BackgroundGastrointestinal (GI) symptoms are common in the general population. This investigation studied the effects of Carthami flos (CF), a natural product, on GI motility.MethodsWe checked the intestinal transit rates (ITRs) or gastric emptying in normal and in GI-motility-dysfunction (GMD) mice in vivo. The GMD mice were made by acetic acid or streptozotocin.ResultsBoth ITRs and gastric emptying were increased by CF (0.0025–0.25 g/kg) dose dependently. Also, in the GMD mice models, acetic-acid-induced peritoneal irritation, and streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice, the ITRs were decreased compared to normal mice, and these decreases were inhibited by CF.ConclusionThese results suggest that CF is one of the good candidates for the development of a prokinetic agent that may regulate GI-motility functions.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of Socheongryong-tang, a traditional herbal medicine, on gastrointestinal (GI) motility disorders (inflammatory and diabetic models) in mice. Methods: The in vivo effects of Socheongryong-tang on GI motility were investigated by calculating percent intestinal transit rates (ITR) and gastric emptying (GE) values using Evans Blue and phenol red, respectively, in normal mice and in mice with experimentally induced GI motility dysfunction (GMD). GMD models were induced by acetic acid and streptozotocin. Results: In normal ICR mice, ITR and GE values were significantly and dose-dependently increased by the intragastric administration of Socheongryong-tang (0.0025∼0.25 g/kg). The ITR values (%) of GMD mice were significantly lower than those of normal mice, and these reductions were significantly and dose-dependently inhibited by Socheongryong-tang. Conclusions: These results suggest that Socheongryong-tang is a good candidate for the development of a prokinetic agent that may prevent or alleviate GMD.