Tujia ethnomedicine Xuetong suppresses onset and progression of adjuvant-induced arthritis in rats / 中国药理学通报

ABSTRACT

Aim Kadsuraheteroclita ( Roxb ) Craib ( Schizandraceae) is a medicinal plant termed Xuetong in Chinese Tujia ethnomedicine. Xuetong possesses therapeutic effects of, in the terms of Chinese medical theories, reinforcing vital energy, promoting blood cir-culation, expelling wind-evil, and removing damp-e-vil, and has been long used for the prevention and treatment of rheumatic and arthritic diseases, especial-ly in the southern China. The HPLC analysis has iden-tified that the ethanol extract of Xuetong contains large-ly biologically active lignans and triterpenoids. Our previous studies have shown that KHS exhibits very fa-vorable safety profile and potent anti-inflammatory and analgesic activities. In the present study, we investiga-ted anti-arthritic effects and the possible mechanisms of Xuetongon adjuvant-induced arthritis ( AIA ) in rats. Methods AIA was established in male Sprague-Daw-ley ( SD ) rats as described previously, and animals were daily treated by gavage with Xuetong ethanol ex-tract ( 1. 0 g · kg-1 ) or vehicle ( 0. 3% CMC-Na ) throughout the 30-day experiment. The incidence and severity of arthritis were evaluated using clinical pa-rameters. On day 30, bone destruction of the arthritic joints was assessed by computed tomography( CT) and histopathological analyses. The serum levels of pro-in-flammatory cytokines TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 were measured by ELISA. Results Treatment with 1. 0 g/kg Xuetong significantly inhibited the onset and pro-gression of AIA. The vehicle-treated rats all developed severe arthritis, while the incidence of AIA in the Xue-tong-treated rats was as low as 55%( P=0. 035 ) . The Xuetong -treated rats exhibited 1. 8 to 2. 3 fold reduc-tion of paw swelling, and gained 10 to 20% more body weight than the vehicle-treated AIA rats throughout the experiment. CT and histopathological examinations re-vealed that Xuetong markedly protected AIA rats from cartilage and bone destruction of joints. Moreover, the serum levels of TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 were signifi-cantly decreased in the Xuetong-treated rats than the vehicle-treated AIA rats. Conclusions These data strongly support the clinical use of Xuetong for rheu-matic and arthritic diseases, and suggest that Xuetong is a valuable candidate for further investigation to be a new anti-arthritic drug with favorable safety profile.