Ethanol Extract of Gentiana straminea Maxim Displays Anti-Hypoxia Effects by Regulating Antioxidant Enzymes and Energy Metabolism
Ethanol Extract of Gentiana straminea Maxim Displays Anti-Hypoxia Effects by Regulating Antioxidant Enzymes and Energy Metabolism
Dan Song1,2, Ming-Juan Ge3, Jie Li1,2, Yi Jiang1, Xiu-Mei Kong1, Jiao-Jiao Xu1, Xu Ji1,2, Rui-Xin Shi1 and Qin Zhao1,2*
ABSTRACT
Oxygen is an essential regulator for normal aerobic metabolism in humans and animals, oxidative stress and energy metabolism during hypoxia may be related to hypoxia-related diseases. Gentiana straminea Maxim (G. straminea), a natural Tibetan herb with exerts several biological effects, was used to study the anti-hypoxia effects of its ethanol extract. Three extract methods were employed to evaluate the best extraction methods. Male Kunming specific pathogen-free (SPF) mice were randomly divided into blank control, model (hypoxia), positive (propranolol 30 mg/kg + hypoxia), and three G. straminea ethanol extracts dose groups (10, 5 and 2.5 g/kg respectively + hypoxia), administered intragastrically once a day for 14 consecutive days. After that, multiple hypoxia experiments were conducted including soda lime normobaric hypoxia test, sodium nitrite poisoning test, isoproterenol poisoning test, and acute cerebral ischemic hypoxia test. Subsequently, the content of superoxide dismutase (SOD), malondialdehyde (MDA), and activity of total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), catalase (CAT) in mice liver were measured; while SOD and MDA contents and activity of T-AOC, CAT, Na+-K+-ATPase, Ca2+-Mg2+-ATPase, pyruvate kinase (PK) and phosphofructokinase (PFK) in mice brain were evaluated. In the results, G. straminea ethanol extract markedly enhanced hypoxia tolerance in mice. It attenuated hypoxia-induced oxidative stress by reducing MDA levels (in liver and brain), and elevating SOD (in liver and brain), T-AOC and CAT (in liver). Furthermore, pre-treatment with G. straminea ethanol extracts significantly increased ATP content, up-regulated the activity of Na+-K+-ATPase, Ca2+-Mg2+-ATPase, PK, and PFK in hypoxia mice brain. In conclusion, this research demonstrated the anti-hypoxia activity of ethanol extract of G. straminea, which may be related to increased energy metabolism. Our findings provide a basis for investigating hypoxia-related diseases and drug development.
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