• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.187-198
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• 2006

Objectives : The purpose of this study is to assess the effect of Daekumeumja herb-acupuncture on neural cell proliferation and nitric oxide synthase(NOS) expression in hippocampus of ethanol-intoxicated Sprague-Dawley(SD) rats. Methods : SD rats were randomly assigned into 5 groups ; the normal group, the alcohol-treated(control) group, the alcohol- and 1 mg/kg Daekumeumja- treated(sample A) group, the alcohol- and 5mg/kg Daekumeumja-treated (sample B) group, the alcohol- and 10 mg/kg Daekumeumja-treated (sample C) group(n = 6 in each group). Normal group were received with Saline, while control group were injected intraperitoneally with alcohol(2 g/kg) once per day for 5 days. Sample groups were treated Daekumeumja herb-acupuncture on Chungwan(CV12) for 5 consecutive days. Bromo-deoxyuridine(BrdU) was injected into all animals once per day for 5 days. For the detection of BrdU-positive cells and NADPH-d- positive cells in hippocampus, immunohistochemistry was performed. Results : 1. In the dentate gyrus area, the number of BrdU-positive cells in the sample $B(278.08{\pm}6.46)$, $C(331.33{\pm}16.68)$ groups was significantly(p<0.05) increased compared with the control group. 2. In the dentate gyrus area, the number of NADPH-d-positive cells in the sample $C(86.50{\pm}10.02)$ groups was significantly(p<0.05) increased compared with the control group. 3. In the CAI area, the number of NADPH-d-positive cells in the sample $A(63.90{\pm}2.69)$, $B(75.70{\pm}3.01)$, $C(97.70{\pm}4.06)$ groups was significantly(p<0.05) increased compared with the control group. 4. In the CA 2-3 area, the number of NADPH-d-positive cells in the sample $B(30.20{\pm}1.89)$, $C(62.70{\pm}2.08)$ groups was significantly(p<0.05) increased compared with the control group. Conclusion : These results indicate that, neural cell proliferation and NOS expression in hippocampus was reduced in ethanol-intoxicated group. Treatment of Daekumeumja herb-acupuncture increased this diminution. Daekumeumja could be able to effect on the prevention of the amnesia and learning disability in alcoholism.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.416-425
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• 2005

This study demonstrated neuroprotective and anti-oxidative effects of Puerariae Radix for cerebral ischemia. Neuroprotective effects were studied by using oxygen/glucous deprivation of the organotypic hippocampal slice cultures to complement limitations of in vivo and in vitro models for cerebral ischemia study. Anti-oxidative effects were studied on BV-2 microglia cells damaged by $H_2O_2$ and nitric oxide. The results obtained are as follows; The groups treated with 0.5 and $5{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ of Puerariae Radix revealed significant decreases of neuronal cell death area and cell death area percentages in CA1 region of ischemic damaged hippocampus cultures during whole 48 hours of the experiment. The groups treated with 0.5 and $5{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ of Puerariae Radix revealed significant decreases of neuronal cell death area and cell death area percentages in DG region of ischemic damaged hippocampus cultures during whole 48 hours of the experiment. The groups treated with 0.5 and $5{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ of Puerariae Radix revealed significant decreases of TUNEL-positive cells in both CA1 region and DG region of ischemic damaged hippocampus cultures. The group treated with $50\;{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ of Puerariae Radix demonstrated significant decrease of TUNEL-positive cells in CA1 region. The groups treated with 0.5 and $5{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ of Puerariae Radix revealed significant decreases of LDH concentrations in culture media of ischemic damaged hippocampus cultures. The groups treated with 0.5 and $5{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ of Puerariae Radix revealed significant increases of cell viabilities of BV-2 microglia cells damaged by $H_2O_2$. The group treated with $5{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ of Puerariae Radix revealed significant increase of cell viability of BV-2 microglia cells damaged by nitric oxide. These results suggested that Puerariae Radix of cerebral ischemic revealed neuroprotective effects through the control effect of apoptosis and oxidative damages.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.812-824
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• 2013

Reserpine, an anti-hypertensive drug, is able to positively modulate several phenotypes associated with $A{\beta}$ toxicity in a Caenorhabditis elegans model of Alzheimer's disease (AD). We investigated into the therapeutic effects of reserpine on mammalian neurodegenerative disorders, and found that significant alteration of the key factors influencing AD was detected in Tg2576 mice after reserpine treatment for 30 days. The aggressive behavior of Tg2576 mice was significantly improved upon reserpine treatment, whereas their social contact was consistently maintained. Furthermore, the levels of $A{\beta}$-42 peptide in the hippocampus of the brain and blood serum were lower in the reserpine-treated group than in the vehicle-treated group. Among g-secretase components, the expression levels of PS-2, Pen-2, and APH-1 were slightly lower in reserpine-treated Tg2576 mice, although a significant change in nicastrin (NCT) expression was not detected. Furthermore, the serum level of nerve growth factor (NGF) increased in reserpine-treated Tg2576 mice compared with vehicle-treated mice. Among down-stream effectors of the NGF receptor TrkA signaling pathway, reserpine treatment induced elevation of TrkA phosphorylation and reduction of ERK phosphorylation. In addition, in the NGF receptor $p75^{NTR}$ signaling pathway, the expression levels of $p75^{NTR}$ and Bcl-2 were enhanced in reserpine-treated Tg2576 mice compared with vehicle-treated mice, whereas the expression level of RhoA declined. Overall, these results suggest that reserpine can help relieve AD pathogenesis in Tg2576 mice through downregulation of $A{\beta}$-42 deposition, alteration of ${\gamma}$-secretase components, and regulation of NGF metabolism.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.42-49
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• 2012

This study was carried out to investigate the toxicity of food Red No.2 in the Sprague-Dawley (SD) female rat for 4 weeks. SD rats were orally administered for 28 days, with dosage of 500, 1,000, 2,000 mg/kg/day. Animals treated with food Red No.2 did not cause any death and show any clinical signs. They did not show any significant changes of body weight, feed uptake and water consumption. There were not significantly different from the control group in urinalysis, hematological, serum biochemical value and histopathological examination. In conclusion, 4 weeks of the repetitive oral medication of food Red No.2 has resulted no alteration of toxicity according to the test materials in the group of female rats with injection of 2,000 mg/kg. Therefore, food Red No.2 was not indicated to have any toxic effect in the SD rats, when it was orally administered below the dosage 2,000 mg/kg/day for 4 weeks.