Study On The Treatment Effects And The Mechanisms Of Gerbera Piloselloides (Linn.) Cass. Polysaccharide C (Gcp) On Increasing Leukocyte Counts In Benzene Intoxicated Mice

Objective: To investigate the treatment effects of Gerbera piloselloides (Linn.) Cass. Polysaccharide C (Gcp) on increasing WBC in benzene intoxicated mice and try to find its possible mechanisms.Methods: [1] From the roots of Gerbera piloselloides (Linn.) Cass., the preform of Gcp (Gc) was extracted with hot water and precipitated by alcohol. Then Gcp was isolated and purified from Gc, and the chemical composition of Gcp was analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrography (GC-MS). [2] Based on their WBC levels, 70 female Kunming mice were randomly divided into 7 groups, 6 of which were treated with benzene (benzene intoxicated animal model), and 1 was set aside as the blank control (NS). The model mice were given benzene suspended in peanut oil at the dose of 2000mg/kg, while the blank controls were given NS, by gavage for 2 weeks (6d/w). [3] After the final benzene treatment, 50 model mice whose WBC were lower than 4.0×109/L were chosen and divided into 5 treatment groups based on their WBC levels: low, median, high Gcp groups (50, 100, 200mg/kg Gcp ip, 6d/w); recombinant human granulocyte colony stimulating factor group (rhG-CSF, WBC increasing medicine, 0.03mg/kg, ip, 3d/w); model control group (NS, ip, 6d/w). With the blank controls (NS, ip, 6d/w), the above mice were treated for 2 consecutive weeks. To prevent spontaneous WBC increase, in the last 3 days of the treatment, 5 treatment groups were treated with benzene daily as mentioned at [2]. [4] Twenty-four hrs after the final treatment, mice were sacrificed, and tests or observations were carried out, including blood cell counts, main organ coefficients (spleen, thymus, heart, liver, lung and kidney), pathological examination (liver, spleen, thymus, and kidney), lymphocyte proliferative responses of murine splenocytes to ConA, bone marrow cell counts, ultrastructure of bone marrow cell, micronuclei of bone marrow polychromatic erythrocytes (PCE), and mutation in D-Loop regions of mitochondria DNA (mtDNA) of bone marrow cells.Results: [1] Gcp was composed of fructose, xylose, and glucose (24∶1∶4),with its average molecular weights about 7.5kD. [2] It was shown that, compared to the model control group, Gcp treatment at the dose of 200mg/kg could greatly increase WBC level (P<0.01), as well as that increased the coefficient of spleen, eased the damage of liver (hepatocytes necrosis) and clearly reduced micronuclei of bone marrow cell in the mice intoxicated by benzene. In...