Saireito (a Chinese herbal drug) decreases inhibitory effect of prednisolone and accelerates the recovery of rat hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis.
Saireito, a saiko agent (a Chinese herbal drug), increases the synthesis and secretion of ACTH by stimulating hypothalamic CRH release. In the present study, we examined the effect of food containing saireito (1.5%) on the recovery of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis after treating male rats with prednisolone (PSL, 200 microM) in drinking water for 14 days. Saireito was administered during and after PSL administration. The rats were decapitated at various times after PSL administration. Tail-pinch stress had been applied to some rats. The plasma ACTH response to tail-pinch stress in the PSL + saireito group recovered to the control level on day 1, but that in the group given PSL alone recovered on day 3. The ACTH level in the anterior pituitary and the CRH level in the median eminence of the PSL + saireito group returned to the control level on day 3, and that in the group given PSL alone returned to it on day 5. These results indicate that the administration of saireito reduces the negative feedback effect of PSL on the hypothalamus and pituitary and accelerates the recovery of the hypothalamic CRH and pituitary ACTH level after glucocorticoid treatment.
Tozawa
F
F
Third Department of Medicine, Hirosaki University School of Medicine, Japan.
Dobashi
I
I
Horiba
N
N
Sakai
Y
Y
Sakai
K
K
Suda
T
T
D000307:Adrenal Gland Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000188:drug therapy*; D000324:Adrenocorticotropic Hormone / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight; D003346:Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone / Q000378:metabolism; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007027:Hypothalamic Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000188:drug therapy*; D007700:Kinetics; D008297:Male; D008473:Median Eminence / Q000378:metabolism; D010900:Pituitary Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000188:drug therapy*; D010903:Pituitary Gland, Anterior / Q000378:metabolism; D011239:Prednisolone / Q000633:toxicity*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013312:Stress, Physiological / Q000097:blood
D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal; C080903:sairei-to; D000324:Adrenocorticotropic Hormone; D003346:Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone; D011239:Prednisolone