RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To explore whether Radix Dipsaci (RD) exhibits beneficial effects on tendon healing. METHODS: An attempt was made to explore the in vitro effects of a hot water extract of RD on gene expression of procollagen Type I (COL1A1), procollagen Type III (COL3A1) and decorin in cultured tendon fibroblasts, and its in vivo effects in a well-established rat model of patellar tendon donor site injury. RESULTS: It was found that gene expression of COL3A1 and decorin in cultured tendon fibroblasts was significantly increased by RD, but that COL1A1 was not affected. In vivo studies showed that RD increased blood vessels in the wound but did not significantly affect the expression of COL1A1, COL3A1 and decorin at day 14 post-injury. The ultimate tensile stress of the healing tendon was not significantly improved by either local injection or oral administration of hot water extract of RD (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The present findings imply that RD per se does not significantly improve tendon healing. Further investigation of RD in a herbal formula may be necessary to test its efficacy in tendon injuries.
Assuntos
Dipsacaceae , Medicamentos de Ervas Chinesas/uso terapêutico , Fibroblastos/efeitos dos fármacos , Ligamento Patelar/lesões , Fitoterapia , Traumatismos dos Tendões/tratamento farmacológico , Cicatrização/efeitos dos fármacos , Animais , Células Cultivadas , Colágeno Tipo I/metabolismo , Cadeia alfa 1 do Colágeno Tipo I , Colágeno Tipo III/metabolismo , Decorina/metabolismo , Modelos Animais de Doenças , Medicamentos de Ervas Chinesas/farmacologia , Fibroblastos/metabolismo , Masculino , Ligamento Patelar/efeitos dos fármacos , Ligamento Patelar/metabolismo , Ligamento Patelar/transplante , Ratos , Ratos Sprague-Dawley , Reação em Cadeia da Polimerase em Tempo Real , Reação em Cadeia da Polimerase Via Transcriptase Reversa , Traumatismos dos Tendões/etiologia , Traumatismos dos Tendões/metabolismo , Cicatrização/fisiologiaRESUMO
Transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) plays active roles in tendon healing. However, the differential effects of TGF-beta isoforms on tendon healing have not been investigated. In cultured tendon fibroblasts, we tested the effects of TGF-beta1, beta2, and beta3 on the mRNA levels of COL1A1 and COL3A1 by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. We also investigated the expression of TGF-beta isoforms, TGF-beta receptors, procollagen Type I and Type III in a rat model of tendon healing. We found that TGF-beta3 exhibited the highest potency in stimulating COL1A1 and COL3A1. TGF-beta1 exerted antagonistic effects to TGF-beta2 and beta3. All TGF-beta isoforms and procollagen Type I were confined to the edges of the healing tendon at day 28 postinjury. Our results indicated that interaction of TGF-beta isoforms exist in the regulation of collagen synthesis in tendon fibroblasts. Their effects may be further complicated by uneven spatial distribution of TGF-beta and TGF-beta receptors in healing tendons.
