Effects of Buyang Huanwu decoction and its active constituents on the fluidity of brain cell membrane in vitro

OBJECTIVE To study the influence of Buyang Huanwu decoction and its active constituents such as astragaloside Ⅳ, ferulic acid, chuanxiongzine, rutin, chlorogenic acid, 9,10-dimethoxy-pterocarpane-7- O-β-D -glucoside,calycosin, formononetin, calycosin-7-O-glucoside, paeoniflorin, paeonal and quercetin on the fluidity of brain cell membrane in rats.METHODS The rats that were ligatured dual cervical-arteries with 30 min ischemia and 2 h reperfusion were used as the model of stroke experiment. The fluidity of brain cell membrane was measured by using spin labeling-ESR.RESULTS The fluidity of brain cell membrane in ischemia-reperfusing rats was obviously lowered in comparison with that in the normal control rats. Buyang huanwu decoction and its active constituents increased the fluidity of brain cell membrane in ischemia-reperfusing rats to resume or close to normal control level, but no obvious change was found in the control after adding above drugs.CONCLUSION The fluidity of cell membrane was a very sensitive biological index that reflected the cell's status. ESR method can be used as an advanced technology to investigate the molecular mechanism of the combination of the active constituents in the Buyang Huanwu decoction.