title: Antiepileptic Effect of Uncaria rhynchophylla and Rhynchophylline Involved in the Initiation of c-Jun N-Terminal Kinase Phosphorylation of MAPK Signal Pathways in Acute Seizures of Kainic Acid-Treated Rats.
abstract: Seizures cause inflammation of the central nervous system. The extent of the inflammation is related to the severity and recurrence of the seizures. Cell surface receptors are stimulated by stimulators such as kainic acid (KA), which causes intracellular mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signal pathway transmission to coordinate a response. It is known that Uncaria rhynchophylla (UR) and rhynchophylline (RP) have anticonvulsive effects, although the mechanisms remain unclear. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to develop a novel strategy for treating epilepsy by investigating how UR and RP initiate their anticonvulsive mechanisms. Sprague-Dawley rats were administered KA (12 mg/kg, i.p.) to induce seizure before being sacrificed. The brain was removed 3 h after KA administration. The results indicate that pretreatment with UR (1.0 g/kg), RP (0.25 mg/kg), and valproic acid (VA, 250 mg/kg) for 3 d could reduce epileptic seizures and could also reduce the expression of c-Jun aminoterminal kinase phosphorylation (JNKp) of MAPK signal pathways in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus brain tissues. Proinflammatory cytokines interleukin (IL)-1 β , IL-6, and tumor necrosis factor- α remain unchanged, indicating that the anticonvulsive effect of UR and RP is initially involved in the JNKp MAPK signal pathway during the KA-induced acute seizure period.
authors.affiliation: Graduate Institute of Chinese Medicine, College of Chinese Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung 40402, Taiwan ; Department of Chinese Medicine, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung 40402, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Hsin-Cheng
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Hsu
authors.affiliation: Graduate Institute of Chinese Medicine, College of Chinese Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung 40402, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Nou-Ying
authors.initials: NY
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung 40402, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Chung-Hsiang
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Chinese Medicine, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung 40402, Taiwan ; Acupuncture Research Center, China Medical University, Taichung 40402, Taiwan ; Graduate Institute of Integrated Medicine, College of Chinese Medicine, China Medical University, 91 Hsueh-Shih Road, Taichung 40402, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Ching-Liang
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Hsieh