ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the relationship between tissue distributions of modified Wuzi Yanzong prescription (, MWP) in rats and meridian tropism theory.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A high-performance liquid chromatography with Fourier transform-mass spectrometry (HPLC-FT) method was used to identify the metabolites of MWP in different tissues of rats after continued oral administration of MWP for 7 days. The relationship between MWP and meridian tropism theory was studied according to the tissue distributions of the metabolites of MWP in rats and the relevant literature.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Nineteen metabolites, mainly flavanoid compounds, were detected in the different rat tissues and classified to each herb in MWP. Further, it was able to establish that the tissue distributions of the metabolites of MWP were consistent with the descriptions of meridian tropism of MWP available in literature, this result might be useful in clarifying the mechanism of MWP on meridian tropism. In the long run, these data might provide scientific evidence of the meridian tropism theory to further promote the reasonable, effective utilization, and modernization of Chinese medicine.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The tissue distributions of MWP in vivo were consistent with the descriptions of meridian tropism of MWP.</p>
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of modified wuzi-yanzong prescription(MWP) on brain gene expression profile in senescence accelerated mouse-prone/8 (SAMP8) mice and detect the mechanism of MWP treating dementia-related diseases. METHODS: Six SAMP8 mice were randomly divided into model group and MWP group on average, meanwhile three senescence accelerated mouse-resistance/1 (SAMR1) mice were chosen as the blank control group. The MWP group was intragastrically intervened by MWP 9 g · kg-1 · d-1, while model group and control goup were given equal volume of sodium carboxyl methyl cellulose, once a day. After 10 d, the mice in experiment were killed and seperated the whole brain. Brain RNA expression was analyzed using Illumina whole genome expression profiles. RESULTS: Compared with the model group, 293 differential genes were screened in the MWP group, including 179 up-regulated genes and 114 down-regulated genes. Gene Ontology (GO) categories and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis indicated 17 key targets about differentiation and proliferation of neural stem cells, including Notch pathway, Rap1/B-Raf/ERK pathway and related target proteins; 9 key targets about neural endocrine-immune (NEI) network, including follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), prolactin, thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), etc. CONCLUSION: The action mechanisms of MWP on brain in SAMP8 mouse involve the regulation of proliferation and differentiation of neural stem cells and NEI network.