The Protective Effect of Paeoniae Radix Extract against 1-methyl-4-Phenylpyridium-induced Apoptosis on SK-N-MC Neuroblastoma Cells

Background: There are increasing neuro-degenerative disorders with aging. Paeoniae Radix(PR) possesses various pharmacological effects such as sedative, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anti-stress and neuro-protective actions. Also antiaging and anti-cancer effects of PR were reported. Our purpose was to investigate whether PR is useful on the treatment of Parkinson's disease, one of the neuro-degenerative disorders. Objective: We investigated whether Paeonia Radix possesses a protective effect against 1-methyl-4 phenylpyridine(MPP+)-induced cytotoxicity in neuronal cells. Methods: 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide(MTT) assay, flow cytometry, DNA fragmentation assay, reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR), and Western blotting were performed on SK-N-MC neuroblastoma cells. Results: Cells treated with MPP+ exhibited several apoptotic features, while cells pre-treated with Paeonia Radix prior to MPP+ exposure showed s decrease in the occurrence of apoptotic features. Conclusions: These results suggest that Paeonia Radix may exert a protective effect against MPP+-induced apoptosis in SK-N-MC neuroblastoma cells.