Antifibrotic Effects of the Traditional Chinese Herbs－ Modified Chai-Hu-Shu-Gan-Tong on CCl4-induced

• Main Authors: Hsiao Ping Hsu, 徐曉萍
• Other Authors: Jiunn-Shiow Wang
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2004
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/90347813881589634541

碩士 === 國立中興大學 === 獸醫學系 === 92 === 　　The traditional Chinese herbs have been use to treate human hepatic fibrosis for a long time. In this study, we wanted to investigate anti-fibrotic effect and machenism of the traditional Chinese herb－Modified Chai-Hu-Shu-Gan-Tong on CCl4-induced hepatic fibrosis in Sprague-Dawley rats, have been given orally CCl4 (l.0ml/kg) twice a week for 8 weeks. There were divided into four groups, including normal control group (not treated with CCl4) , negative group to be only treated with CCl4, and two experimental groups to be treated with CCl4 and low (1.26g/kg), high (6.30 g/kg) dose of the herb, respectively. Evaluated their therapeutic effects include:1) measurement of the liver-specific cytosolic enzyme activities (AST and ALT), 2) gross lesion finding and liver, spleen and kidney weight/body weight ration, 3) histopathological score of hepatocytic degeneration and liver fibrosis, 4) determination of liver collagen content, 5) immunostaining against α-smooth muscle actin to count the number of activated stellate cells, 6) the content of α-smooth muscle actin were assayed by western blot., and 7) gelatinases (MMP-2, MMP-9) were assayed by zympgraphy. The results show that high dose group of herb treatment can significantly decreased the content of AST, ALT (p<0.05), and liver, kidney weight/body weight ration (p<0.05), liver collagen accumulation was markly reduced (p<0.05), the degree of hepatocytic degeneration and liver fibrosis were more mild (p<0.001, p<0.05). By the way, the numbers of α-smooth muscle actin positive stellate cells were significantly decreased (p<0.01), the α-smooth muscle actin protein expression was markly reduced (p<0.001) to be also high dose of herb treatment, and the expression of MMP-2 was markly reduced (p<0.05) to be also high dose of herb treatment. These results show that this traditional Chinese herb has hepato-protective and anti-fibrotic effects in CCl4-induced liver fibrosis rat model. Anti-fibrotic mechanism may be inhibit hepatic stellate cells proliferation and activation.