Amelioration of cardiac dysfunction and ventricular remodeling after myocardial infarction by danhong injection are critically contributed by anti-TGF-β-mediated fibrosis and angiogenesis mechanisms

• Published in: Journal of ethnopharmacology 2016-12, Vol.194, p.559-570
• Main Authors: Chen, Jingrui, Cao, Wenjie, Asare, Patrick Fordjour, Lv, Ming, Zhu, Yan, Li, Lan, Wei, Jing, Gao, Hui, Zhang, Han, Mao, Haoping, Gao, Xiumei, Fan, Guanwei
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Angiogenesis; Animals; Anti-myocardial apoptosis; Cardiac function; Danhong injection; Disease Models, Animal; Drugs, Chinese Herbal - pharmacology; Male; Myocardial Infarction - physiopathology; Neovascularization, Pathologic - prevention & control; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Transforming Growth Factor beta - antagonists & inhibitors; Ventricular remodeling; Ventricular Remodeling - drug effects
• ISSN: 0378-8741; 1872-7573
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jep.2016.10.025

Danhong injection (DHI) is a standardized product extracted from Radix et Rhizoma Salviae Miltiorrhizae and Flos Carthami , which has been long applied mainly used to treat ischemic encephalopathy and cardiac diseases including myocardial infarction and angina in clinical practice. Aim of this study was to investigate the salutary effects of DHI by slowing ventricular remodeling and improving cardiac function after myocardial infarction (MI) in rats. In this study, Male Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to ligation on left anterior descending coronary artery to establish MI models and valsartan was selected as positive control. Cardiac function examination was conducted at the 1st, 3rd, 7th, 14th and the 28th days after LAD. Haematoxylin and Eosin (HE) staining and Masson staining were conducted to observe cardiac pathology and morphological changes levels of VEGF, TGF-β, MMP-2, and MMP-9 in the myocardial tissue were determined in gene and protein expressions. After 3 days post-treatment and thereafter, EF and FS in DHI group were greater than that of model group (p