A dysfunction of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress response can result in various diseases, including cancer, inflammation, diabetes and neurodegenerative disorders. To investigate whether ER stress response can play an essential role in the induction and treatment of chronic constipation, alterations in the key parameters for ER stress were measured in loperamide (Lop) induced constipation Sprague Dawley (SD) rats treated with aqueous extracts of Liriope platyphylla (AEtLP), which has been shown to have a laxative effect. Symptoms of chronic constipation including alteration of stool parameters and the transverse colon's structure were successfully induced by Lop treatment. Laxative effects such as enhancement of stools parameters, recovery of the mucosa thickness, increased muscle thickness and recovery of flat luminal surface were also observed in the Lop+AEtLP treated group. Furthermore, enhancement of eukaryotic initiation factor 2 alpha (eIF2α) phosphorylation and inositol-requiring enzyme 1 beta (IRE1β) expression, key indicators for ER stress, that were observed in the Lop+vehicle treated group were significantly recovered in the Lop+AEtLP treated group, although the phosphorylation level of c-Jun N-terminal protein kinase (JNK) remained constant. Moreover, alterations in the transcription level of the marker genes X-box binding protein 1 (XBP-1) and growth arrest and DNA damage-inducible protein (GADD34) were similar to those of eIF2α and IRE1β. However, their level was slightly or completely recovered after AEtLP treatment. Overall, this study provides the first evidence that ER stress response may be tightly correlated with chronic constipation induced by Lop treatment, as well as the laxative effects of AEtLP.
Keywords: ER stress; Liriope platyphylla; constipation; eIF2α; laxative; loperamide.