| Objective: To observe the effects of overtaking the sour-flavored Chinese herbal medicine on the spleen in TCM and explore its formation mechanism. Methods: 60 Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were divided randomly into 5 groups (normal group, normal dosed group, low dosed group, middle dosed group and high dosed group), ingested with water and four kinds of the extract by water from Cornus officinalis respectively (the extract concen- trations were 0.08 g/ml, 0.41 g/ml, 0.82 g/ml, 1.23 g/ml) until toxicity responses appeared generally. After the last ingestion, we assayed the gastric juice pH values and the acidity. Immunicytochemistry was applied to detect D cells of gastric mucosa and the histological changes were observed under the light microscope. Meanwhile, radioimmunoassay was applied to detect the contents of GAS in serum and MTL, PGE2, ET-1 in plasma. The level of NO in serum was determined by reduction method.Results: After ingestion, compared with normal group, ①the gastric juice pH values of middle and high dosed group were decreased obviously (P<0.05); ②The gastric juice acidity, the contents of GAS in serum and ET-1 in plasma, the number of D cells of gastric mucosa of low, middle and high dosed groups were increased obviously(P<0.05), the intensity of chronic inflammation significantly increased in low, middle and high dosedgroups(P<0.01); ③The contents of NO in serum and MTL in plasma of middle and high dosed group were increased obviously(P<0.05); ④The contents of PGE2 in plasma of all groups had no obvious difference. Compared with normal dosed group, ①the gastric juice pH values of middle and high dosed group were also decreased obviously (P<0.05), while the gastric juice acidity of low, middle and high dosed groups increased obviously (P<0.05)；②The contents of GAS in serum of high dosed group increased obviously(P<0.05), but the contents of MTL and PGE2 in plasma of all groups had no obvious difference; ③The contents of NO in serum and ET-1 in plasma of middle and high dosed groups increased obviously(P<0.05); ④The intensity of chronic inflammation significantly increased in low, middle and high dosed groups(P<0.01), and the number of D cells of the gastric mucosa of the three groups also increased obviously(P<0.05), and the percentage of strongly positive D cells of low and high dosed groups increased too(P<0.05). There was a positive correlation between the contents of GAS in serum and the number of D cells of the gastric mucosa of high dosed group. There was no correlation between those of other groups.Conclusion: Over feeding on the Sour Cornus officinalis in the long term may lead to spleen-asthenia syndromes in rats, accompanied with the increase of the gastric juice acidity and the infiltration of the gastric mucosa inflam- matory cell. Such different symptoms of spleen-asthenia may be related to the increase of the contents of GAS, MTL, ET, NO in blood and the number of D cells of the gastric mucosa. |
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