Abstract

The present study aims to investigate the influence of cerebrovascular disease and herb prescription on the pharmacokinetics of berberine. In the designed study, rats were divided into middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) group and sham-operated group. Each group contained two subgroups: Oral administration of Huang-Lian-Jie-Du-Tang (HLJDT) (is equal to 258 mg berberine/kg body weight) and pure berberine (is equal to 258 mg berberine/kg body weight, too). The pharmacokinetics of berberine following oral administration of pure berberine or Huang-Lian-Jie-Du-Tang (HLJDT) investigated in MCAO and sham-operated rats were compared. The pharmacokinetics results indicated that both in the two groups, the AUC and Cmax of berberine in HLJDT group were larger than in pure berberine group. Besides, the absorption of berberine in MCAO group was obviously better and the metabolic rate of berberine was slower than in sham-operated group. The authors inferred that the cerebrovascular disease and prescription of HLJDT has increased the bioavailability of berberine in-vivo. It noticed that the better absorption of berberine would be in favor of berberine to exert pharmacological effects on cerebrovascular disease. In this sense, it is necessary to take the pharmacokinetics characteristics of berberine in different conditions into consideration in clinics. This study may give an advice for further herbal research which will be carried on the same subject.

Key words:  Huang-Lian-Jie-Du-Tang, berberine, pharmacokinetics, middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO), compatibility.