Effect of Buyang Huanwu Decoction on vascular calcification,mitochondrial autophagy,and protein expressions of HMGB1 and TLR4 in chronic kidney disease rats
PAN Xue
XIA Lihua
HAN Xia
Abstract：Objective To explore the effects of Buyang Huanwu Decoction on vascular calcification,mitochondrial autophagy,and protein levels of high mobility group box 1(HMGB1)and Toll like receptor 4(TLR4)in chronic kidney disease(CKD)rats.Methods A total of 50 rats were randomly divided into 5 groups:normal group,model group,and low-dose,medium-dose,and high-dose Buyang Huanwu Decoction groups,with 10 rats in each group.Except for the normal group,a CKD rat model was established in all groups.After successful modeling,rats in the low-dose,medium-dose,and high-dose Buyang Huanwu Decoction groups were given oral gavage of 17.6g/kg,35.2g/kg,and 70.4g/kg Buyang Huanwu Decoction.Rats in the other groups were given 10 mL/kg of physiological saline by gavage.Rats were daily treated continuously for one month.The fully automatic biochemical instrument was used to detect blood calcium,blood phosphorus,blood creatinine,and urea nitrogen.Hematoxylin and eosin(H&E)and Alizarin Red staining were used to observe the pathological morphology of renal tissue and the formation of arterial calcification,respectively.Arterial calcium content was detected using atomic absorption spectroscopy.Fluorescence quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction(qRT PCR)was used to detect the mRNA expressions of mitochondrial autophagy-related genes in renal tissue,including the protein microtubule associated protein 1 light chain 3(LC3),BECN1(Beclin-1),and Caspase-1.Western blot was used to detect the protein expressions of HMGB1 and TLR4 in renal tissue.Results Compared with the normal group,CKD rats had significantly lower blood calcium,but higher arterial calcium content,blood phosphorus,blood creatinine,urea nitrogen,mRNA levels of LC3,Beclin-1,and Caspase-1 in renal tissue,and protein levels of HMGB 1,and TLR4 in renal tissue(P＜0.05).Compared with the model group,CKD rats in the low-dose,medium-dose,and high-dose Buyang Huanwu Decoction groups had significantly higher blood calcium,but lower arterial calcium content,blood phosphorus,blood creatinine,urea nitrogen,mRNA levels of LC3,Beclin-1,and Caspase-1 in renal tissue,and protein levels of HMGB 1,and TLR4 in renal tissue(P＜0.05).There were no significant differences in blood calcium,blood phosphorus,blood creatinine,and urea nitrogen between the low-dose and medium-dose Buyang Huanwu Decoction groups(P＞0.05).In the low-dose,medium-dose,and high-dose Buyang Huanwu Decoction groups,pathological morphology of renal tissue and degree of arterial calcification were dose-dependently improved,especially in the high-dose group.Pairwise comparison in the low-dose,medium-dose,and high-dose Buyang Huanwu Decoction groups showed dose-dependent downregulations of mRNA levels of LC3,Beclin-1,and Caspase-1 in renal tissue,and protein levels of HMGB1,and TLR4 in renal tissue(P＜0.05).Conclusion Buyang Huanwu Decoction can correct the disorder of blood calcium and phosphorus metabolism in CKD rats,downregulate protein expressions of HMGB1 and TLR4 in renal tissue,inhibit excessive mitochondrial autophagy and inflammatory response,improve renal function,reduce arterial calcium content,and delay the development of vascular calcification,which is worthy of recommendation and application.
Keywords：Buyang Huanwu Decoctionchronic kidney diseasevascular calcificationmitochondrial autophagyhigh mobility group box 1toll like receptor 4
Publication Date：2025-10-26
Online Publishing Date：2025-11-19(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：6( 1594-1599 )