Zhongguo Zhong Xi Yi Jie He Za Zhi. 2003 Apr; 23(4): 284-7.

[Effects of nourishing shen-yin recipe and warming recuperating shen-yang recipe on interleukin-1 and interleukin-6 activity in ovariectomy induced osteoporosis rats]

Ju DH, Lu AP, Zhang CY.

Institute of Basic Theory, China Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing 100700. [email protected]

OBJECTIVE: To compare the effects of the recipes for nourishing Shen-yin (NSY) and for warming recuperating Shen-yang (WRSY) on the activity of interleukin-1 (IL-1) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in ovariectomy-induced osteoporosis rats. METHODS: Fifty-five female rats were randomly divided into five groups: the control, the sham operation, the ovariectomy, the ovariectomy plus NSY and the ovariectomy plus WRSY group. The medication was starting from one week after operation and lasted continuously for 3 months. The proximal tibia of rats were analyzed with bone histomorphometry, the activity of IL-1 was detected with mouse thymocyte assay and the activity of IL-6 was detected with IL-6 dependence cell proliferation assay. RESULTS: Three months after ovariectomy, the percentage of trabeculae bone volume (TBV%) of tibia in rats was markedly reduced, but the percentage of trabeculae absorption surface (TRS%) and trabeculae formation surface (TFS%) significantly increased, and the activity of IL-1 and IL-6 increased obviously. These abnormal changes could be reversed to different degree by NSY or WRSY, but the effect of the latter was superior to that of the former. CONCLUSION: The inhibitory effect of WRSY on IL-1 and IL-6 activity was significantly better than that of NSY, which is one of the mechanisms of its superiority in preventing osteoporosis induced by ovariectomy in rats.