Effects of silybin on airway Muc5ac in asthmatic mice and its mechanisms
Objective To observe the effects of silybin on the expression levels of airway mucin Muc5ac in asth-matic mice,and to explore its possible mechanism.Methods Forty SPF-grade female BALB/c mice were ran-domly divided into the control group(NS group),Asthma model group(AS group),Silybin 40 mg/kg group(Silybin40 group),Silybin 80 mg/kg group(Silybin80 group)and Dexamethasone group(DEX group).Asth-matic models were established by OVA sensitization and aerosolization challenges in mice.The AS group,Sily-bin40 group,Silybin80 group,and DEX group were treated with PBS,Silybin 40 mg/kg,Silybin 80 mg/kg and Dexamethasone 2 mg/kg respectively.The BALF of mice in each group was collected for detection of total cell count and the percentage of eosinophils,and the levels of IL-6 and TNF-α were measured by ELISA.The lung tissues were prepared into paraffin-embedded sections,which were then subject to HE staining and AB-PAS stai-ning to observe the pathological changes of lung tissues.Immunohistochemistry was used to detect the protein ex-pression levels of ERK,pERK,SP1,and Muc5ac in lung tissues.Results The total number of BALF cells,the percentage of eosinophils,the levels of IL-6 and TNF-α in BALF,the infiltration scores of inflammatory cells a-round the airway,the area of airway mucus,and the protein levels of pERK,SP1 and Muc5ac in lung tissue in the AS group were higher than those in the NS group(P＜0.05).The total number of B ALF cells,the percent-age of eosinophils,the levels of IL-6 and TNF-α in BALF,the infiltration scores of inflammatory cells around the airway,the area of airway mucus,and the protein levels of pERK,SP1,and Muc5ac in lung tissue in the Sily-bin80 group and Silybin40 group were lower than those in the AS group(P＜0.05),and the levels of the above indexes in the Silybin80 group were lower than those in the Silybin40 group.Conclusion Silybin can inhibit air-way inflammation and airway mucus hypersecretion in asthmatic mice,which may be related to the inhibition of the ERK/SP1 signaling pathway.
万方数据
维普
