Evaluation of Pepsinogen I as a Biomarker of Drug-induced Gastric Mucosal Injury in Cynomolgus Monkeys

Bruguiera gymnorrhiza (L.) Lam. Fruit Accelerates Healing in Gastric Injury via the Regulation of the NF-κB Pathway

Objective

The present study aimed at the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects of the extract of Bruguiera gymnorrhiza (L.) Lam. fruit (BGF) on the gastric injury.

Materials and Methods

The chemical components in the extract of BGF were used in UPLC/Q-Orbitrap analysis. 60 SD rats were randomized into six groups: normal group (MC), ethanol-injured control group (EC), omeprazole group, and three groups with different doses (50, 100, and 200 mg/kg) of BGF. After continuous administration for seven days, the stomachs of rats were taken out to observe the pathological gastric tissue changes; inflammatory factors and oxidative stress markers in the stomach tissues were measured. Western blot (WB) analyses were conducted to explore the mechanism of BGF on gastric tissue and RAW 246.7 cells with excessive inflammation.

Results

BGF enhanced gastric mucosal protection by improving the mucosal blood flow of the stomach and significantly decreased inflammatory factors and oxidative stress markers. Moreover, BGF significantly reduced the expression of p-NF-κB p65. Consistently, BGF demonstrated similar effects on LPS-induced RAW 264.7 cells as it did in vivo.

Conclusion

BGF could accelerate the healing of gastric injury by exerting antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects and maintaining mucosal integrity.

Protective Effects of Small-Molecule Oligopeptides Isolated from Tilapia Fish Scale on Ethanol-Induced Gastroduodenal Injury in Rats

Peptic ulcer has a serious impact on people’s health around the world, and traditional medicines can cause adverse reactions. This study investigated the protective effects of tilapia collagen oligopeptides (TCOPs) on gastroduodenal injury. Seventy-two specific pathogen-free (SPF) male Sprague Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into six groups according to body weight: normal control group, ethanol group, whey protein group (500 mg/kg BW), and three TCOPs dose groups (250, 500, 1000 mg/kg BW). After intragastric administration for 30 days, the acute gastroduodenal injury was induced by anhydrous ethanol (5 mL/kg, intragastrically) in all groups except the normal control group. Biomarkers in gastric and duodenal tissue and serum were measured. Furthermore, western blot was used to detect the expression of apoptosis-related proteins. The results showed that the administration with TCOPs significantly reduced gastric and duodenal ulcer index, increased gastric juice pH, superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activities, along with the reduction of malondialdehyde (MDA) contents. TCOPs decreased tumor Necrosis Factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and myeloperoxidase (MPO) levels, while interleukin– 10 (IL-10) levels were increased. Furthermore, pepsinogens 1 (PG1), pepsinogens 2 (PG2), gastrin (GAS), and the pepsinogen ratio (PGR) were decreased, the prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) and NO contents were increased after TCOPs intervention. Moreover, TCOPs up-regulated the expression of Bcl-2 and inhibited the expression of Bax and Caspase-3. In conclusion, TCOPs have protective effects on ethanol-induced gastroduodenal injury through gastrointestinal mucosal microcirculation promotion, antioxidation, anti-inflammation, and anti-apoptosis mechanisms.

The Gastroprotective Effect of Small Molecule Oligopeptides Isolated from Walnut (Juglans regia L.) against Ethanol-Induced Gastric Mucosal Injury in Rats

The study investigated the protective effect of walnut oligopeptides (WOPs) against ethanol-induced gastric injury using Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats. Rats were randomly divided into seven groups based on body weight (10/group), normal group, ethanol group, whey protein group (220 mg/kg body weight), omeprazole group (20 mg/kg body weight), and three WOPs groups (220, 440, 880 mg/kg body weight). After 30 days of treatment with WOPs, rats were given 5 mL/kg absolute ethanol by gavage to induce gastric mucosal injury. Gastric ulcer index (GUI) were determined and the following measured; gastric content pH, gastric mucin, endogenous pepsinogens (PG), prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), inflammatory cytokines, oxidative stress indicators, and the expression of apoptosis-related proteins were measured to evaluate the gastroprotective effect of WOPs. The results showed that the administration with WOPs markedly mitigated the hemorrhagic gastric lesions caused by ethanol in rats, and decreased the GUI, the gastric content pH, PG1, PG2, and NO levels, enhanced mucin and PGE2. Also, WOPs repressed gastric inflammation through the reduction of TNF-α, IL-6, IL-1β and increase IL-10 levels, and revealed antioxidant properties with the enhancement of superoxide dismutase, glutathione, and catalase activity, while reduction of malondialdehyde. Moreover, WOPs treatment significantly down-regulated Bax, caspase-3 and nuclear factor-κB p65 (NF-κB p65) expression, while up-regulating the expression of Bcl-2 and inhibitor kappa Bα (IκBα) protein. These results indicated that WOPs have protective effects against ethanol-induced gastric mucosal injury in rats through anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidation, and anti-apoptosis mechanisms.