Abstract:

Objective    To investigate the protective effects of licorice extracts on the kidney of diabetic rats and the mechanism. Methods    48 Wistar rats were randomly divided into 3 groups: control group, diabetic group and therapy group. There were 16 rats in each group.  At the 8th, 12th week, detected KI, detected FBG by glucose-oxidase method, detected GHbAlc by micro-column method, detected 24h urinary albumin by Coomassie brilliant blue method, detected urine creatinine and serum creatinine by automatic biochemistry analyzer, calculated Ccr. Collected blood and made nephridial tissue homogenate, detected the content of MDA and the activity of  SOD, SeGSHPx and AR by spectrophotometer. Results    In contrast to control group, all the indexes in diabetic group and therapy group were significantly different(P＜0.05). In contrast to diabetic group, KI, FBG, GHbAlc, 24h urinary albumin, Ccr, MDA and the AR activity of blood and nephridial tissue homogenate in therapy group were obviously decreased(P＜0.05). In contrast to diabetic group, the activity of SOD and SeGSHPx of blood and nephridial tissue homogenate in therapy group were obviously increased(P＜0.05). Conclusion    Licorice extracts provide protective effects on renal function of diabetic rats, and the mechanism of this action is related to its antioxidization and ability to decrease FBG and the AR activity in renal tissue.

Key words: Licorice extracts; Diabetic kidney disease; Model animal; Aldose reductase; Oxidative stress; Rat, Wistar