Objective: To observe the effects of Bushen Huoxue Yin on nuclear transcription factor kappa B (NF-KB) and nitric oxide (NO) in the brain of the Parkinson's disease (PD) model mouse.
Methods: Forty-five C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into three groups; normal, model and BSHXY treatment groups. Concentrations of NF-KB and NO in mouse brain tissue were determined by ELISA and spectrophotometry, respectively.
Results: NF-KB concentration in brain tissue in the model group was 14.04 +/- 4.38 microg x L(-1), which was higher than that in normal (P < 0.01) and BSHXY (P < 0.05) groups. NO content in brain tissue in the model group was 5.93 +/- 0.79 micromol x gprot(-1), which was also higher than that in model (P < 0.01) and BSHXY (P < 0.01) groups. However, there were no significant differences in the content of NF-KB and NO between BSHXY and normal groups (P > 0.05).
Conclusion: The mechanism of BSHXY for treatment of PD is possibly related to inhibition of NF-KB activation and decreased NO content in the brain.