Puerarin protects against high glucose-induced acute vascular dysfunction: role of heme oxygenase-1 in rat thoracic aorta.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the antioxidant and vascular protective effect of puerarin, an isoflavone glycoside known in traditional Chinese medicine on vascular reactivity subsequent to high glucose stress.


METHODS
The thoracic aortic rings with or without endothelium from male SD rats were mounted in an organ bath. Isometric contraction of aortic rings was measured. HO-1 protein expression and HO activity were also evaluated.


RESULTS
(1) After incubation with 44 mmol/L of high glucose for 2 or 4 h, the vascular contraction responses to phenylephrine (PE) and relaxation response to acetylcholine (Ach) decreased in an endothelium-dependent manner; (2) Coincubation with puerarin (10(-10)-10(-8) mol/L) and high glucose, the high glucose-induced vasoconstriction and vasodilation dysfunction was partly inhibited in a dose-dependent manner; (3) Puerarin increased the HO-1 protein expression and HO activity of thoracic aorta. ZnPP (an inhibitor of heme oxygenase-1) offset the protective effect of puerarin.


CONCLUSIONS
Puerarin could alleviate the high glucose-induced acute endothelium-dependent vascular dysfunction in rat aortic rings. HO-1 activity was proposed as a mechanism to account for the protection of vascular responses by puerarin.
Meng
Xiang-hong
XH
National Education Base for Basic Medical Sciences, Department of Physiology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, 310058, China.
Ni
Chao
C
Zhu
Li
L
Shen
Yue-liang
YL
Wang
Lin-lin
LL
Chen
Ying-ying
YY
D000109:Acetylcholine / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D000818:Animals; D001013:Aorta, Thoracic / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D004730:Endothelium, Vascular / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D005947:Glucose / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051547:Heme Oxygenase-1 / Q000502:physiology*; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D007529:Isoflavones / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008297:Male; D010656:Phenylephrine / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D014661:Vasoconstriction; D014664:Vasodilation; D014665:Vasodilator Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*
D007529:Isoflavones; D014665:Vasodilator Agents; D010656:Phenylephrine; D051547:Heme Oxygenase-1; D005947:Glucose; D000109:Acetylcholine; C033607:puerarin