Abstract
Purpose: To investigate the activity of the aqueous root extract of Salvia miltiorrhiza ( S. miltiorrhiza ) (Lamiaceae), collected from Anhui Province, China, for the treatment of spinal cord injury (SCI) in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats. Methods: In total, 30 adult rats were selected and divided into three groups; normal control, untreated and treated. Aqueous root extract of S. miltiorrhiza was introduced intraperitoneally to the treated group. Basso, Beattie and Bresnahan rating scale (BBB) was used to evaluate improvement in locomotor activity after SCI. Total RNA was extracted from tissue sections using Sepasol (NacalaiTesque) and RNA samples were reverse-transcribed using M-MLV reverse transcriptase. BioSense SC-810 Gel Documentation System and Gel-Pro 3.1 software were employed for the analysis of band intensity. Results: A significant reduction in SCI cavity area was observed in the S. miltiorrhiza extract-treated group, relative to the untreated group, after 11 days (0.10 ± 0.05 mm 2 treated vs. 0.30 ± 0.01 mm 2 untreated). Treatment with root extract also improved the BBB scores; the treated group scored 15, compared to a score of 8 for the untreated group. In addition, the degradation of neurons at the site of injury in the spinal cord was reduced in the treated group compared to the untreated group. Treatment with S. miltiorrhiza aqueous root extract also significantly increased the expression of platelet-derived growth factor-B (PDGF-B) mRNA (p < 0.01). Conclusion: These data suggest that, in addition to other pharmacological activities, S. miltiorrhiza extract has therapeutic potential for the treatment of neuronal degeneration following SCI. Keywords: Salvia Miltiorrhiza , Neurons, Spinal cord injury, Locomotor capacity, Platelet-derived growth factor-B, Basso, Beattie and Bresnahan rating scale
Highlights
Spinal cord injury (SCI), which is primarily caused by traffic accidents and falls from high altitude, is a frequently encountered global health problem [1]
The animals belonging to the normal control, untreated and treated groups were examined for locomotor activity on day 11 post-surgery
These findings indicate that S. miltiorrhiza root extract has a therapeutic effect on rats following SCI (p < 0.01)
Summary
Spinal cord injury (SCI), which is primarily caused by traffic accidents and falls from high altitude, is a frequently encountered global health problem [1]. The pathology of SCI can be divided into two stages, primary and secondary injury, involving (1) compression of spinal cord tissues and (2) apoptosis of cells at the site of lesions, respectively [2,3]. It was observed that S. miltiorrhiza (Lamiaceae) root extract improved locomotor activity, indicating that it may be a promising treatment option for SCI. S. miltiorrhiza (Lamiaceae) plant root was collected, washed with distilled water, dried and ground to form a fine powder. The animals in the untreated and treated groups were anesthetized by intra peritoneal injection of sodium pentobarbital (50 mg/kg), before exposure of the spinal cord. Animals in the treated group were injected with 10 μM doses of S. miltiorrhiza root extract every other day for 10 days. The mRNA expression levels were evaluated using a real-time quantitative RT-PCR assay and a Light Cycler System (Roche Diagnostics, Mannheim, Germany)
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