Ginseng panaxoside Rb1 reduces body weight in diet-induced obese mice.

Crude extracts from ginseng demonstrated anti-obesity properties. Ginsenoside Rb1 is the main component of ginseng, however, there are only few studies examining its effects in obesity. In the present study, we evaluated its potential anti-obesity effects in the murine model of diet-induced obesity. Seventy male C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided to consume for 12 weeks either chow diet (N = 8) or high-fat (HF) diet (N = 62). The latter mice were then divided into four groups: diet-induced obesity group (DIO; N = 10), obesity-resistant group (OR; N = 10), HF group (N = 5), and the group whose diet was changed from HF to normal diet (DC; N = 5). Intraperitoneal injections of Rb-1 were administered daily to mice in the DIO and OR groups for 3 weeks. Body weight and energy intake were monitored, and fasting blood glucose, lipids, neuropeptide Y, Y2 receptor, and peptide YY were quantified. Compared with HF group, weight gain and food intake of DIO mice with Rb-1 injection was significantly decreased (p < 0.05). Further, levels of blood glucose and some lipids were also decreased in DIO-Rb1 group compared with HF group. Furthermore, Rb1 was also found to modulate serum levels of PYY and NPY, and mRNA expression of NPY, Y2 receptor and PYY in tissue samples of DIO mice. Taken together, ginsenoside Rb1 may be useful in the treatment of obesity via modifying the serum content and mRNA expression of NPY, Y2 receptor and PYY.

Effect of zymosan on antioxidant and immune function of S180 tumor-bearing mice.

The objective is to study the effect of zymosan on antioxidant and immune function of S(180) tumor-bearing mice. Seventy Kunming mice were randomly divided into seven groups: a normal control group (NC), a tumor control group (TC), three dose groups of zymosan (low, medium, high), a cyclophosphamide (Cy) group, and a combination of zymosan and Cy group. The S(180) tumor-bearing mice model was established by the inoculation of cancer cell suspension subcutaneously in the mouse's right anterior limb. At the 19th day, malondialdehyde (MDA), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity in liver homogenate were analyzed. The reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction was used to determine the mRNA expression levels of IL-2, TNF-α, and TGF-ß(1). The activity of GSH-Px and SOD in the liver increased with the dose of zymosan, whereas the activity of MDA significantly decreased in the higher-dose groups of zymosan, compared to the TC group (P < 0.01). In the zymosan groups, mRNA expression levels in tissues of S(180) tumor-bearing mice were significantly higher for TNF-α and IL-2, but lower for TGFß(1) than in the Cy or TC group (P < 0.01). The high-dose of zymosan markedly showed a depressant effect on S(180) tumor, enhanced by the action of Cy that increased mRNA expression levels of TNF-α and IL-2. The mechanism of zymosan on the inhibition of tumor growth may be due to its ability to enhance the antioxidant and immune function in a dose-dependent manner.

[Protective effects of salidroside on oxidative damage in fatigue mice].

OBJECTIVE: To study the protective effects of salidroside on oxidative damage in fatigue mice. METHODS: Thirty-two male Kunming mice were randomly divided into four groups based on body weight: normal control group, salidroside group, training group and salidroside plus training group. The mice in the normal control group and the training group were given distilled water and mice in the salidroside group and the salidroside plus training group were given 180 mg/ (kg * d) salidroside for 15 days. At 30 min after the last administration, the mice in the training group and the salidroside plus training group were forced to swim for 120 min. Finally, all the mice were killed. The activities of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), creatine kinase (CK) and creatine kinase-myocardial band isoenzyme (CK-MB) in plasma were determined by an auto-biochemistry analyzer. The activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and the content of malonaldehyde (MDA) in liver tissue were also detected. The changes of ultrastructures of the skeletal muscle and cardiac muscle were observed under an electron microscope. RESULTS: Compared with no swimming, long-time swimming could significantly increase the activities of LDH, CK and CK-MB in plasma (P < 0.05, P < 0.01), while salidroside could significantly decrease the activities of CK and CK-MB in plasma induced by long-time swimming (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). There existed interactions in LDH, CK and CK-MB activities between salidroside and long-time swimming (P < 0.05). Compared with no swimming, long-time swimming could significantly decrease the SOD and GSH-Px activities and increase the MDA content in liver tissue (P < 0.01). Salidroside could significantly increase the GSH-Px and SOD activities and decrease the MDA content in liver tissue (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). However, there were no interactions in GSH-Px activity and MDA content between salidroside and long-time swimming (P < 0.05). After long-time swimming, more ultrastructural lesions were found in the cardiac muscle and skeletal muscle in the training group than in the salidroside plus training group. CONCLUSION: Salidroside may play a role in protecting the mice from oxidative damage caused by long-time endurance training.

Gene expression profiles in the liver of mice irradiated with (60)Co gamma rays and treated with soybean isoflavone.

PURPOSE: To better understand the molecular mechanisms underlying the radio-protective effect of soybean isoflavone that we observed in our recent animal experiments. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We utilized a cDNA microarray to investigate the expression profiles of 4,096 known genes in the livers of irradiated-mice with or without soybean isoflavone treatment. Dye swap approach was employed to control for gene-specific dye bias and quantitative real-time RT-PCR was performed on several genes to validate the cDNA microarray data. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, 68 genes were up-regulated and 28 genes were down-regulated in mice treated with irradiation alone, whereas only 6 genes were down-regulated and 35 genes were up-regulated in mice treated with soybean isoflavone. Interestingly, some of the down-regulated genes in the irradiated group, such as DNA repair and stress response genes and cytoskeleton-associated genes, which are markers of cellular damage after irradiation, were maintained at close to normal expression levels after soybean isoflavone treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Comparison of gene expression profiles in the livers of irradiated-mice treated with or without soybean isoflavone suggested that soybean isoflavone may be an efficient tool to reverse irradiation damage of the liver through multiple-pathways and also provides important clues to further pursue the molecular mechanisms underlying the radio-protective activity of soybean isoflavone.

Protective effects of soybean isoflavone against gamma-irradiation induced damages in mice.

In the present work, we investigated the radioprotective efficacy of soybean isoflavone (SI) in mitigating gamma-irradiation-induced oxidative damage to the livers and blood systems of adult Swiss albino mice. We administered various doses of SI (50 mg/kg b.wt, 100 mg/kg b.wt, and 400 mg/kg b.wt) to the mice for seven consecutive days before exposing them to a single dose of 4.56 Gy 60Co-gamma whole-body irradiation. The irradiated mice continued to receive SI for two or seven days before sacrifice. The SI treatments significantly elevated liver catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) enzyme activities and mRNA abundances, and decreased the malonaldehyde (MDA) levels. The SI treatments also accelerated the recovery of circulating white blood cells (WBCs) and reticulocytes (RETs) seven days following irradiation. These effects were dose-dependent, and the strongest effect on most biomarkers (but not on histopathology) was seen with an intermediate dose. Our results provide useful information for future investigations, and strongly implicate a clinical application for SI.