Effect of Bushen Huoxue recipe on serum metabolomics in polycystic ovary syndrome rats

Abstract

Objective To investigate the effect of Bushen Huoxue Recipe (BSHXR) on serum metabolomics in polycystic ovary syndrome rat (PCOSR). Methods In our study, twenty-four 6-week-old Sprague-Dawley (SD) female rats were randomly divided into three groups: treatment group, model group and blank group. The blank group and other groups were gavaged in different ways each morning, and the rats were treated with normal saline or BSHXR containing liquid each afternoon. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) was employed to study serum metabolites in the treatment group after the study as well as in the model and blank groups. Results There was a tendency to normalize the histomorphology of ovarian pathology and the abnormal sex hormone level of PCOSR was significantly improved after BSHXR treatment. The level of serum metabolites was greatly changed in PCOSR treated with the BSHXR. We identified 32 metabolic targets of BSHXR in PCOSR using LC-MS, and further revealed BSHXR targeted five major metabolic pathway: retrograde endocannabinoid signaling, taurine and hypotaurine metabolism, glycerophospholipid metabolism, primary bile acid biosynthesis, arginine and proline metabolism. Conclusion: Our study found that BSHXR plays a role in the treatment of PCOS by regulating key metabolic pathways in the PCOSR.