title: Hypertensive cardiac remodeling effects of lignan extracts from Eucommia ulmoides Oliv. bark--a famous traditional Chinese medicine.
abstract: The lignan extracts from the tree bark of Eucommia ulmoides Oliv., a famous traditional Chinese medicine, have been demonstrated to have inhibitory effects on aldose reductase activity in spontaneously hypertensive rat myocardium. This study was aimed to investigate the hypertensive cardiac remodeling effects of the lignan extracts together with epalrestat. Ten-week-old male spontaneously hypertensive rats were randomly divided into three groups (n = 12, each) and administered 100 mg/kg/d of captopril (angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor), 100 mg/kg/d of epalrestat (aldose reductase inhibitor) or 300 mg/kg/d of lignan extracts by gavage for 16 weeks. Sex-, age-, and number-matched normotensive Wistar Kyoto rats with spontaneously hypertensive rats were treated with distilled water (vehicle) as controls. Systolic blood pressures were measured periodically. Echocardiography examination was taken when rats were 24 weeks old. We found that both captopril and lignan extracts lowered blood pressure, and inhibited aldose reductase activity similarly to epalrestat. Echocardiography examination and histomorphometry indices were improved in all treated groups (p < 0.05). Therefore, lignan extracts could prevent hypertensive cardiac remodeling, which is likely related to aldose reductase inhibition.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Clinical Pharmacology, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, China.
authors.forename: Zhen-Yu
authors.initials: ZY
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Juan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gu
authors.forename: Jin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.forename: Jun-Jie
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Wei-Hua
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Zhi-Rong
authors.initials: ZR
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.forename: Gan
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Yao
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Hong-Hao
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Dong-Sheng
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Ouyang
mesh_terms: D000449:Aldehyde Reductase / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000187:drug effects; D000806:Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects; D002216:Captopril / Q000494:pharmacology; D031283:Eucommiaceae; D017705:Lignans / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008297:Male; D024301:Plant Bark; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051381:Rats; D011918:Rats, Inbred SHR; D011921:Rats, Inbred WKY; D012236:Rhodanine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000494:pharmacology; D053778:Thiazolidines / Q000494:pharmacology; D020257:Ventricular Remodeling / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D000806:Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors; D017705:Lignans; D010936:Plant Extracts; D053778:Thiazolidines; C038131:epalrestat; D012236:Rhodanine; D002216:Captopril; D000449:Aldehyde Reductase