Effects of Qingwen Jiere Formula on lung injury and CCL3/CCR5 signaling pathway in rats with viral pneumonia of damp-heat pattern
Objective To investigate the effects of Qingwen Jiere Formula(QWJR)on lung injury and CC chemokine Ligand 3(CCL3)/CC chemokine receptor 5(CCR5)signaling pathway in rats with viral pneumonia of damp-heat pattern.Methods Forty-eight rats were randomized into normal group,model group,positive drug group(methylprednisolone),as well as low-,medium-,and high-dose QWJR groups(i.e.QWJR-L,QWJR-M,and QWJR-H groups),with eight rats in each group,half male and half female.The normal group was raised in a natural environment,while the other groups were subjected to both exogenous and endogenous damp-heat conditions for 14 days.After 14 days,except for the normal group which received a tracheal injection of PBS 50 µL,all other groups were administered with Poly(I:C)via tracheal injection to establish a rat model of viral pneumonia with damp-heat pattern.Two hours after model establishment,the normal and model groups were gavaged with saline,while the other groups received corresponding drug interventions for 3 consecutive days.Samples were collected for the following measurements:(1)Evaluation indicators of damp-heat pattern:rat symptoms,pattern scores,body mass,serum levels of chol-esterol(CHOL),low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C),and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol(HDL-C),and blood routine test;(2)Changes in alveolar-capillary barrier and lung injury:measurement of the lung wet-to-dry weight ratio(W/D),as well as the total cell count and total protein concentration in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid(BALF),and observation of pathological changes in the lung tissue using HE staining;(3)CCL3/CCR5 pathway and downstream factors:determination of CCL3,CCR5,PLC,and PKC protein and mRNA expression levels using qPCR and Western blot,respectively.Results After QWJR intervention,symptoms such as sticky or loose stools with a foul odor,and redness,swelling,and soiling around the anus were alleviated in the rats;the pattern scores for damp-heat were reduced,along with lower levels of serum CHOL and LDL-C(P＜0.05);the levels of WBC and NE in the blood routine test were also lower than those of the model group(P＜0.05).In the QWJR-M and QWJR-H groups,the lung W/D value and the total protein content and total cell count in BALF decreased,with the QWJR-H group showing the most significant therapeutic effect(P＜0.01).Additionally,the pathological damage to the rat lung tissue was effectively reduced.Compared with the model group,the protein expression levels of CCR5,PLC,and PKC were lower in the positive drug and QWJR-H groups(P＜0.05,P＜0.01),and the mRNA expression levels of CCL3,CCR5,PLC,and PKC were also reduced(P＜0.05,P＜0.0l).Conclusion Qingwen Jiere Formula can alleviate the symptoms of damp-heat and reduce lung injury in rats with viral pneumonia of the damp-heat pattern.The effects may be achieved through the inhibition of the CCL3/CCR5 signaling pathway.
viral pneumoniaQingwen Jiere Formulalung injurydamp-heat patternanimal model of damp-heat pat-ternCCL3/CCR5 signaling pathway
万方数据
维普
