Cerebral palsy decoction improves cerebral palsy in male and female young rats:mechanisms based on the"gut-brain-muscle"axis

Zou Yuxiong; Liu Xiaomeng; Liu Ying; Zhu Yue; Li Shuming; Guo Fangyang; Yu Xinyu; Nie Heyun; Liu Qian; Ao Meiying

doi:10.12307/2026.715

Abstract：BACKGROUND:Based on over 20 years of clinical experience with cerebral palsy decoction at Jiangxi Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine,its efficacy and safety have been confirmed in the treatment of cerebral palsy,but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. OBJECTIVE:To investigate the effects and correlations of cerebral palsy decoction on gut microbiota,neural cells and neurotransmitters,as well as motor dysfunction in both female and male young rats with cerebral palsy. METHODS:The cerebral palsy model was prepared in Sprague-Dawley young rats subjected to intrauterine infection and hypoxia combined with postnatal movement restriction.After modeling,the model group and the administration group were administered normal saline and cerebral palsy decoction via gavage,respectively.Administration in each group lasted 15 days.Behavioral performance was assessed using the suspension test and slope test.Pathological changes in brain tissue were observed through hematoxylin-eosin staining and Nissl staining.Neurotransmitter levels were measured using ELISA,and gut microbiota was analyzed by 16S rDNA high-throughput sequencing. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)Compared with the model group,the administration group showed enhanced behavioral abilities in slope and suspension tests(P<0.01).(2)Compared with the model group,the number of neuronal cells and Nissl bodies in the hippocampus and cerebral cortex increased in the administration group.(3)In the hippocampus,compared with the model group,the administration group exhibited elevated acetylcholine levels(male:P<0.05;female:P>0.05),decreased acetylcholinesterase levels(male:P<0.01;female:P<0.01),increased norepinephrine levels(male:P<0.05;female:P<0.001),and elevated serotonin levels(male:P<0.05;female:P>0.05).(4)In the cerebral cortex,compared with the model group,the administration group showed increased acetylcholine levels(male:P<0.05;female:P>0.05),decreased acetylcholinesterase levels(male:P<0.05;female:P>0.05),elevated norepinephrine levels(male:P<0.01;female:P<0.05),and increased serotonin levels(male:P<0.01;female:P<0.01).(5)Compared with the model group,the administration group demonstrated significant improvements in the diversity and abundance of gut microbiota,including the genera norank_f__Oscillospiraceae,Escherichia,norank_f__Muribaculaceae,and Lactobacillus.The improvements in gut microbiota diversity and abundance showed significant differences between male and female rats.These findings indicate that the clinical empirical formula,cerebral palsy decoction,can effectively improve motor dysfunction in young rats with cerebral palsy by modulating the structure and abundance of gut microbiota,promoting the development of neurons and Nissl bodies in brain tissues,and influencing neurotransmitter levels.This establishes a"gut-brain-muscle"axis association.