ABSTRACT
Objective To study inhibition effect of rosiglitazone on lung injury induced by paraquat. Methods 72 male SD rats were randomly divided into three groups ( n=24 ): model control group, paraquat ( PQ ) was administered intraperitoneally at the dose of 20 mg·kg-1;rosiglitazone group, rosiglitazone (10 mg·kg-1 , ip) was administered 1 h before PQ administration; blank control group, 1 mL 0. 9% sodium chloride solution was administered intraperitoneally. The concentration of TNF-α and IL-1β in serum was measured by ELISA at 4, 8 h and 1, 3 day(s) after PQ exposure. The lung injury scores and nuclear factor-kappa B( NF-κB) positive signal were investigated 3 days after PQ exposure by HE staining and immunohistochemistry, respectively. Protein expression levels of NF-κB and activating protein-1(AP-1) were also determined by using Western blotting. Results The levels of IL-1β and TNF-α in serum of PQ-treated rats were significantly increased as compared with blank control group. Rosiglitazone pretreatment reduced the degree of lung tissue injury, the levels of IL-1β and TNF-α in serum, and the protien expression levels of NF-κB and AP-1 as compared with the model control group. Conclusion Rosiglitazone can inhibit NF-κB and AP-1 protein expression in lung tissue, reduce the levels of IL-1β and TNF-α in serum after PQ exposure, and exert an inhibition effect on inflammation in PQ-induced lung injury of rats.