Abstract
Dendropanax morbifera is a well-known traditional medicine used in China and Korea to treat intestinal disorders, urosis, diuresis, and chronic glomerulonephritis. Hyperuricemia is a metabolic disorder characterized by a high uric acid level in serum due to an imbalance between uric acid production and excretion and causes gout. Recently, the prevalence of hyperuricemia worldwide has been continuously increasing. Xanthine oxidase (XOD) inhibitors (allopurinol (ALP) and febuxostat) and uricosuric agents (benzbromarone and probenecid) are used to treat hyperuricemia clinically. However, because these drugs are poorly tolerated and cause side effects, such as kidney diseases, hepatotoxicity, gastrointestinal symptoms, and hypersensitivity syndrome, only a limited number of drugs are available. We investigated the antihyperuricemic effects of Dendropanax morbifera leaf ethanol extract (DMLE) and its underlying mechanisms of action through in vitro and in vivo studies. We evaluated uric acid levels in serum and urine, and xanthine oxidase (XOD) inhibition activity in the serum and liver tissue of a hyperuricemic rat model of potassium oxonate (PO)-induced hyperuricemic rats. In vitro study, XOD-inhibitory activity was the lowest among the test substances at the IC50 of ALP. However, the IC50 of DMLE-70 was significantly low compared with that of other DMLEs (p < 0.05). In PO-induced hyperuricemic rats, uric acid (UA) levels in serum and urine were significantly reduced in all DMLE-70 and allopurinol-treated (ALT) groups than in the PC group (p < 0.05). UA levels in urine were lower than those in serum in all DME groups. In PO-induced hyperuricemic rats, DMEE-200 reduced UA concentration in serum and increased UA excretion in the urine. These findings suggest that DMLE exerts antihyperuricemic and uricosuric effects on promoting UA excretion by enhanced secretion and inhibition of UA reabsorption in the kidneys. Thus, DMLE may be a potential treatment for hyperuricemia and gout.
Highlights
Hyperuricemia means elevated uric acid (UA) level in the blood [1]. e disease is associated with a significantly increased risk of gout, cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, and type 2 diabetes mellitus [2]
As a result of comparing the yield of Dendropanax morbifera leaf ethanol extract (DMLE) by the solvents, the yield of hot water extracts was highest at 24.14%, and the extraction yield decreased as the ethanol content increased (30% ethanol, 23.24%; 50% ethanol, 21.02%; and 70% ethanol, 19.66%)
DMLEs and compounds of the xanthine oxidase (XOD)-inhibitory activity are shown in Table 4. e IC50 of ALP was 50 μg/mL, which was the lowest among the test substances, followed by chlorogenic acid (CGA)
Summary
Hyperuricemia means elevated uric acid (UA) level (more than 6.8 mg/dL) in the blood [1]. e disease is associated with a significantly increased risk of gout, cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, and type 2 diabetes mellitus [2]. Hyperuricemia means elevated uric acid (UA) level (more than 6.8 mg/dL) in the blood [1]. Serum UA (SUA) is the final product of purine metabolism [3]. Two-thirds of SUA is produced from internal metabolic processes, and the rest is due to a high-purine diet [4]. 60%–70% of UA from the body is excreted through the kidneys, and the remaining is secreted in biliary secretions and the intestine. It is further metabolized by gut bacteria in uricolysis [5]. Abnormal UA metabolism and decreased excretion by the kidneys are among the major causes of hyperuricemia [6]
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