title: Japanese herbal medicine, Saiko-keishi-to, prevents gut ischemia/reperfusion-induced liver injury in rats via nitric oxide.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine whether Saiko-keishi-to (TJ-10), a Japanese herbal medicine, could protect liver injury induced by gut ischemia/reperfusion (I/R), and to investigate the role of NO.
  
  
  METHODS
  Male Wistar rats were exposed to 30-min gut ischemia followed by 60 min of reperfusion. Intravital microscopy was used to monitor leukocyte recruitment. Plasma tumor necrosis factor (TNF) levels and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) activities were measured. TJ-10 1 g/(kg.d) was intragastrically administered to rats for 7 d. A NO synthase inhibitor was administered.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In control rats, gut I/R elicited increases in the number of stationary leukocytes, and plasma TNF levels and ALT activities were mitigated by pretreatment with TJ-10. Pretreatment with the NO synthase inhibitor diminished the protective effects of TJ-10 on leukostasis in the liver, and the increase of plasma TNF levels and ALT activities. Pretreatment with TJ-10 increased plasma nitrite/nitrate levels.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  TJ-10 attenuates the gut I/R-induced hepatic microvascular dysfunction and sequential hepatocellular injury via enhancement of NO production.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, Keio University, 35 Shinanomachi Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-8582, Japan. yhorie@sc.itc.keio.ac.jp
authors.forename: Yoshinori
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Horie
authors.forename: Mikio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kajihara
authors.forename: Shuka
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mori
authors.forename: Yoshiyuki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yamagishi
authors.forename: Hiroyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kimura
authors.forename: Hironao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tamai
authors.forename: Shinzo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kato
authors.forename: Hiromasa
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ishii
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008102:Liver Circulation; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000209:etiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D008297:Male; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D015427:Reperfusion Injury / Q000150:complications*
chemical_list: D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal; D009569:Nitric Oxide; C018142:saiko-keishi-to