Investigation of the improving effect of raw and charred hawthorn on functional dyspepsia based on interstitial cells of Cajal

Abstract

BackgroundRaw hawthorn (RH) is a traditional Chinese medicine commonly used to treat indigestion. Charred hawthorn (CH) is obtained from RH by charring. It is reported that the effect of CH treatment on dyspepsia is stronger than RH. However, this has not been fully proven. The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of RH and CH on functional dyspepsia (FD) model rats. And contribute to the development of dietary therapy for dyspepsia.MethodsSPF-grade male SD rats were divided into 5 groups: the control group, the model group, the Mos group, the RH group, and the CH group. The FD rat model was established by using the methods of water restriction, fasting, tilting cage restraint, day and night upside down, swimming, and tail damping. The body weight of rats in each group was recorded. And the gastric emptying rate, intestinal propulsive rate, and the levels of motilin (MTL), gastrin (GAS), and 5-HT in serum were compared in each group. The expression of C-kit in the stomach and small intestine of each group was compared by immunofluorescence and PCR.ResultsRH and CH could increase weight, improve the gastric emptying rate and intestinal propulsive rate, and promote the secretion of motilin (MTL), gastrin (GAS), and 5-HT in the serum of FD rats. RH and CH can upregulate the expression of the characteristic protein c-kit of ICC in the stomach and small intestine of FD model rats, and the effect of CH is stronger than RH.ConclusionRH and CH may increase the number of interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC) in the gastrointestinal tract by upregulating c-kit expression, thus improving gastrointestinal motility in FD model rats. And compared with RH, CH has certain advantages.

Investigation of the effect of hawthorn after thermal processing on functional dyspepsia based on fecal metabolomics and gut microbiota

“…Traditional Chinese medicine records that compared to RH, CH has a stronger effect on improving digestive function. This effect has also been demonstrated in our previous studies (Ai et al, 2022). CH may improve digestive function in FD rats, but its mechanism remains unclear.…”

“…Fifty male SD rats (180 ± 20 g) of SPF grade were purchased from Chengdu Dasuo Experimental Animal Co., Ltd. After 3 days of adaptive feeding, all rats were randomly divided into control and model groups. The FD rat model was established by various stimulation and chronic induction methods: fasting and not prohibiting water for 24 h, water deprivation and not fasting for 24 h, tilting the cage for 24 h, fixing for 2 hours, day and night upside down, swimming for 5 min in 4 °C water, and clamping the tail for 1 min (Ai et al, 2022). Animals are exposed to different types of stimuli for a certain amount of time each day.…”