title: Effects of Bak Foong Pill on blood coagulation and platelet aggregation.
abstract: The effects of Bak Foong Pill (BFP, also known as Bai Feng Wan), a preparation of crude drugs in wide clinical use for treatment of gynecological disorders, on blood coagulation and platelet aggregation were investigated. The anticoagulant effect of BFP was evaluated by using thrombin time (TT), prothrombin time (PT), and activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) assays. Results showed that BFP 70% ethanol extract (BFP-E-ext) significantly prolonged the TT in a dose-dependent manner with values of 17.6, 38.3, and 50.4 s at concentrations of 4.0, 6.0, and 12.0 mg/ml, respectively. Whereas, the BFP-E-ext did not show significant prolonging effect in PT and APTT assays. The results suggest that the anticoagulant effect of BFP is mediated by directly blocking thrombin, the key enzyme in the blood coagulation cascade. BFP-E-ext significantly inhibited platelet aggregation induced by collagen and adenosine diphosphate (ADP) with inhibition percentages of 74 and 52% at a concentration of 6.0 mg/ml, respectively, whereas, it exhibited a weak inhibitory activity on platelet aggregation induced by archidonic acid (AA). Comparing to BFP-E-ext, the effects of BFP aqueous extract (BFP-W-ext) on both anticoagulant and antiplatelet activities were significantly less potent. Moreover, the effects of the 26 ingredients of BFP on blood coagulation and platelet aggregation were separately evaluated with 19 ingredient herbs exhibiting anticoagulant effect and 10 exhibiting antiplatelet effect. The anticoagulant and antiplatelet effects of BFP were collectively demonstrated by in vivo assays showing prolonged bleeding times after BFP treatment for two weeks. The results of the present studies may provide explanations for beneficial effects of BFP on the circulation and indicate its potential use for cardiovascular diseases.
authors.affiliation: Epithelial Cell Biology Research Center, Department of Physiology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: Yu Lin
authors.initials: YL
authors.lastname: Gou
authors.forename: Alice Lok Sze
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Ho
authors.forename: Dewi Kenneth
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Rowlands
authors.forename: Yiu Wa
authors.initials: YW
authors.lastname: Chung
authors.forename: Hsiao Chang
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Chan
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001760:Bleeding Time / Q000379:methods; D001777:Blood Coagulation / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051379:Mice; D008813:Mice, Inbred ICR; D010974:Platelet Aggregation / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D011208:Powders; D011817:Rabbits; D013607:Tablets
chemical_list: D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal; D011208:Powders; D013607:Tablets