title: Xuezhikang, extract of red yeast rice, improved abnormal hemorheology, suppressed caveolin-1 and increased eNOS expression in atherosclerotic rats.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Xuezhikang is the extract of red yeast rice, which has been widely used for the management of atherosclerotic disease, but the molecular basis of its antiatherosclerotic effects has not yet been fully identified. Here we investigated the changes of eNOS in vascular endothelia and RBCs, eNOS regulatory factor Caveolin-1 in endothelia, and hemorheological parameters in atherosclerotic rats to explore the protective effects of Xuezhikang.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Wistar rats were divided into 4 groups (n = 12/group) group C, controls; group M, high-cholesterol diet (HCD) induced atherosclerotic models; group X, HCD+Xuezhikang; and group L, HCD +Lovastatin. In group X, Xuezhikang inhibited oxidative stress, down-regulated caveolin-1 in aorta wall (P<0.05), up-regulated eNOS expression in vascular endothelia and erythrocytes (P<0.05), increased NOx (nitrite and nitrate) in plasma and cGMP in erythrocyte plasma and aorta wall (P<0.05), increased erythrocyte deformation index (EDI), and decreased whole blood viscosity and plasma viscosity (P<0.05), with the improvement of arterial pathology.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Xuezhikang up-regulated eNOS expression in vascular endothelia and RBCs, increased plasma NOx and improved abnormal hemorheology in high cholesterol diet induced atherosclerotic rats. The elevated eNOS/NO and improved hemorheology may be beneficial to atherosclerotic disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Geriatrics, Peking University First Hospital, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Xin-Yuan
authors.initials: XY
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Pei
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Ya-Bing
authors.initials: YB
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Mei-Lin
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000378:metabolism; D001011:Aorta / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D051242:Caveolin 1 / Q000378:metabolism*; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000378:metabolism; D006152:Cyclic GMP / Q000378:metabolism; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000378:metabolism; D018056:Hemorheology / Q000187:drug effects*; D008055:Lipids / Q000097:blood; D008315:Malondialdehyde / Q000097:blood; D008516:Medicine, Chinese Traditional; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000097:blood; D052250:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III / Q000378:metabolism*; D018384:Oxidative Stress; D051381:Rats; D013482:Superoxide Dismutase / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D051242:Caveolin 1; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal; D008055:Lipids; C496822:xuezhikang; D009569:Nitric Oxide; D008315:Malondialdehyde; D052250:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III; D013482:Superoxide Dismutase; D006152:Cyclic GMP