Effects of pueraria total flavone on inflammatory cytokine and stat3 expression in brain tissue of exhaustive exercise rats / 中国组织工程研究

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The physiological and pathological mechanisms underlying the inflammatory response of rat brain tissue caused by exhaustive exercise are very complicated. Studies have shown that Pueraria total flavonoids have anti-oxidative, neuroprotective, and cardio-cerebrovascular protective effects against brain injury. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of Pueraria total flavone on inflammatory cytokines and signal transducer and activator of transcription-3 (STAT3) expression in rat brain tissue after exhaustive exercise. METHODS: Fifty healthy male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into a quiet control group, an exercise control group, low, middle, high dose Pueraria total flavone groups. Each training group conducted a 6-week sports training. At the end of 6-week exercise, the rats were confirmed to be exhausted. The rats were intragastrically administered 50, 100 and 200 mg/kg Pueraria total flavone in low, middle and high dose groups, respectively. Administration in each Pueraria total flavone group began at 30 minutes before exercise, once a day, and ended until the completion of the experiment. The activities of tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-8, interleukin-1β and interleukin-10 in serum and brain tissue of rats were determined by ELISA. The expression of STAT3 in rat brain tissue was detected by RT-PCR and western blot. The study protocol was approved by the Animal Ethics Committee of Guangxi Normal University (approval No. GXMU201703049). RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The levels of tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-8, interleukin-1β and interleukin-10 in serum and brain tissue of exercise control rats were higher than those in the quiet control group (P < 0.01). The levels of tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin-10 in serum and brain tissue of rats with middle and high dose of Pueraria total flavone were significantly lower than those in the exercise control group (P < 0.01). The levels of interleukin-8 and interleukin-1β in serum and brain tissue of rats with low, middle and high dose of Pueraria total flavone were significantly lower than those in the exercise control group (P < 0.01 or P < 0.05). The expression levels of STAT3 mRNA and protein in brain tissue of exercise control rats were significantly higher than those in the quiet control group (P < 0.01). The expression levels of STAT3 mRNA and protein in the brain tissue of rats with low, middle and high doses of Pueraria total flavone were significantly higher than those in the quiet control group (P < 0.01). To conclude, exhaustive exercise can cause inflammatory reaction and up-regulate STAT3 expression in rat brain tissue. The total flavonoids of Puerariae can regulate the expression of STAT3 in brain tissues and inhibit the inflammatory response of brain tissue, thus protecting damaged brain tissue.