ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the effects of Qibai Pingfei Capsules(QPC) on the expression of monoamine neurotransmitters of 5-hydroxytryptamine receptor(5-HT) and dopamine(DA) receptors of DA1 and DA5 in the rats with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) accompanied with depression, and to explore the possible therapeutic mechanism. Methods Ninety male Wistar rats were randomly divided into 6 groups, namely normal group, COPD depression group, QPC group, Venlafaxine group, and QPC plus Venlafaxine group. The rat model of COPD accompanied with depression was established by compound methods of smoking, food deprivation, water deprivation, forced swimming, shaking, and clipping tail. And then the effects of QPC on the lung function and the general characteristics were observed. Furthermore, the mRNA level of 5-HT1AR was determined by real-time quantitative reverse transcription PCR(RT-qPCR), and protein levels of DA-1 and DA-5 in rat hippocampus were assayed by Western blot analysis. Results Compared with the normal group, forced expiratory volume in 0.3 second(FEV0.3), the forced volume capacity(FVC) and FEV0.3/ FVC in the COPD depression group were significantly reduced (P < 0.01). Compared with the COPD depression group, the values mentioned above were restored to different extents in the groups of QPC, Venlafaxine, and QPC plus Venlafaxine(P<0.01). Compared with the normal group, the expression levels of 5-HT1AR mRNA, and DA-1 and DA-5 protein in the COPD depression group were significantly down-regulated, and their levels were also slightly decreased in the treatment groups(P<0.05). Compared with the COPD depression group, the expression levels were up-regulated to various degrees in all of the treatment groups (P < 0.05). Conclusion QPC can increase the mRNA levels of 5-HT1AR and protein levels of DA-1 and DA-5 in the hippocampus of COPD with depression.