Effect of Bushen Huoxue Granule (补肾活血颗粒) on Dopamine Homeostasis and ERK/CREB/VMAT2 Signaling Pathways in the Striatum in Parkinson's Disease Model Mice
|更新时间:2025-12-04
|
Effect of Bushen Huoxue Granule (补肾活血颗粒) on Dopamine Homeostasis and ERK/CREB/VMAT2 Signaling Pathways in the Striatum in Parkinson's Disease Model Mice
Journal of Traditional Chinese MedicineVol. 66, Issue 23, Pages: 2484-2493(2025)
SUN Hehao,CHEN Yingfan,WANG Peng,et al.Effect of Bushen Huoxue Granule (补肾活血颗粒) on Dopamine Homeostasis and ERK/CREB/VMAT2 Signaling Pathways in the Striatum in Parkinson's Disease Model Mice[J].Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine,2025,66(23):2484-2493.
SUN Hehao,CHEN Yingfan,WANG Peng,et al.Effect of Bushen Huoxue Granule (补肾活血颗粒) on Dopamine Homeostasis and ERK/CREB/VMAT2 Signaling Pathways in the Striatum in Parkinson's Disease Model Mice[J].Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine,2025,66(23):2484-2493.DOI: 10.13288/j.11-2166/r.2025.23.015.
Effect of Bushen Huoxue Granule (补肾活血颗粒) on Dopamine Homeostasis and ERK/CREB/VMAT2 Signaling Pathways in the Striatum in Parkinson's Disease Model Mice
To investigate the possible mechanism of Bushen Huoxue Granule (补肾活血颗粒, BHG) in treating Parkinson's disease (PD) from the perspecitve of dopamine (DA) homeostasis.
Methods
2
Seventy-two mice were randomly divided into blank group, model group, madopar group and BHG low-, medium- and high-dose groups, with 12 mice in each group. Except for the blank group, all mice were administered intraperitoneal injections of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) for 7 consecutive days to induce a PD model. On the day following the injection, BHG low-, medium- and high-dose groups were administered BHG at doses of 1.25, 2.5, and 5.0 mg/(g·d) by oral gavage, respectively, while the madopar group received madopar tablets at dose of 0.093 8 mg/(g·d) by oral gavage. The blank group and the model group were given 0.2 ml/10 g of distilled water by gavage. All treatments were given once daily for 14 days. Open field test, pole climbing test and grip test were used to evaluate the behavior of mice in each group. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect the expression of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) in striatum. Nissl staining was used to detect the activity of striatal neurons. The contents of DA and 3
4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) in striatum were detected by ultra performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. The number and volume of synaptic vesicles were observed by transmission electron microscope. The expression of vesicular monoamine transporter 2 (VMAT2) in striatum was detected by immunofluorescence. Western Blot was used to detect the expression of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), phosphorylated ERK (p-ERK), cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB), phosphorylated CREB (p-CREB) and VMAT2 in striatum.
Results
2
Compared to the blank group, mice in the model group show
ed a significant decline in total distance and average speed in the open field test, along with an increase in total resting time; in the pole test, both the time required for the mice to turn completely downward (T-turn) and the total time taken to reach the bottom of the pole (T-total) were prolonged; forelimb grip strength was reduced; in the striatum, the mean optical density of TH, the average fluorescence intensity of VMAT2 protein, and DA content all decreased, while the number of striatal neurons was reduced, and the DOPAC/DA ratio was elevated; the levels of p-ERK/ERK, p-CREB/CREB, and VMAT2 in the striatum significantly decreased (
P
<0.01); transmission electron microscopy revealed that both the number and volume of synaptic vesicles in striatal neurons were markedly reduced. Compared to the model group, mice in the madopar group and BHG low-, medium- and high-dose groups showed significant improvements in all the above indicators (
P
<0.05 or
P
<0.01). Compared to madopar group, the BHG high-dose group exhibited increased DA content and elevated p-CREB/CREB ratio in the striatum (
P
<0.05). Compared to the BHG low-dose group, the BHG high-dose group showed increased total distance and mean velocity, decreased total resting time, T-turn, and T-total, as well as enhanced forelimb grip strength; moreover, the average fluorescence intensity of VMAT2 protein, DA content, p-ERK/ERK, p-CREB/CREB, and VMAT2 levels in the striatum were all significantly elevated (
P
<0.05 or
P
<0.01).
Conclusion
2
BHG may restore DA homeostasis and alleviate the damage of dopaminergic neurons by regulating ERK/CREB/VMAT2 signaling pathway.
BUCHER ML , DICENT J , DUARTE HOSPITAL C , et al . Neurotoxicology of dopamine: victim or assailant ? [J]. Neurotoxicology , 2024 , 103 : 175 - 188 . doi: 10.1016/j.neuro.2024.06.001 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.neuro.2024.06.001 .
BUCHER ML , BARRETT CW , MOON CJ , et al . Acquired dysregulation of dopamine homeostasis reproduces features of Parkinson's disease [J]. NPJ Parkinsons Dis , 2020 , 6 ( 1 ): 34 .
ZHAO M , ZHOU Y , SHENG R , et al . Gastrodin relieves Parkinson's disease-related motor deficits by facilitating the MEK-dependent VMAT2 to maintain dopamine homeostasis [J]. Phytomedicine , 2024 , 132 : 155819 . doi: 10. 1016/j.phymed.2024.155819 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.phymed.2024.155819 .
SANTORO M , FADDA P , KLEPHAN KJ , et al . Neurochemical, histological, and behavioral profiling of the acute, sub-acute, and chronic MPTP mouse model of Parkinson's disease [J]. J Neurochem , 2023 , 164 ( 2 ): 121 - 142 .
ZHANG QS , HENG Y , MOU Z , et al . Reassessment of subacute MPTP-treated mice as animal model of Parkinson's disease [J]. Acta Pharmacol Sin , 2017 , 38 ( 10 ): 1317 - 1328 .
KIM S , KANG S , CHOE J , et al . A microfluidic system for investigating anticipatory medication effects on dopamine homeostasis in dopaminergic cells [J]. Anal Chem , 2023 , 95 ( 6 ): 3153 - 3159 .
TAI M , GAMIZ-ARCO G , MARTINEZ A . Dopamine synthesis and transport: current and novel therapeutics for parkinsonisms [J]. Biochem Soc Trans , 2024 , 52 ( 3 ): 1275 - 1291 .
MULVIHILL KG . Presynaptic regulation of dopamine release: role of the DAT and VMAT2 transporters [J]. Neurochem Int , 2019 , 122 : 94 - 105 . doi: 10.1016/j.neuint.2018.11.004 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.neuint.2018.11.004 .
BIOSA A , ARDUINI I , SORIANO ME , et al . Dopamine oxidation products as mitochondrial endotoxins, a potential molecular mechanism for preferential neurodegeneration in Parkinson's disease [J]. ACS Chem Neurosci , 2018 , 9 ( 11 ): 2849 - 2858 .
WANG Y , ZHANG P , CHAO Y , et al . Transport and inhibition mechanism for VMAT2-mediated synaptic vesicle loading of monoamines [J]. Cell Res , 2024 , 34 ( 1 ): 47 - 57 .
NAOI M , MARUYAMA W , SHAMOTO-NAGAI M , et al . Toxic interactions between dopamine, α-synuclein, monoamine oxidase, and genes in mitochondria of Parkinson's disease [J]. J Neural Transm (Vienna) , 2024 , 131 ( 6 ): 639 - 661 .
LOHR KM , MASOUD ST , SALAHPOUR A , et al . Membrane transporters as mediators of synaptic dopamine dynamics: implications for disease [J]. Eur J Neurosci , 2017 , 45 ( 1 ): 20 - 33 .
TANG J , XU Y , LIU C , et al . PET imaging with [ 18 F]FP-(+)-DTBZ in 6-OHDA-induced partial and full unilaterally-lesioned model rats of Parkinson's disease and the correlations to the biological data [J]. Nucl Med Biol , 2020 , 90-91 : 1 - 9 . doi: 10.1016/j.nucmedbio. 2020. 08.002 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nucmedbio.2020.08.002 .
DING Y , ZHOU M , ZHENG R , et al . Feruloylated oligosaccharides ameliorate MPTP-induced neurotoxicity in mice by activating ERK/CREB/BDNF/TrkB signalling pathway [J]. Phytomedicine , 2023 , 108 : 154512 . doi: 10.1016/j.phymed.2022.154512 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.phymed.2022.154512 .
GU X , LIU L , SHEN Q , et al . Photoactivation of ERK/CREB/VMAT2 pathway attenuates MPP + -induced neuronal injury in a cellular model of Parkinson's disease [J]. Cell Signal , 2017 , 37 : 103 - 114 . doi: 10.1016/j.cellsig. 2017.06.007 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cellsig.2017.06.007 .
JIN M , MATSUMOTO S , AYAKI T , et al . DOPAnization of tyrosine in α-synuclein by tyrosine hydroxylase leads to the formation of oligomers [J]. Nat Commun , 2022 , 13 ( 1 ): 6880 .
LI C , SUN Y , YANG W , et al . Pilose antler extracts (PAEs) protect against neurodegeneration in 6-OHDA-induced Parkinson's disease rat models [J]. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med , 2019 , 2019 : 7276407 . doi: 10.1155/2019/7276407 http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2019/7276407 .
Effect of Bushen Huoxue Granules (补肾活血颗粒) on the Nrf2/NLRP3 Inflammasome Axis in the Brain Substantia Nigra of Parkinson's Disease Model Mice
Professor ZHOU Shaohua's Experience in Staged Treatment of Parkinson's Disease Based on the "Disease-Symptom-Syndrome Integration" Approach
Ganye Pingchan Decoction (感夜平颤方) for Patients with Early-Moderate Parkinson's Disease Complicated with Rapid Eye Movement Sleep Behavior Disorder on Sleep and Blood Pressure Circadian Rhythm Disorders: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Effects of Bushen Zhichan Formula (补肾止颤方) on Ferroptosis of Dopaminergic Neurons and Nrf2-Regulated SLC7A11/GSH/GPX4 Signaling Pathway in Parkinson's Disease Model Rats
Efficacy and Safety of Acupuncture Combined with Levodopa in the Treatment of Parkinson's Disease: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Related Author
CHEN Qi
WANG Peng
CHEN Yingfan
LI Shaodan
YANG Minghui
XU Dinglin
WANG Jiayi
GE Liwei
Related Institution
Chinese People's Liberation Army Medical School
Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine,Sixth Medical Center of Chinese People's Liberation Army General Hospital
Graduate School,Beijing University of Chinese Medicine
Xiyuan Hospital,China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences
School of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine