ABSTRACT
ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Dangui-Jakyak-San (DJ) is a traditional Korean medicinal polyherb, prescribed typically in patients with insufficient blood supply in Eastern Asia. The DJ also has been reported to have neuroprotective effects in vitro and in vivo studies. AIM OF STUDY: The therapeutic potential of DJ was examined in stroke rat model, in comparison with donepezil, a reversible acetylcholinesterase inhibitor. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ischemic stroke rat model was induced by surgery of permanent occlusion of middle cerebral artery (pMCAO). The model was orally administered with distilled water (pMCAO control), donepezil at 10mg/kg (Donepezil) and DJ at 200, 100 and 50mg/kg (DJ 200, DJ 100 and DJ 50, respectively). Sham had the same surgery excepting for the pMCAO, and it was administered with distilled water (sham control). RESULTS: After the administration for 28 days, the groups of DJ exhibited dose-dependent reduction in infarct/defect volumes with improvement in sensorimotor and cognitive motor function, comparing to pMCAO control. The DJ treatments seemed to enhance antiapoptotic and antioxidant effects; increases in antiapoptotic expressions (STAT3 and Pim-1) and decreases in lipid peroxidation (MDA) together with increases in contents of endogenous antioxidant (GSH) and activities of antioxidant enzymes (catalase and SOD). The histopathological analyses revealed significant reduction in neuronal apoptosis (caspase-3 and PARP) and neuronal degradation with atrophy and degeneration, in the DJ treatments. Furthermore, the oxidative stresses (nitrotyrosine as an iNOS factor and 4-HNE as a marker of lipid peroxidation) were observed mild. Although the similar neuroprotective effects were observed, the body weight loss was scarcely alleviated in Donepezil comparing to pMCAO control. CONCLUSION: These suggest that DJ ameliorate the neurological dysfunction of cerebral ischemia through augmentation of antioxidant defense system and up-regulation of STAT3 and Pim-1.
Subject(s)
Antioxidants/pharmacology , Apoptosis/drug effects , Cerebral Cortex/drug effects , Drugs, Chinese Herbal/pharmacology , Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery/drug therapy , Nerve Degeneration , Neuroprotective Agents/pharmacology , Oxidative Stress/drug effects , Animals , Behavior, Animal/drug effects , Biomarkers/metabolism , Caspase 3/metabolism , Cerebral Cortex/metabolism , Cerebral Cortex/pathology , Cerebral Cortex/physiopathology , Cholinesterase Inhibitors/pharmacology , Cognition/drug effects , Disease Models, Animal , Donepezil , Dose-Response Relationship, Drug , Indans/pharmacology , Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery/metabolism , Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery/pathology , Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery/psychology , Lipid Peroxidation/drug effects , Male , Motor Activity/drug effects , Piperidines/pharmacology , Poly(ADP-ribose) Polymerases/metabolism , Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-pim-1/metabolism , Rats, Sprague-Dawley , STAT3 Transcription Factor/metabolism , Signal Transduction/drug effects , Time FactorsABSTRACT
We report the case of a 30-year-old woman with a right adnexal mass resembling an ovarian cyst who declined diagnostic laparoscopy and requested treatment with acupuncture. The patient was treated with Saam acupuncture for 14 weeks. After treatment, transvaginal sonography revealed disappearance of the right adnexal mass. No adverse effects of the Saam acupuncture treatment were reported.
