Efficacy of Yangxue Qingnao Granule on Alzheimer's Disease and Effect on VEGF Level / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ABSTRACT

ObjectiveTo observe the variation in content of vascular endothelial growth factor （VEGF） in patients with Alzheimer's disease （AD） and to investigate efficacy of Yangxue Qingnao granule on AD and the effect on VEGF. MethodA total of 60 patients with cognitive impairment ［30 of AD and 30 of amnestic mild cognitive impairment （aMCI）］ were selected， and another 30 healthy people with Montreal Cognitive Assessment （MoCA）≥26 and age， gender， and complications insignificantly different from the patients were included as healthy control. The venous blood of aMCI group， AD group， and the healthy control group was collected at the enrollment to measure the level of serum VEGF. Then， the aMCI and AD patients were randomized into the observation group and the control group， with 30 patients in each group. The control group was given Donepezil Hydrochloride （5 mg·d-1）， while the observation group received Donepezil Hydrochloride （5 mg·d-1） and Yangxue Qingnao granule. MoCA was used to evaluate the severity of cognitive impairment. After the treatment for 6 months， the clinical efficacy and adverse reactions of the two groups were compared， and the serum VEGF levels were detected again by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA）. ResultThe serum content of VEGF in AD patients was significantly lower than that in aMCI patients and healthy people （P<0.05）. Serum VEGF levels in aMCI patients were significantly decreased compared with those in healthy people （P<0.05）. After treatment for 6 months， the serum VEGF level in the observation group was significantly higher than that before treatment， and was higher than that in the control group （P<0.05）. MoCA scores in the observation group were higher than those in control group （P<0.05）. The incidence of adverse reactions was insignificantly different between both groups. ConclusionThe serum levels of VEGF significantly decreased in aMCI and AD patients， suggesting that angiogenesis might be involved in the pathophysiological process of AD and correlated with the early stage of AD. Yangxue Qingnao granule， as a safe adjuvant therapy， showed ideal effect on aMCI and AD， as manifested by the improvement of cognitive function. The mechanism is the likelihood that it can elevate the expression of angiogenic factors such as VEGF， promote angiogenesis， and then improve the microcirculation of cortex.