aconitine and Proteinuria

Aconitum plants have been widely used in China for thousands of years. Recent evidences indicate that aconitine, the main active ingredient of Aconitum, has immunomodulatory properties that might be useful for treating autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis. In this study, we conducted a pilot study to explore the effect and mechanisms of aconitine on the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus.. A pristane-induced murine model was used. The pristane-induced mice were treated with aconitine (25, 75 μg kg. We found that aconitine significantly improved the mouse health, decreased the elevated blood leukocyte counts, reduced the serum level of anti-double-stranded DNA (anti-dsDNA) antibody, greatly ameliorated renal histopathologic damage and reduced IgG deposit in glomerular. Furtherly, the levels of PGE2, IL-17a and IL-6, were found to have decreased in aconitine treated mice.. We have demonstrated that aconitine can inhibit the progression of disease and ameliorate the pathologic lesion of systemic lupus erythematosus.

Topics: Aconitine; Animals; Antibodies, Antinuclear; Cytokines; Dinoprostone; Disease Models, Animal; Female; Immunoglobulin G; Immunologic Factors; Kidney; Leukocyte Count; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic; Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Pilot Projects; Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen; Proteinuria; Spleen; Terpenes