1.Protective Effect of Bushen Zhuyun Prescription on Abortion Rats with Kidney Deficiency-Corpus Luteum Inhibition Syndrome via ERα/PI3K/Akt Signaling Pathwa
Changyue SONG ; Siyu LI ; Fengyu HUANG ; Mingzhu QI ; Daiyue DING ; Shuangfei DENG ; Heqiao LI ; Jinghong XIE ; Guohua WANG ; Chen ZANG ; Hong XU ; Xiaohui SU ; Xiangying KONG
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2025;31(24):107-116
ObjectiveTo investigate the protective effects and mechanisms of Bushen Zhuyun prescription (BSZY) on abortion rats with kidney deficiency-corpus luteum inhibition syndrome. MethodsAn abortion rat model with kidney deficiency-corpus luteum inhibition syndrome was constructed. Pregnant mice aged 8-10 weeks were randomly divided into a control group (Control), a model group (Model), low-dose BSZY (BSZY-L), medium-dose BSZY (BSZY-M), and high-dose BSZY (BSZY-H) groups (2.57, 5.14, 10.28 g·kg-¹), and a Zishen Yutai Pill (ZSYT) group (1.575 g·kg-¹). Hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining was used to evaluate histopathological changes in ovarian and decidual tissue of rats in each group. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was employed to measure levels of estrogen (E₂), progesterone (P), luteinizing hormone (LH), prolactin (PRL), and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) in serum. The candidate targets of BSZY were obtained from the Traditional Chinese Medicine System Pharmacology Platform (TCMSP) and Integrative Pharmacology-based Research Platform of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCMIP) v2.0 databases, while disease targets for recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA) were retrieved from GeneCards, DrugBank, Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM), and Therapeutic Target Database (TTD). The intersection targets were identified by the Venny 2.1.0 platform. Pathway enrichment analysis was conducted based on the Metascape database to predict the potential mechanisms of BSZY. Additionally. Western blot was used to verify the effects of BSZY on the expression of estrogen receptor (ERα), phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), and protein kinase B (Akt) and explore its protective mechanism on RSA rats. ResultsCompared with the control group, the model group exhibited significantly decreased uterine, ovarian, and embryonic wet weights (P<0.05, P<0.01), with an abortion rate of 57.18%. The ovarian tissue showed varying degrees of reduction in primordial follicles, primary follicles, mature follicles, and corpora lutea, along with a large number of atretic follicles. The endometrium was thinner, and decidual tissue exhibited cellular edema and disorganized arrangement. In contrast, compared with the model group, the BSZY groups at all doses and the ZSYT group demonstrated increased uterine, ovarian, and embryonic wet weights, along with a reduced abortion rate. The number of primordial follicles, primary follicles, mature follicles, and corpora lutea increased, while atretic follicles decreased. The endometrium thickened, and decidual tissue displayed normal cellular structure with tight arrangement. Additionally, the model group showed significantly decreased levels of E₂, P, PRL, and FSH in serum (P<0.05, P<0.01), along with a decreasing trend in LH level. In contrast, the BSZY groups at all doses exhibited significantly elevated levels of E₂, P, LH, PRL, and FSH in serum (P<0.05, P<0.01). Network pharmacology predictions suggested that BSZY may exert protective effects against abortion in rats by activating the ERα/PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. Western blot results confirmed that BSZY significantly upregulated the expression of ERα, PI3K, and p-Akt proteins (P<0.05, P<0.01). ConclusionBSZY has a protective effect on the abortion rats with kidney deficiency-corpus luteum inhibition syndrome, possibly by activating the ERα/PI3K/Akt signaling pathway to reduce ovarian apoptosis and regulate endocrine function, thereby lowering the abortion rate.
2.Expression of Jagged2/Notch3 signaling molecules in pulmonary hyper-tensive rats induced by monocrotaline
Cheng CHANG ; Peng JIN ; Wei ZHENG ; Huali KANG ; Mengyang DENG ; Shuangfei LI ; Xiaojing WU
Chinese Journal of Pathophysiology 2015;(1):12-17
AIM:To study the expression of Jagged 2/Notch3 signaling molecules in pulmonary vascular wall of pulmonary hypertensive rats induced by monocrotaline .METHODS: SD rats were randomly divided into normal control group (C group,n=15), solvent control group (S group,n=15) and monocrotaline model groups (M group,n=15).The model of pulmonary hypertension was established by a single subcutaneous injection of monocrotaline (50 mg/kg).The rats in S group were given a single subcutaneous injection of the same dose of solvent .After 4 weeks, the pulmonary vascular remodeling was assessed by HE staining , and the mean pulmonary artery pressure ( mPAP) and right ventricular systolic pressure (RVSP) were determined by right heart catheterization .The expression of Jagged2/Notch3 /Hes5 molecules in the pulmonary vascular wall was detected by immunohistochemical method and real -time PCR.RESULTS:Compared with S group and C group , the percentage of medial wall thickness of smaller arteries in model group increased significantly (P<0.01).The levels of mPAP and RVSP in M group were significantly higher than those in S group and C groups (P<0.01).The results of real-time PCR showed that the expression of Jagged 2, Notch3 and Hes5 was significantly increased in M group compared with S group and C group .The data from immunohistochemical detection indicated that Jagged 2 mainly expressed in the intima of small lung artery , Notch3 and Hes5 mainly expressed in the medial smooth muscle cells .Com-pared with S group and C group , the expression of Jagged 2 and Notch3 was significantly increased in the lung small arteries of M group.CONCLUSION:The activation of Jagged2/Notch3 signaling pathway might play an important role in the for-mation of pulmonary hypertension .

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