title: Extract of Litsea japonica ameliorates blood-retinal barrier breakdown in db/db mice.
abstract: Loss of blood-retinal barrier (BRB) properties is an important feature in the pathology of diabetic retinopathy. Endothelium integrity is important for the normal vascular function. Litsea japonica (Thunb.) Jussieu is a Korean native plant that is consumed as a vegetable food. In this study, we evaluated the ability of an ethanol extract of L. japonica to prevent retinal vascular leakages in db/db mice, which is an animal model of type II diabetes. L. japonica extracts (LJE, 100 and 250 mg/kg) were administered once a day, orally, for 12 weeks. Vehicle-treated db/db mice exhibited hyperglycemia and retinal vascular leakage. LJE treatment blocked diabetes-induced BRB breakdown and decreased retinal VEGF expression in db/db mice. LJE also inhibited the degradation of occludin, which is an important tight junction protein. These findings support the potential therapeutic usefulness of L. japonica for retinal vascular permeability diseases.
authors.affiliation: Korean Medicine Based Herbal Drug Development Group, Herbal Medicine Research Division, Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine (KIOM), 1672 Yuseongdaero, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 305-811, South Korea.
authors.forename: Junghyun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Chan-Sik
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Ik Soo
authors.initials: IS
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Yun Mi
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Eunjin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Sohn
authors.forename: Kyuhyung
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Jo
authors.forename: Joo Hwan
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Jin Sook
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001813:Blood-Retinal Barrier / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D003930:Diabetic Retinopathy / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D032862:Litsea; D051379:Mice; D062793:Occludin / Q000378:metabolism; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D062793:Occludin; D010936:Plant Extracts; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A