Preventive effects of Flos Perariae (Gehua) water extract and its active ingredient puerarin in rodent alcoholism models.
BACKGROUND
Radix Puerariae is used in Chinese medicine to treat alcohol addiction and intoxication. The present study investigates the effects of Flos puerariae lobatae water extract (FPE) and its active ingredient puerarin on alcoholism using rodent models.


METHODS
Alcoholic animals were given FPE or puerarin by oral intubation prior or after alcohol treatment. The loss of righting reflex (LORR) assay was used to evaluate sedative/hypnotic effects. Changes of gama-aminobutyric acid type A receptor (GABAAR) subunits induced by alcohol treatment in hippocampus were measured with western blot. In alcoholic mice, body weight gain was monitored throughout the experiments. Alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) levels in liver were measured.


RESULTS
FPE and puerarin pretreatment significantly prolonged the time of LORR induced by diazepam in acute alcoholic rat. Puerarin increased expression of gama-aminobutyric acid type A receptor alpha1 subunit and decreased expression of alpha4 subunit. In chronic alcoholic mice, puerarin pretreatment significantly increased body weight and liver ADH activity in a dose-dependent manner. Puerarin pretreatment, but not post-treatment, can reverse the changes of gama-aminobutyric acid type A receptor subunit expression and increase ADH activity in alcoholism models.


CONCLUSIONS
The present study demonstrates that FPE and its active ingredient puerarin have preventive effects on alcoholism related disorders.
Institute of New Drug Research and Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Pharmacodynamic Constituents of Traditional Chinese Medicine & New Drug Research, Jinan University College of Pharmacy, Guangzhou 510632, PR China. tlisha@jnu.edu.cn.
Zaijun
Z
Zhang
Sha
S
Li
Jie
J
Jiang
Pei
P
Yu
Jing
J
Liang
Yuqiang
Y
Wang