The treatment of Uygur medicine Dracocephalum moldavica L on chronic mountain sickness rat model

Abstract

Aim:Dracocephalum moldavica L, a traditional Uygur medicine, possesses some key cardiac activities. However, till date, no reports are available on the use of D. moldavica against chronic mountain sickness (CMS), which is a medical condition that affects the residents of high altitude. The present study was designed to explore the treatment efficacy of D. moldavica on CMS.Materials and Methods:80 of the 100 Sprague Dawley rats enrolled were bred in simulated high altitude environment and the remaining 20 rats were kept in the plains. Water and alcohol extracts of D. moldavica were prepared. CMS rat model was prepared, and the rat hearts were removed for histopathological analysis. Blood samples were taken for hematological and biochemical analyses. Rat pulmonary artery pressure was determined to study the treatment efficacy.Results:In the CMS model group, the levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), C-reactive protein (CRP), and malondialdehyde (MDA) were found to be significantly higher than the control group; while the concentrations of SOD and GSH-Px decreased. D. moldavica could improve these levels, decrease pulmonary artery pressure, and improve the cardiac pathological state.Conclusions:The study results show that IL-6, CRP, MDA, SOD and GSH-Px participate and mediate the formation of CMS and D. moldavica is found to possess noticeable effects on CMS. The present study explored the basics of high altitude sickness and laid the foundation for further progress of Uygur medicines on the treatment of altitude sickness. Further preclinical and clinical studies with more sample size are recommended.

Process optimization of spray‐dried Moldavian balm (Dracocephalum moldavica L.) extract powder

“…There are also many reports considering anticancer, anesthetic, and antimicrobial activity of the plant extract (Chachoyan & Oganesyan, 1996;Sultan et al, 2008) due to the polar compounds present in the aerial parts of the plant such as hydroxycinnamic acid (rosmarinic acids, ferrolic and caffeic acids) and flavonoids (apigenin, acacetin, quercetin, diosmetin, kaempferol, agastachioside, and salvigenin;Dastmalchi, Dorman, Laakso, et al, 2007;Yang et al, 2014). Recent studies have confirmed sedative (Dastmalchi, Dorman, Laakso, et al, 2007), anti-aging (Maimaitiyiming et al, 2014), anti-platelet, cardioprotective (Jiang et al, 2014), and neuroprotective (Sun et al, 2014) properties of the plant.…”

Cardioprotection of tilianin ameliorates myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury: Role of the apoptotic signaling pathway

“…The used of these natural products has become a novel approach to the treatment of ischemic heart disease. The annual herb called Moldavian balm or Moldavian dragonhead, Dracocephalum moldavica L. (DML), has been used as an herbal medicine for more than 800 years in China [ 13 – 15 ]. In Uyghur folk medicine, granules of dried DML, called Badiranji Buya Keli, have been used clinically for a few hundred years to treat coronary heart disease, blood pressure, angina, neuralgia, and atherosclerosis [ 16 , 17 ].…”

Improvement of Total Flavonoids from Dracocephalum moldavica L. in Rats with Chronic Mountain Sickness through 1H-NMR Metabonomics

“…This herbaceous annual plant is widely found in different regions, including China, Russia, Siberia, Eastern Europe, and Central Europe. Its dry part of the ground is made into dripping pills, which have the effects of replenishing the heart and brain, promoting blood circulation, reducing phlegm, diuresis and relieving cough, relieving pain, and promoting detoxification; therefore, it is commonly used clinically to treat coronary heart disease, hypertension, angina pectoris, arteriosclerosis, myocardial ischemia, and other diseases [ 3 ].…”