Ameliorative effects of the traditional Chinese medicine formula Qing-Mai-Yin on arteriosclerosis obliterans in a rabbit model

CONTEXT

Qing-Mai-Yin (QMY) is a clinically used herbal formula for treating arteriosclerosis obliterans (ASO).

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the chemical constituents and effects of QMY on ASO rabbit model.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Forty-eight New Zealand rabbits were divided into six groups (n = 8): normal (normal rabbits treated with 0.5% CMC-Na), vehicle (ASO rabbits treated with 0.5% CMC-Na), positive (simvastatin, 1.53 mg/kg), and QMY treatment (300, 600, and 1200 mg/kg). ASO rabbit model was prepared by high fatty feeding, roundly shortening artery, and bovine serum albumin immune injury. QMY (300, 600 and 1200 mg/kg) was orally administered for 8 weeks. The effects and possible mechanisms of QMY on ASO rabbits were evaluated by pathological examination, biochemical assays, and immunohistochemical assays. The compositions of QMY were analysed using HPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS analysis.

RESULTS

Compared to the vehicle rabbit, QMY treatment suppressed plaque formation and intima thickness in aorta, and decreased intima thickness, whereas increased lumen area of femoral artery. Additionally, QMY treatment decreased TC, TG and LDL, decreased CRP and ET, and increased NO and 6-K-PGF1α in serum. Furthermore, the potential mechanisms studied revealed that QMY treatment could suppress expression of TNF-α, IL-6, ICAM-1 and NF-κB in endothelial tissues, and increase IκB. In addition, HPLC analysis showed QMY had abundant anthraquinones, stilbenes, and flavonoids.

CONCLUSION

QMY has ameliorative effects on ASO rabbit, and the potential mechanisms are correlated to reducing inflammation and down-regulating NF-κB. Our study provides a scientific basis for the future application and investigation of QMY.

[A case of diabetic foot treated with fibula transversal bone transfer and micro-vascular network regeneration]

Reports a case of diabetic foot patient with right toe pain, ulceration for 4 years and aggravation for 1 month. After rigorous medical treatment and related examinations, transeversal bone transfer of tibia was proposed. However, the skin condition on the inner side of the lower leg was not good before the operation, so the transversal bone removal of the fibula was performed. Two segments of the lateral fibula were osteotomized with miniature osteotomies. The two osteotomy lines were about 10 cm apart. The distal osteotomy line is about 10 cm from the tip of the lateral malleolus. On the 8th day after the surgery, the bone was moved every 6 hours and was extended inwards by 1 mm every day. After 14 days, the bone was moved back for another 14 days. Skin temperature from preoperative to postoperative, ankle brachial index, CT angiography, CT value, visual analogue scale (VAS) of pain and wound healing were evaluated by comparison. The wound was completely healed 28 days after the operation.

Evidence of compromised circulation in the pathogenesis of optic nerve damage in chronic glaucomatous rabbit

The protective effect of improving the microcirculation on the retinal ganglion cells (RGC) and the ultrastructure of the optic nerve after intravenous (i.v.) use of Salviae miltiorrhiza (SMR) was studied in a chronic intraocular hypertension model in 36 rabbits. These rabbits were treated with topical 0.5% timolol, or i.v. SMR or i.v. 0.9% saline for 1, 3, 5 or 8 weeks. The intraocular pressure (IOP) was 19.6 +/- 2 mmHg and the RGC density was 1140 +/- 121.2/mm2 in control rabbits. After one week of intraocular hypertension (IOP between 30 and 40 mmHg), the RGC densities decreased to between 650 and 820/mm2. Following the use of timolol for 1 to 8 weeks, IOP returned to control level and the RGC density increased to 1015 +/- 7/mm2. After treatment with i.v. saline for 8 weeks, the RGC density decreased progressively from 651 +/- 1/mm2 at the beginning of treatment to 83 +/- 3/mm2. The RGC density of those rabbits treated with i.v. SMR for 8 weeks remained virtually unchanged (658 +/- 5/mm2) compared to the RGC density at the beginning of the treatment. Severe ultrastructural damage of optic nerve and collapsed capillaries were found in rabbits treated with saline while these findings were mild in rabbits treated with SMR. During these periods of treatment, the intraocular hypertension did not decrease in rabbits treated with either saline or SMR. From these findings and the fact that SMR improves local microcirculation, it is considered that the compromised microcirculation is one of the mechanisms in the pathogenesis of optic nerve damage in chronic glaucoma.

Development of experimental chronic intraocular hypertension in the rabbit

There are many unanswered questions about chronic glaucoma which cannot be investigated in the available animal models. The present experiments were designed to develop a rabbit model of chronic intraocular hypertension with characteristics similar to human chronic glaucoma by ligating vortex veins or by making single or multiple intraocular injections of 0.5% or 1% alpha-chymotrypsin, 20% chondroitin sulphate, 2% hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, 2% sodium carboxymethylcellulose or 1% or 2% methylcellulose. Evaluation was based on the clinical findings, intraocular pressure and the retrograde axoplasmic transport function of the optic nerve using a horseradish peroxidase histochemical technique. Most methods either failed to produce moderate chronic intraocular hypertension or were associated with other complications. However, a reliable and relatively long period (eight weeks) of intraocular hypertension was developed by a series of four intra-anterior chamber injections of 1% or 2% methylcellulose. This model has been proved suitable for the study of structural and functional damage to the retina and optic nerve caused by chronic glaucoma.

[The effect of Inj. Salviae Miltiorrhizae Co. on the retrograde axoplasmic transport in the optic nerve of rabbits with chronic IOP elevation]

With the horseradish peroxidase histochemical technique and electron microscope, the effects of 0.5% timolol, Inj. Salviae Miltiorrhizae Co. and their combination on the retrograde axoplasmic transport in the optic nerve of 230 rabbit models of chronic IOP elevation were studied. The results showed that (1) the nerve damage in chronic glaucoma was due to multiple factors; (2) the use of a drug that improved microcirculation in combination with an IOP depressor better protected the optic nerve functions than did the latter alone; and (3) Inj. Salviae Miltiorrhizae Co. improved the optic nerve axoplasmic transport under chronic IOP elevation. The mechanism of the drug in protecting the optic nerve could be through its actions of improving the local microcirculation and the tolerance of nerve tissues to anoxia.

Capillary electrophoresis of proteins under alkaline conditions

Successful separations of proteins by capillary electrophoresis in uncoated fused-silica capillaries is limited by adsorption and variable rates of electroendosmosis, which can compromise quantitative accuracy and precision. Operation at extremes of pH to minimize these problems is useful in special cases but is not a general strategy for protein separations. Three alternative strategies are described: use of capillaries coated with a linear hydrophilic polymer, the use of acidic solutions to wash the capillary between runs, and the incorporation of additives into the electrophoresis buffer to minimize adsorption during analysis. Applications of these techniques to protein samples is demonstrated.

Carrier-free zone electrophoresis, displacement electrophoresis and isoelectric focusing in a high-performance electrophoresis apparatus

A characteristic feature of high-performance electrophoresis (HPE), the electrophoretic counterpart of high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), is that the separation chamber is a thin-walled, narrow-bore (0.05-0.3 mm) glass or fused-silica capillary tube for rapid dissipation of the Joule heat in order to minimize thermal zone deformation even at high field strengths. This paper is centered around the usefulness of HPE for separation in a carrier-free medium (i.e., in buffer alone) and deals with both zone electrophoresis, isoelectric focusing and displacement electrophoresis. Examples are given of analytical and micropreparative separations of inorganic and organic ions, proteins, viruses and bacteria. The run times are 5-30 min. Discontinuous buffer systems have up to now been used exclusively for the separation of proteins by electrophoresis in polyacrylamide gels ("disc electrophoresis"). However, the Ornstein and Davis discontinuous buffer system has been modified to adapt it to carrier-free zone electrophoresis in order to achieve automatic sharpening of the starting zone. Very high resolution of serum proteins was obtained when they were subjected to free high-performance disc electrophoresis in such a modified buffer system. To show that the HPE apparatus permits electrophoresis also in a gel medium, a polyacrylamide electrophoresis in SDS is presented. This experiment illustrates the difference between electropherograms obtained in free solution and in a molecular-sieving medium. Detection can be performed both on- and off-tube. The latter technique permits the rapid identification of the solutes by photodiode array spectrophotometry and the collection of fractions for further studies. The former detection method is simpler but mainly useful for analytical purposes. Non-UV-absorbing ions can be monitored with the aid of an on-tube UV detector if the run is performed in a UV-absorbing buffer.