Abstract

 The aim of this study was to investigate the anti-inflammatory activities of tetramethylpyrazine (TMP) in the mice model of acute lung injury/acute respiratory distress syndrome (ALI/ARDS) induced by oleic acid (0.15 ml/kg, intravenous (i.v.)). We report here that TMP (given at 160 mg/kg intraperitoneal (i.p.)) exerts potent anti-inflammatory effects in this model. After 4, 8 and 12 h, animal model reaction was observed and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid was obtained to measure proinflammatory cytokines (tumor necrosis factor a, interleukin 1β) and proteins by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and bicinchoninic acid protein assay kit, respectively. The protein expression of NF-kB in the lung was measured by immunohistochemistry and Western blotting. The results showed an increase in tumor necrosis factor a and interleukin 1β in the ALI/ARDS rat models. The activation of NF-kB was suppressed by TMP in the ALI/ARDS rats. The suppression of those molecules is controlled by NF-kB. These findings support the hypothesis that TMP inhibits the inflammatory process in the lung tissue through the suppression of NF-kB activation. Nevertheless, further investigations are required to determine the potential clinical usefulness of TMP in the adjunctive therapy for ARDS.

Key words: Tetramethylpyrazine, acute lung injury/acute respiratory distress syndrome, inflammatory factors, NF-kB. 

Abbreviation

ALI, Acute lung injury; ARDS, acute respiratory distress syndrome;BALF, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid; BCA, bicinchoninic acid; C group, control group; ELISA, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay; GAPDH, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase; IL-1β, interleukin 1β; NF-kB, nuclear factor-kappa B;OA, oleic acid; OD, optical density; TMP, tetramethylpyrazine; TNF-α,       tumor necrosis factor a.