Open Access
ARTICLE
Bushen Yizhi Formula regulates the IRE1α pathway to alleviate endoplasmic reticulum stress in an Alzheimer’s disease rat model
XIRU XU1,#, YUAN FANG1,#, BIAO ZHANG1,*, SHICHAO TENG1, XIANG WU1, JING ZHANG1, XIAOQUN GU2, MEIXIA MA3
1 Geriatrics Department, Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, China
2 School of Pharmacy, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, China
3 The First Clinical Medical College, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, China
* Corresponding Author: Biao Zhang,
# These authors contributed equally to this work
BIOCELL 2023, 47(7), 1595-1609. https://doi.org/10.32604/biocell.2023.027697
Received 10 November 2022; Accepted 16 January 2023; Issue published 21 June 2023
Abstract
Background: While the Bushen Yizhi Formula can treat Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the yet to be ascertained
specific mechanism of action was explored in this work.
Methods: Different concentrations of the Bushen Yizhi
Formula and amyloid-beta peptide (Aβ) were used to treat rat pheochromocytoma cells (P12) and human
neuroblastoma cells (SH-SY5Y). Cell morphological changes were observed to determine the
in vitro cell damage. Cell
Counting Kit (CCK)-8 assay and flow cytometry were employed to identify cell viability and apoptosis/cell cycle,
respectively. Western blotting and immunohistochemistry were employed to measure the expressions of endoplasmic
reticulum stress (ERS)-related proteins (GRP78 and CHOP), p-IRE1α, IRE1α, ASK1, p-JNK, JNK, Bax, Bcl-2, XBP-1,
and Bim. Fura 2-acetoxymethyl ester (Fura-2/AM) was used to determine the intracellular calcium (Ca
2+)
concentration. Also, an AD model was constructed by injecting Aβ into the CA1 area of the hippocampus in Sprague
Dawley rats. AD model rats were gavaged with different concentrations of Bushen Yizhi Formula for 14 consecutive
days. The Morris water maze experiment was conducted to test the learning and memory of rats. Hematoxylin &
Eosin (H&E) and Terminal-deoxynucleotidyl Transferase (TdT)-mediated dUTP Nick-End Labeling (TUNEL)
staining were done to determine histopathological changes in the brain.
Results: Bushen Yizhi Formula relieved the
Aβ-induced effects including cell injury, decreased viability, increased apoptosis, G0/G1 phase cell cycle arrest, upregulation of GRP78, CHOP, p-IRE1α, p-JNK, Bax, XBP-1 and Bim, as well as down-regulation of Bcl-2. These
results were also seen with IRE1α silencing. While Aβ suppressed the learning and memory abilities of rats, the
Bushen Yizhi Formula alleviated these effects of Aβ. Brain nerve cell injury induced by Aβ could also be treated with
Bushen Yizhi Formula.
Conclusion: Bushen Yizhi Formula could influence ERS through the IRE1α signaling pathway
to achieve its therapeutic effects on AD.
Keywords
Cite This Article
APA Style
XU, X., FANG, Y., ZHANG, B., TENG, S., WU, X. et al. (2023). Bushen yizhi formula regulates the IRE1α pathway to alleviate endoplasmic reticulum stress in an alzheimer’s disease rat model. BIOCELL, 47(7), 1595-1609. https://doi.org/10.32604/biocell.2023.027697
Vancouver Style
XU X, FANG Y, ZHANG B, TENG S, WU X, ZHANG J, et al. Bushen yizhi formula regulates the IRE1α pathway to alleviate endoplasmic reticulum stress in an alzheimer’s disease rat model. BIOCELL . 2023;47(7):1595-1609 https://doi.org/10.32604/biocell.2023.027697
IEEE Style
X. XU et al., "Bushen Yizhi Formula regulates the IRE1α pathway to alleviate endoplasmic reticulum stress in an Alzheimer’s disease rat model," BIOCELL , vol. 47, no. 7, pp. 1595-1609. 2023. https://doi.org/10.32604/biocell.2023.027697