male ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Plant Preparations ; pharmacology ; Sulfasalazine ; pharmacology ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo observe the analgesic effect of Zhitong Capsule (ZTC) and study its mechanism in adjuvant arthritis (AA) rats.

METHODSForty-eight male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into six groups with 8 rats in each group. On the first day, except to those in the normal group that were treated with normal saline, the same amount of Freund's complete adjuvant (FCA) was given through intradermal injection into the right hind paw to all the rats in the other groups. From the 17th day of the modeling on, the rats in groups of ZTC were administered daily through gastrogavage with a dose of 1000, 500, 250 mg/kg respectively, while equal volume of normal saline was given to those in the normal group and model group, and an equal volume of aspirin (ASA) solution was given to rats in the ASA group through gastrogavage for 10 days, once per day, and on the 27th day, the analgesic effect of ZTC was measured with heat withdraw method. The activities and contents of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and lipid peroxides (LPO) in serum were observed by spectrophotometry, and the level of beta-endorphin (beta-EP) in hypothalamus were determined by the assay of immunohistochemistry.

RESULTSZTC showed significant effects on enhancing the pain threshold and at the same time it increased the activities of SOD and reduced the contents of LPO in serum. ZTC could also increase the level of beta-EP in hypothalamus.

CONCLUSIONZTC has analgesic effect and its mechanism is probably related with its effect in inhibiting the level of oxygen free radicals in serum and increasing the level of beta-EP of hypothalamus in rats.

Analgesia ; methods ; Animals ; Arthritis, Experimental ; metabolism ; physiopathology ; therapy ; Hypothalamus ; metabolism ; Lipid Peroxides ; blood ; Male ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Pain ; physiopathology ; Pain Threshold ; drug effects ; Phytotherapy ; Plant Preparations ; therapeutic use ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Superoxide Dismutase ; blood ; Tissue Distribution ; beta-Endorphin ; metabolism

BACKGROUNDMost of the studies on traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) 'spleen' deficiency syndrome in the recent 30 years were conducted only on the basis of single functional index, neglecting the study on the pathophysiologic internal relationship between spleen deficiency syndrome and gastric diseases in modern medicine. But it was at the subcellular molecular biological level that we explored the pathophysiologic basis of classification of spleen deficiency in chronic gastritis by detecting the bioactive substances in gastric mucosa nuclei and mitochondria.

METHODSBy means of optical microscope, scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and histochemical staining, we conducted histopathological, subcellular ultrastructural analysis and nuclei and mitochondrial ultrastructural analysis of gastric mucosa of 188 spleen deficiency patients and of 42 voluntary blood donors. At the same time, bioactive substances were measured by means of X-ray energy dispersive analysis system (EDAX) image analysis system, radioimmunoassay method and chemiluminescence method.

RESULTSThe content of cAMP, superoxide dismutase (SOD), Zn and Cu in gastric mucosa, and the content of Zn and Cu in mitochondria decreased progressively in order of groups: healthy control (HC), spleen Qi deficiency without organic lesion (F-SQD), spleen Yang deficiency without organic lesion (F-SyangD), disease without symptoms group, spleen Qi deficiency with organic lesion (G-SQD), spleen Yang deficiency with organic lesion (G-SyangD), spleen Yin deficiency (SyinD) and spleen deficiency with Qi stagnation (SDQS), chronic spleen deficiency gastritis (CSG) and chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG); decreased in order of HC, intestinal metaplasia (IM)Ia, IMIb, IMIIa and IMIIb, P < 0.05. The content of DNA, Zn and Cu in nuclei progressively increased in order mentioned above, P < 0.05.

CONCLUSIONSThe quantitative changes of gastric mucosal cAMP, SOD, Zn, Cu, of mitochondrial Zn, Cu and of nuclear DNA, Zn and Cu are not only the substance base on which the lesion of gastric mucosa tissue structure occurs, but also the substance base on which spleen deficiency is classified. G-SQD and G-SyangD were more likely to be found in low-grade or middle-grade CSG and CAG, while SyinD and SDQS in middle-grade or high-grade CSG, CAG and IMIIb.

Adult ; Aged ; Chronic Disease ; Cyclic AMP ; analysis ; Female ; Gastric Mucosa ; pathology ; ultrastructure ; Gastritis ; metabolism ; pathology ; Humans ; Lipid Peroxides ; blood ; Male ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Middle Aged ; Splenic Diseases ; classification ; Superoxide Dismutase ; analysis

Accurate estimation of the exposure-response relationship between ambient urban particulate matters (PM) and public health is important for regulatory perspective of ambient urban particulate matters (PM). Ambient PM contains various transition metals and organic compounds. PM10 (aerodynamic diameter less than 10 microgram) is known to induce diverse diseases such as chronic cough, bronchitis, chest illness, etc. However, recent evaluation of PM2.5 (aerodynamic diameter less than 2.5 microgram) against health outcomes has suggested that the fine particles may be more closely associated with adverse respiratory health effects than particles of larger size. This study was performed to evaluate PM2.5-induced oxidative stress in rat lung epithelial cell in order to provide basic data for the risk assessment of PM2.5. PM2.5 showed higher cytotoxicity than PM10. Also, PM 2.5 induced more malondialdehyde (MDA) formation than PM10. In Hoechst 33258 dye staining and DNA fragmentation assay, apopotic changes were clearly detected in PM2.5 treated cells in compared to PM10. Expression of catalase mRNA was increased by PM2.5 rather than PM10. PM2.5 induced higher Mth1 mRNA than PM10. In pBR322 DNA treated with PM2.5, production of single strand breakage of DNA was higher than that of PM10. In Western blot analysis, PM2.5 induced more Nrf-2 protein, associated with diverse transcriptional and anti-oxidative stress enzymes, compared to PM10. Our data suggest that PM2.5 rather than PM10 may be responsible for PM-induced toxicity. Additional efforts are needed to establish the environmental standard of PM2.5.
Air Pollutants/chemistry/*toxicity ; Animals ; Apoptosis/physiology ; Benzimidazoles/metabolism ; Blotting, Western ; Cell Line ; Cell Survival/physiology ; DNA Fragmentation/physiology ; DNA Repair Enzymes/genetics/metabolism ; DNA-Binding Proteins/metabolism ; Epithelial Cells/drug effects/enzymology/pathology ; Formazans/metabolism ; GA-Binding Protein Transcription Factor ; Lipid Peroxides/metabolism ; Lung Diseases/*chemically induced/enzymology/pathology ; Oxidative Stress/*physiology ; RNA, Messenger/chemistry/genetics ; Rats ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Tetrazolium Salts/metabolism ; Transcription Factors/metabolism

OBJECTIVETo observe the effect of Phragmites communis polysaccharide on aging mice induced by injections of D-gulactose.

METHODAging mice were used as experimental objective.

RESULTPhragmizes communis polysaccharide could obviously increase the activity of CAT, SOD, GSH-PX in blood, lower the levels of LPO in plasma and the thick liquid made of grinding the tissues of brain and liver, and markedly resist the atrophy of the thymus, spleen and brain tissues of aging mice.

CONCLUSIONPhragmites communis polysaccharide has good anti-aging actions.

Aging ; drug effects ; metabolism ; pathology ; Animals ; Catalase ; blood ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Female ; Glutathione Peroxidase ; blood ; Lipid Peroxides ; blood ; metabolism ; Male ; Mice ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry ; Poaceae ; chemistry ; Polysaccharides ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Superoxide Dismutase ; blood