Abstract:

Objective    To study the effect of Bu-Wang-San (BWS) on estrogen and inflammatory responses in ovariectomized rats, and explore the mechanism of BWS in the treatment of Alzheimer′s disease. Methods    The rats were divided into five groups: the Sham control group, the ovariectomized(OVX) group, the OVX+ estradiol(E2) control group (OVX+E2), the high dosage of BWS group (OVX+BH) and the low dosage of BWS group (OVX+BL), 16 rats in each group. After administration for 12 consecutive weeks, the level of serum E2 was determined, mRNA expressions of aromatase(Arom) and glial fibrillary acid protein(GFAP) were analyzed by real-time PCR, and Arom and GFAP protein expressions were analyzed by Western blot. Results    Level of serum E2 in the Sham group and the E2 group was significant higher than that in the OVX group (P<0.01). Treatment with BH and BL could statistically improve the level of serum E2(P<0.01).  Expressions of Arom and GFAP mRNA and proteins in the OVX group were significantly higher than those in the Sham group (P<0.01). Expression of Arom mRNA in the BH group was statistically decreased compared with that in the OVX group (P<0.01). Expressions of GFAP mRNA and Arom and GFAP proteins in the E2 group, the BH group and the BL group were significantly lower than those in the OVX group (P<0.01). Conclusions    BWS can ameliorate the cognitional function of OVX rats. The mechanism may be associated with increasing the level of serum estradiol, retaining the stability of astrocytes, reducing expression of Arom, and decreasing inflammatory responses.

Key words: Bu-Wang-San; Ovariectomized rats; Estrogen; Inflammatory response; Alzheimer′s disease