Abstract
Gastric ulcer is one of the most common gastrointestinal diseases. Anwulignan (AN) is a major active component of Schisandra sphenanthera Rehd. This study was designed to evaluate the protective effect of AN against the acute gastric ulcer induced by HCl/ethanol in mice. The mice were given HCl/ethanol by gavage to establish an acute gastric ulcer model. Then, the serum and gastric tissue samples were taken for biochemical analyses. The results showed that the pretreatment with AN could significantly reduce the gastric ulcer index (GUI) and increase the ulcer inhibition rate, indicating that AN can protect against gastric ulcers. AN showed its antioxidant roles by decreasing the content of reactive oxygen species (ROS), malondialdehyde (MDA), and 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) and increasing the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and anti-inflammatory roles by decreasing the content of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and myeloperoxidase (MPO) and increasing the content of interleukin-2 (IL-2), interleukin-4 (IL-4), interleukin-10 (IL-10), prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), and nitric oxide (NO) in both serum and gastric tissue. Furthermore, AN also activated the NRF2/ARE signaling pathway and inhibited the MAPK/NF-κB signaling pathway. AN improves the acute gastric ulcer induced by HCl/ethanol in mice, which may be mainly through its antioxidant capacity and anti-inflammatory effect.
Highlights
Gastric ulcer often occurs in the gastric horn, antrum, cardia, and hiatal hernia, and about 10% of the world’s population suffer from this disease and 1% of them are more likely to deteriorate into cancer; gastric ulcer has been classified as a precancerous disease by WHO [1, 2]
Protective Effect of AN against the Gastric Ulcer Induced by HCl/Ethanol
When stimulated by external factors, the NF-κB signaling pathway is activated, IκBα is dissociated from the complex, and P50 and P65 enter the nucleus to regulate the transcription of target genes [56]. erefore, P65 and IκBα are important indicators for the detection of NF-κB signaling pathway [57]. e results of this study showed that HCl/ethanol treatment could significantly increase the phosphorylation level of P65 and IκBα in the gastric tissue of mice, which was consistent with the other report [58]
Summary
Gastric ulcer often occurs in the gastric horn, antrum, cardia, and hiatal hernia, and about 10% of the world’s population suffer from this disease and 1% of them are more likely to deteriorate into cancer; gastric ulcer has been classified as a precancerous disease by WHO [1, 2]. Gastric ulcer is generally induced by smoking, drinking, poor diet, stress, and the abuse of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) [3, 4]. Erefore, antioxidation and anti-inflammation are supposed to be effective strategies to prevent and treat gastric ulcers. E oxidative injury and inflammatory reaction in the tissue of gastric ulcer induced by alcohol will be further aggravated by gastric acid [9]. Drugs for the treatment of gastric ulcer at present are mainly chemosynthetic drugs, including H2 receptor blockers, proton pump inhibitors, and gastric mucosal protective agents. These drugs, though effective, tend to cause severe adverse reactions, such as hepatitis, diarrhea, and headache [11]. Schisandra, the dried and mature fruit of Schizandra sphenanthera Rehd., is a commonly used herb in China, South Korea, and Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine
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