Anti-depression effect of Kai Xin San and research of its compatibility

Kai Xin San (KXS) is a category of traditional complex prescription that wasfirst recorded in Bei Ji Qian Jin Yao Fang by SUN Si-miao in the Tang Dynasty and then also recordedin Tai Ping Hui Min He Ji Ju Fang, Qian Jin Yao Fang and Gu Jin Lu Yan in later generations. It wasmainly used by herbalist doctors to treat symptoms including desolation, moodiness, forgetfulnessetc. , which are similar to the neurosis such as depression, anxiety and difficulty in studying andmemory in the West medicine. The former recorded formulas were all composed of ginseng, polygala,hoelen and acori graminei with different proportion. But there are no systematic studies on theclinical adaptive symptom corresponding to different matching and the best anti-depressive matchingso far. In this study, the classical anti-depressive animal model, namely, ' force swimming model'and 'suspend tail model' were adopted to appraise the anti-depressive effect of the aforementionedformulas and the pharmacodynamical distinction between the whole formula decoction and the activecombination made up with each effective component from ginseng, polygala, hoelen and acori graminewere also investigated, which would provide scientific evidence for properly using KXS in clinic.

Hematopoietic-supportive effect of (2S, 3R)-ent-catechin on marrow-depressed mice

Hematopoiesis is an active process of cell proliferation, differentiation andrelease. It is the process during which hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) proliferate anddifferentiate to mature blood cells under the effect of hemetopoietic growth factors (HGFs) incertain hematopoietic microenvironment. HSCs are sources of hematopoiesis of a body that canself-renew, differentiate to blood cells of every lineage and maintain the constancy of them. As themajor tissue of hematopoiesis bone marrow is filled with all kinds of blood cells in variousdevelopmental stages. Under the normal conditions, the ordered proliferation and differentiation ofhematopoietic stem cells/hematopoietic progenitor cells ( HSC/HPC) depend on the regulation ofcytokine network. In present, Spatholobus suberectus Dunn (SSD), a traditional Chinese herb medicinethat has been used to invigorate the blood circulation for thousands years, is widely used torebuild blood after chemotherapy and radiotherapy and to treat hematopoietic diseases. Previousreports from our laboratory indicated that (2S,3R)-ent-catechin, epi (2S, 3R )-ent-catechin, gallic( 2S, 3R )-ent-catechin, et al extracted from SSD all could stimulate the proliferation of HPC inmarrow depressed mice, among which (2S, 3R)-ent-catechin obtained from spatholobus genus for thefirst time and whose content was the maxim showed the best effect. In this study, firstly, theeffect of (2S,3R)-ent-catechin on the quality and quantity of HSCs were assayed by detectingCD_(34)^+ expression. Secondly, we investigated the variation of cytokine (GM-CSF and IL-6)sero-level in mice treated with (2S,3R)- ent-catechin by ELISA. And IL-6 mRNA and GM-CSF mRNAexpressions induced by (2S,3R)-ent-catechin were detected simultaneously by RT-PCR technique inorder to clarify its mechanism.