pachymic-acid and Sepsis

To investigate the protective effects and underlying mechanisms of pachymic acid (PA) on sepsis-induced acute kidney injury (AKI).. Sepsis-induced AKI model was made by cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) surgery in SD rats. Animals were randomly divided into 5 groups: a sham group, a CLP group, and three PA-treated groups, which received intraperitoneal injection of PA at the dosage of 5, 20 and 50 mg/kg.bw, respectively. Kidney index, Cre and BUN contents were determined to evaluate the renal function. Pathological changes of kidney tissue were observed by HE staining. Levels of inflammatory mediators (TNF-α, IL-6) were measured to assess the inflammation in renal tissue. Moreover, the expression levels of iNOS, Nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) were studied by Real-time PCR and Western blot.. PA treatment can significantly decrease the kidney index, and notably drop the contents of Cre and BUN. Renal pathological damage was also found to be effectively improved by PA in a dose-dependent manner. PA treatment was observed to inhibit the renal inflammation by reducing the TNF-α and IL-6 levels. Besides, PA treatment significantly decreased the expression levels of iNOS, and enhanced the expression of Nrf2 and HO-1 in the kidney.. PA had potential therapeutic effects on sepsis-induced AKI in rats, and the activity may be associated with the anti-inflammatory function and antioxidant effect via activating Nrf2/ HO-1 pathway.

Topics: Acute Kidney Injury; Animals; Heme Oxygenase-1; Inflammation; Male; NF-E2-Related Factor 2; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Sepsis; Signal Transduction; Triterpenes

The purpose of this study was to elucidate the possible beneficial effects of pachymic acid (PA) on acute lung injury (ALI) in a rat model of sepsis.. A rat model of sepsis induced by cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) was used. Rats were randomly divided into five groups: sham, CLP, CLP + PA 1 mg/kg, CLP + PA 5 mg/kg, CLP + PA 10 mg/kg. CLP + PA groups received PA by intraperitoneal injection daily for consecutive 3 days, respectively, and the rats in sham and CLP groups were given equivalent volume of olive oil. We killed the animals 12 h after CLP and collected blood samples to determine PaO2, PaCO2, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-a), interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and IL-6. Lung samples were taken for wet/dry weight ratios and histologic assessment. Meanwhile, the levels of lung tissue myeloperoxidase (MPO), malondialdehyde (MDA) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) were determined.. The results revealed that PA treatment significantly improved the survival of septic rats and attenuated CLP-induced ALI. In PA-treated rats, the wet/dry weight ratios and the serum levels of TNF-a, IL-1β and IL-6 were down-regulated compared with the CLP group. PA also markedly decreased MDA and MPO contents and increased SOD level.. These findings indicate that PA administration ameliorates ALI in a rat model of sepsis induced by CLP.

Topics: Acute Lung Injury; Animals; Cytokines; Disease Models, Animal; Ligation; Lung; Male; Oxidative Stress; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Sepsis; Survival Rate; Triterpenes