Protective effect of Berberis vulgaris fruit extract against Paraquat-induced pulmonary fibrosis in rats.
BACKGROUND
Pulmonary fibrosis induced by paraquat (PQ) has caused a large number of human fatalities all over the world, especially in Asian region. The main potential mechanism of PQ toxicity has been thought to be mediated by ROS. The present study was designed to evaluate the efficacy of the Berberis vulgaris fruit extract (BVFE) against PQ-induced pulmonary fibrosis in rats.


METHODS
Forty male rats were randomly divided into five experimental groups each containing eight rats. Groups 1 and 2, served as a negative and positive control and received a single dose of intratracheal instillation of saline and PQ (20mg/kg), respectively. Groups 3-5 were treated with different doses of BVFE (100, 200, 400mg/kg/day, orally) 1 week before the PQ injection and continued for 3 weeks. The rats were sacrificed 21days after PQ. Malondialdehyde (MDA), Hydroxyproline, inflammatory and fibrogenic cytokine tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interleukin (IL)-6 and transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 in lung tissue were determined. Presence of fibrosis, inflammatory cells, connective tissue and collagen deposition in lung were evaluated microscopically by hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining. Dried extract was standardized by amount of berberine by HPTLC methods by silica gel plate.


RESULTS
The results showed that PQ could significantly increase the lung MDA, hydroxyproline, TNF-α, IL-6 and TGF-β1 levels. BVFE ameliorated the biochemical and histological lung alterations induced by PQ.


CONCLUSIONS
The present study indicates the hydroalcolic extract of Berberis vulgaris fruit has beneficial effects in rat pulmonary fibrosis induced by PQ in a dose-dependent manner, possibly by anti-oxidant and anti- inflammatory properties, which might be due to its berberine alkaloid content.
Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Seyed Ali
SA
Javad-Mousavi
Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran.
Ali Asghar
AA
Hemmati
Department of Pharmacology, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Saeed
S
Mehrzadi
Department of Pharmacology, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Azam
A
Hosseinzadeh
Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran.
Gholamreza
G
Houshmand
Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran.
Mohammad Reza
MR
Rashidi Nooshabadi
Physiology Research Center, Institute of Neuropharmacology, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran.
Mehrnaz
M
Mehrabani
Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran; Student Research Committee, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran. Electronic address: gmehdi_787@yahoo.com.
Mehdi
M
Goudarzi
D000818:Animals; D028142:Berberis / Q000737:chemistry*; D002855:Chromatography, Thin Layer; D005638:Fruit / Q000737:chemistry*; D006909:Hydroxyproline / Q000378:metabolism; D018836:Inflammation Mediators / Q000378:metabolism; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000378:metabolism; D008168:Lung / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008315:Malondialdehyde / Q000378:metabolism; D010269:Paraquat / Q000633:toxicity*; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D020011:Protective Agents / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D011658:Pulmonary Fibrosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D053773:Transforming Growth Factor beta1 / Q000378:metabolism; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000378:metabolism
D018836:Inflammation Mediators; D015850:Interleukin-6; D010936:Plant Extracts; D020011:Protective Agents; D053773:Transforming Growth Factor beta1; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D008315:Malondialdehyde; D010269:Paraquat; D006909:Hydroxyproline
Berberis vulgaris; Inflammation; Oxidative stress; Paraquat; Pulmonary fibrosis; Rats