Study on effect of sophoridine against bone cancer pain and its mechanism / 中国中药杂志

ABSTRACT

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the effect of sophoridine against bone cancer pain in bone cancer pain model rats induced by W256 tumor cells and its mechanism.</p><p><b>METHOD</b>The rat model of bone cancer pain was reproduced by injecting W256 tumor cells into the rat marrow cavity. Ten days after the model establishment, 36 rats were selected and randomly divided into the model control group and the sophoridine treated group. At the same time, other 10 rats with sham-operation were selected to be the normal control group. Since the 15th day after the operation, rats in the treated group had been given sophoridine (25 mg x kg(-1)) for 10 days. The mechanical withdrawal threshold and the thermal withdrawal latency of each group were measured before and after the treatment. After the last treatment, the radiological and histopathological observation shall be conducted for sick legs of all rats. The expressions of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in tumor tissues were detected by mmunohistochemistry.</p><p><b>RESULT</b>Sophoridine could significantly increase the mechanical withdrawal threshold and the thermal withdrawal latency (P < 0.05, P < 0.01), significantly relief the bone injury caused by W256 tumor cells (P < 0.05), and notably down-regulate the COX-2 and VEGF expressions in tumor tissues (P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Sophoridine has the effect in relieving pain and inhibiting tumor progression in bone cancer pain rats induced by W256 tumor cells. Its mechanism may be related to the down-regulated expressions of COX-2 and VEGF.</p>