title: [A computer simulation research for the effects of dragon's blood and its component loureirin B on sodium channel in dorsal root ganglion cells].
abstract: Using patch clamp technique the effects of dragon's blood and its component loureirin B on tetrodotoxin-sensitive sodium channel currents in dorsal root ganglion cells were observed. The experimental data were simulated with Hodgkin-Huxley model and the corresponding parameters were estimated. In addition, computer-simulated neuron action potentials in the absence and presence of drugs were produced using Hodgkin-Huxley model. The results show that the conductance of tetrodotoxin-sensitive sodium channel was fitted with m3h model well, the half-activated potentials of the sodium channel in the presence of drugs were shifted to the depolarizing direction and the threshold intensity of the cells in the presence of drugs was increased. These results demonstrate that dragon's blood and loureirin B did not resemble the tetrodotoxin which inhibited tetrodotoxin-sensitive sodium channel currents completely. Perhaps the analgesic effects of dragon's blood were partly caused by loureirin B affecting the activation, blocking the action potential generation and interfering with the transmission of painful signals into the central nervous system.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, South-Central University for Nationalities, Wuhan 430074, China.
authors.forename: Su
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Xiangming
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000200:Action Potentials / Q000187:drug effects; D018712:Analgesics, Non-Narcotic / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D003198:Computer Simulation; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005727:Ganglia, Spinal / Q000166:cytology*; D008954:Models, Biological; D009474:Neurons / Q000187:drug effects*; D051381:Rats; D012116:Resins, Plant / Q000494:pharmacology*; D015222:Sodium Channels / Q000187:drug effects*; D013779:Tetrodotoxin / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D018712:Analgesics, Non-Narcotic; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal; D012116:Resins, Plant; D015222:Sodium Channels; D013779:Tetrodotoxin; C505764:loureirin B